The Future Of Women's Pro Soccer Is Being Built In The Heart Of Kansas City

Forbes

3 days ago

Angie and Chris Long have a luxury suite at CPKC Stadium, the new home of the National Women's Soccer League's Kansas City Current, but for the couple of hours before a game, they like to roam the grounds—walking the concourse, visiting the supporters' section or chatting up fans at a sponsored bar. 'There's a lot of gratitude involved in this, so you want to share that,' says Chris Long, who with his wife bought the franchise in 2020 and privately financed the construction of the $140 million stadium.
The Longs, who in their day jobs oversee more than $34 billion in investments as cofounders of Palmer Square Capital Management at the firm's office seven miles away, recognize that CPKC Stadium is hardly just another building. When it opened in March 2024 along the banks of the Missouri River just north of downtown Kansas City, it was the first venue in the world developed primarily for a professional women's sports franchise. And while that milestone would be impressive enough on its own, the value that the 11,500-seat stadium has unlocked for the Current has been nothing short of transformative.
The team, which previously played at Children's Mercy Park as a tenant under MLS's Sporting Kansas City, saw a 'more than $20 million revenue swing' in its first season at its new home, Angie Long says. By bolstering business lines such as premium seating and tapping into new streams, including concessions, naming rights and third-party events, the Current generated $36 million in revenue in 2024—the best mark in the NWSL and nearly quadruple the league's median of $9.5 million, according to Forbes estimates. The club is now worth an estimated $275 million, second only to $280 million Angel City FC despite playing in the fourth-smallest market in the 14-team league.
The way the Longs see it, the growth has only just begun. The Current purposely held back in certain areas last season—limiting the number of non-NWSL events they hosted to keep the field pristine, for instance, and retaining some sponsorship assets until they had a better handle on what they were selling. With those guardrails being lifted, the franchise is projecting $45 million in revenue in 2025. The Current also believe they can reach break-even on an operating basis this year—a goal that remains far out of reach for most NWSL clubs.
'We're scratching the surface in every single way,' says Angie Long, a Kansas City native.
That bright future is even more remarkable considering Kansas City's previous attempt at professional women's soccer was a resounding failure. FC Kansas City began play in 2013 as one of the NWSL's inaugural eight franchises, but despite winning back-to-back league titles in 2014 and 2015, the team soon fell into disarray under Elam Baer, CEO of Minnesota-based investment firm North Central Equity, who bought the franchise in 2017. The same year, the NWSL bought back FC Kansas City and ceased its operations, transferring the rights to the club's players to the Utah Royals, an expansion franchise.
The Royals came back on the market in 2020, however, after the Athletic detailed team owner Dell Loy Hansen's history of racist comments. The Longs, keen on getting into soccer in the wake of the 2019 Women's World Cup, partnered with Brittany Mahomes and her famous husband, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, to secure another NWSL expansion slot along with the rights to Utah's players, for a reported $3 million fee. The group immediately moved the franchise back to Kansas City and into Legends Field, which once housed MLS's Kansas City Wizards (now known as Sporting KC) and is the regular home of an independent baseball team.
Revenue was a paltry $3 million for the club's first season, in 2021—an era when NWSL franchise values were still below $5 million, before Michele Kang reset the market with her $35 million purchase of the Washington Spirit in 2022. The modest beginnings didn't stop Kansas City's ownership from looking ahead.
'The facilities were always part of the master plan,' says Chris Long, whose team left Legends Field for Children's Mercy Park for the 2022 and 2023 seasons. 'We were always looking at risk and return, and we quickly figured it out, and I don't think it's too profound that facilities are a massive piece of the puzzle when it comes to really running a world-class franchise. What club out there that's been successful doesn't own and run their own facilities?'
The Current announced plans for what would become CPKC Stadium in October 2021 and broke ground in March 2022, three months before opening an $18 million training facility 10 miles away in Riverside, Missouri. Railway company Canadian Pacific Kansas City bought the naming rights to the new venue in a 10-year deal, and in front of a sellout crowd, CPKC Stadium opened in March 2024 with the Current claiming a 5-4 victory over the Portland Thorns.
The move didn't mean the Current could sell more tickets: Children's Mercy Park has a listed capacity of 18,467, roughly 7,000 more seats than CPKC Stadium has. But with higher prices across both single-game offerings and a robust season-ticket base of more than 8,000, the club more than doubled its ticket revenue in 2024 and sold out every match. The new stadium also features 12 luxury suites, which are priced at $110,000 per year and quickly sold out on eight-year contracts, and roughly 1,300 total premium seats, including 'loge boxes' and communal clubs.
