Women's teams are big business, with global sports business conference SPOBIS International reporting this week that average WNBA franchise valuations rose to $90 million in 2024, while NWSL clubs weighed in at $104 million — doubling their 2023 mark.
In May, the reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty sold shares at a $450 million valuation, qualifying them as the world's most valuable women's sports team.
SPOBIS's top five includes the WSL's Chelsea FC ($326 million) alongside NWSL side Angel City FC ($250 million), the WNBA's Dallas Wings ($208 million), the Kansas City Current ($182 million), and the Las Vegas Aces ($140 million).
US women's sports teams hold a key advantage in the race to the top of the valuations table, with WNBA and NWSL squads able operate independently from men's systems.
Having separated from their men's side last year, Chelsea FC was the only non-US team to make the list, bolstered by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian's $26.6 million purchase of a 10% stake in the 2024/25 WSL champs last month.
Other European teams in line for similar value boosts include OL Lyonnes and the London City Lionesses, both independently owned and operated by Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang.
With many factors contributing to a team's overall value — namely capital, media deals, viewership, ownership structures, and popularity — it's tough to predict the next big thing in women's sports, but these numbers point to a red-hot market across major pro leagues.
According to a Thursday report from The Athletic, shares of the New York Liberty were recently sold at a $450 million valuation, making the reigning WNBA champions the most valuable franchise in women's sports.
Valued at $130 million just last year, the Liberty's new record-breaking worth is over 30 times what majority owners Joe and Clara Wu Tsai paid for the team in January 2019.
The shares in the multi-investor purchase account for an ownership percentage in the "mid-teens," with the capital intended to help fund an $80 million state-of-the-art training facility near the team's Barclays Center home in Brooklyn.
Growing investment in women's sports fuel high valuations
New York's valuation more than doubles the last-known WNBA capital raise, when the Dallas Wings sold 1% of their franchise at a $208 million valuation last August.
The NWSL's Angel City FC previously held the top mark in women's sports, valued at $250 million in last summer's sale to USC dean Willow Bay and her Disney CEO husband, Bob Iger.
Earlier this month, however, WSL champs Chelsea FC surpassed the LA club behind a $26.6 million investment from Reddit co-founder and tennis icon Serena Williams's husband, Alexis Ohanian.
With varied sources placing Ohanian's stake between 8% and 10%, the Blues valuation in that transaction lands in the $265 million to $331 million range — still trailing the Liberty by a hefty margin.
According to Wu Tsai, this is just the beginning, with the business leader boldly predicting blockbuster growth for her Brooklyn team — and the WNBA at-large — at a May 2024 event.
"I believe that in 10 years — or less — I'll be able to come back here to tell you how we turned the New York Liberty into the world's first billion-dollar women's sports franchise," she said.
Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian is Chelsea FC's newest owner, with the husband of tennis icon Serena Williams reportedly dropping £20 million ($26.6 million) on a 10% stake in the WSL champions earlier this week.
Ohanian is no stranger to investing in women's sports, from launching Angel City as the 2022 NWSL expansion club's majority owner to last year's founding of Athlos NYC, an annual women's track and field event with a $663,000 purse.
"I've bet big on women's sports before — and I'm doing it again," Ohanian posted on social media on Wednesday. "I'm proud to announce that I'm joining @ChelseaFCW as an investor and board member. I'm honored for the chance to help this iconic club become America's favorite @BarclaysWSL team and much, much more."
"These players are rewriting the game. Undefeated season. Eyes on the treble," said Ohanian about Chelsea FC's historic 2024/25 success. "But this isn't just about winning titles. It's about finally matching their talent with the resources, visibility, and respect they deserve."
Ohanian's investment comes amid soaring valuations for women's pro teams — with Chelsea's $257 million price tag ranking as the highest in all of women's soccer.
Calling Ohanian's buy-in "game-changing," Blues manager Sonia Bompastor told reporters on Thursday that "It's really important for the women's game but also for England to have someone to invest in a team like Chelsea."
"We want to be the leaders," she continued. "We want to be the team who shows to every other team how you need to perform and how you need to invest in the women's game."
Women's clubs still successful after splitting with men's teams
Ohanian's investment also indicates Chelsea's commitment to further distancing their women's team operations from their men's side, following last June's ownership move to place the women's squad under an independent subsidiary.
Though most European women's teams remain closely affiliated with their men's counterparts, severing ties is on the rise, with US billionaire Michele Kang assuming majority ownership over women's clubs Olympique Lyonnais and the newly promoted London City Lionesses in recent years.
With skyrocketing revenue — plus Kang's fleet proving that independence benefits women's teams — expect to see even more US investors eyeing women's sports opportunities abroad.