The stadium's design would allow for future expansion, which Angie Long predicts could happen in the next five to seven years. For now, though, the Longs want to cultivate a lively atmosphere and a feeling of exclusivity, pointing as an example to 9,314-seat Cameron Indoor Stadium, the home of Duke University basketball. And at the moment, CPKC's medium size is helping it carve out a niche in attracting non-NWSL ticketed events. For instance, the stadium played host to an international rugby match in March and drew an announced crowd of 10,518, a record for a U.S. women's national team match on American soil. It was also good marketing: More than 70% of the fans in attendance were visiting the venue for the first time.
The benefits of the new stadium go beyond ticketing, however. The Current have seen similar growth with their sponsorships, adding premium partnerships with brands including Yeti, and having a permanent team store on site has driven up merchandise sales.
'You have ownership of so many more revenue streams, and you have ownership of your data,' says Laura Andriani, an executive at sports marketing agency Two Circles. 'Everything from the first marketing touchpoint to the survey a ticket buyer receives the day after going to a match and everything in between is now fair play for you to connect, understand and enhance the experience of your fan, which is ultimately going to enhance your revenues. So owning that entire ecosystem is wildly valuable.'
Fan Favorite: Led by star midfielder Debinha, the Current sold out every match in 2024 and have a season-ticket base of more than 8,000.
Jamie Squire/NWSL/Getty Images
Despite that upside, most other NWSL clubs would face plenty of hurdles trying to replicate the Current's model—among them, finding the land, adhering to city and state regulations, and securing the money to fund the project—particularly with many franchises still posting annual operating losses of $10 million or more, according to Forbes estimates. Kang, the billionaire owner of the Washington Spirit, explored the possibility of building a stadium for her club, which is currently a tenant of MLS's D.C. United at Audi Field, but with so many existing venues in the area, she had to ask herself, 'Does the city really need another stadium?'
'I'm not a real estate developer,' Kang explains. 'My focus is going to be really growing women's sports, and I'm not going to get rich by game day, selling tickets.'
Even Angie Long acknowledges that a franchise can be successful without owning its stadium. In fact, Angel City, which plays at Los Angeles' BMO Stadium as a tenant of MLS's LAFC, nearly matched the Current with revenue of $35 million in 2024, thanks in large part to an impressive stable of corporate sponsors.
At the same time, the Current's unique situation has the Longs projecting revenue to climb by more than 25% annually, which should widen their financial advantage on most of their NWSL competitors, and a mixed-use development sprouting up around CPKC Stadium could fuel even more growth. The privately financed $1 billion project, which started construction in March, will add bars, restaurants, hotels, offices and residential space to the surrounding 23 acres in a three-phase process, the first of which is expected to be completed next year. The increased foot traffic could drive up the price of partnering with the Current—for example, a study by Klutch Sports Group and the Royal Bank of Canada found that these types of projects raise the value of naming rights deals by 58% when the venue and accompanying district are sold together.
The Current's success certainly has other NWSL ownership groups paying attention—and changing expectations for how the league does business. Denver, which in January was awarded an expansion franchise for a $110 million fee, has publicly announced plans to build a 14,500-seat stadium. Boston Legacy FC, which won its expansion bid in 2023 and will begin play alongside Denver in 2026, has committed to a $200 million renovation of the existing White Stadium, splitting the cost with taxpayers (although a lawsuit has aimed to stop the project).
Commissioner Jessica Berman has said she believes the NWSL could grow as large as the 32-team NFL, and as it contemplates future expansion, the league office recognizes the value that comes with team-controlled stadiums—not only in terms of revenue but also in the better broadcast windows a team can claim for its schedule when it isn't having to negotiate with a landlord for certain dates or times. Infrastructure will be a major consideration in expansion bids going forward, along with factors like the market and the credentials of the ownership group.
To be sure, the NWSL is a long way away from matching established men's pro leagues, where having a world-class stadium is often taken as a given, but the Longs already believe that what they have accomplished in Kansas City will eventually be the league's standard, rather than an exception.
'It's raised the bar,' Chris Long says. 'I think the trend is just beginning.'