France's Olympique Lyonnais is now OL Lyonnes, with team owner Michele Kang announcing the Lyon rebrand of the world's most successful women's soccer club on Monday.
In an effort to distance themselves further from the men's side while still paying homage to the team's home of Lyon, the now-independent club merged the word "lionne," French for lioness, with the city's name.
Along with the new name, OL Lyonnes has a refreshed crest, departing from the club's traditional lion and instead opting for a gold-crowned, blue- and yellow-maned red lioness posed mid-roar.
"This is not about just a name change and some graphic changes," Kang told reporters on Monday. "This is about giving the most successful women's team in the world its own platform, its own identity."
"We’re not a subset of the men's team. We are a standalone force."
New facilities to fuel continued OL Lyonnes dominance
The team, whose roster includes USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps, has a history of setting the standard for what's possible on the women's pitch.
The eight-time Champions League winners scored their 18th Division 1 Féminine championship in 19 years on Friday, boosting the 21-year-old club's tally to a world record-extending 39 titles.
Kang literally bought in on that success, purchasing the club last August, pulling it under the umbrella of her global multi-team organization Kynisca Sports International alongside the NWSL's Washington Spirit and newly promoted WSL side London City.
The rebrand is just one part of Kang's next steps with OL Lyonnes, with the billionaire investor also committing to financing the renovation of the club's boys' academy training facilities to turn them into a new performance center designed specifically for women's soccer athletes.
While the club is aiming for a July 2026 opening of that training center, OL Lyonnes will have a more immediate upgrade for matchdays, with Kang stating that all future games will take place in the 59,186-seat Groupama Stadium — a venue with nearly 39 times the capacity of the nearby 1,524-seat Stade Gérard Houllier that served as the team's primary home pitch.
"From day one, I was impressed with how the women's team has achieved this kind of success with the amount of resources that was available to them," said Kang during the Monday announcement.
"The best team in the world... playing the majority of games at a training center. It is unfitting," Kang told the Associated Press. "We want our fans to be part of our journey, part of our community and you can't achieve fan engagement by constantly switching back and forth."
RAJ Sports, owners of the NWSL's Portland Thorns and Portland's incoming 2026 WNBA expansion franchise, broke ground on their historic dual-sport training center on Wednesday, as the 12-acre $150 million facility begins to take shape.
The performance center will support both Portland squads, becoming the first-ever training complex to house a professional women's soccer club and a pro women's basketball team under singular ownership.
Led by Lisa Bhathal Merage as well as her brother, Alex Bhathal, RAJ Sports is the sports investment arm of the Bhathal family, who shifted into team ownership on the heels of their longtime family swimwear business.
Bhathal Merage, in particular, is taking charge in ensuring the new facility is pushing the needle for women's sports.
"We don't look at our investments as philanthropy at all," said Bhathal Merage. "It's about moving things forward."
"I've been involved in hand selecting every finish, carpet, tile to make it through the female lens of how we interact, how we look at things, what we want to see," she explained.
"I think this performance center will be changing the dynamic for women's sports for generations to come," added Bhathal Merage. "Our view is to collaborate, involve the community and really lift up everybody by that collaboration."
The Bhathal family are also eager to reveal their incoming WNBA team's name, telling reporters that they’ve "literally compiled every single comment from every single person into a massive spreadsheet and rank them in order of how popular they were."
"We're waiting for final league approval," said Bhathal Merage. "Hopefully within the next two, maximum three months, we'll be able to unveil everything."
Stanford shattered the NCAA softball attendance record this weekend, welcoming 13,207 fans inside the university’s football stadium for Saturday's "Big Swing" game against Cal.
In the most-attended non-football contest in Stanford Athletics' history, the Cardinal softball crowd surpassed the sport's previous attendance record of 12,566, set on the first day of the 2024 Women's College World Series (WCWS) in Oklahoma City.
The history-making game also blew past the NCAA softball regular-season record of 9,259 fans, a feat reached less than two weeks ago when reigning champions Oklahoma defeated local rivals Oklahoma State on April 9th.
"It was kind of like a mini College World Series experience," Stanford junior outfielder Kyra Chan said after the game.
Despite dropping the record-breaking matchup 10-8 to their new ACC rivals, No. 16 Stanford ultimately secured the three-game series against the Golden Bears with wins on Thursday and Friday.
Friday's 9-3 victory was particularly impactful, clinching the Cardinal a spot in their first-ever ACC championship tournament next month — the first postseason stop as Stanford hunts a third-straight appearance in the WCWS semifinals.
Stanford softball fuels argument for larger women's sports venues
Softball isn't the only sport leading the recent surge in record-breaking NCAA women's sports crowds.
After shifting a volleyball match into its football stadium in August 2023, Nebraska welcomed not just the sport's biggest crowd, but the largest to ever attend any women's sporting event in the US.
Shortly thereafter, Iowa's "Crossover at Kinnick" blasted through the NCAA women's basketball attendance mark by moving an exhibition game featuring the Caitlin Clark-led Hawkeyes into the university's football venue.
Though the move to massive football stadiums was intentional to snag both Nebraska's and Iowa's respective records, Stanford's venue shift was not initially an attendance-hunting move.
The Cardinal's entire 2025 softball season is being played on the gridiron as the team's new $50 million stadium and state-of-the-art training facility is under construction.
Taking advantage of that added capacity was a no-brainer, with Stanford specifically branding and marketing their rivalry "Big Swing" game to capitalize on their temporary digs — and to continue making the overall case for expanding women's sports' venues.
"I think that you see a consistent theme that there aren't big enough venues for women's sports to be able to draw the fans that they can draw," Stanford softball head coach Jessica Allister pointed out.
"Hopefully, a lot of people who showed up to Stanford for the first time to watch a softball game will come back and see us in our beautiful stadium."
Less than two months after winning the bid to become the 16th NWSL team, 2026 expansion franchise Denver has already sold over 10,000 season ticket deposits, setting a new league record.
This week's sales record comes after Denver became the fastest expansion franchise in NWSL history to surpass 5,000 season ticket deposits, with 5,280 snapped up in the first three days following the league awarding a team to the Mile High City.
"This milestone showcases that our community is passionate about women’s professional soccer and what we are building in Denver and across the front range," said the club's controlling owner Rob Cohen in a statement on Monday.
Denver continues plans for top-tier facilities
The incoming NWSL club has been busy outside the box office, too, as Denver dropped plans for a new 14,500-seat, purpose-built stadium last month.
With the team's permanent competition digs aiming to open for the 2028 season, the club is also constructing both a purpose-built, 12,000-seat temporary stadium for the squad's 2026 and 2027 season.
That stadium, as well as the team's permanent state-of-the-art training and performance facility, will be located approximately 14 miles southeast of Denver in nearby Centennial, Colorado.
"There is still a great deal of work to be done," said Cohen. "We are excited to continue collaborating with our community to create a club that is representative and inclusive of all of Colorado."
How to secure NWSL Denver season tickets
With inventory flying off of Denver's proverbial shelves, those interested in snagging season tickets to the NWSL's 16th franchise can do so by submitting a deposit online.
The 2024 champion New York Liberty is the latest WNBA team to enter the dedicated practice facility race, with plans for an $80 million, 75,000-square-foot training center in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
Set to open in 2027, the complex will eliminate the need for Liberty players to share facilities with the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets.
“We are a player-first organization and investing in health and wellness has always been a priority for us. The New York Liberty deserve a facility of their own: one that reflects their tremendous talent, work ethic, and ambition,” said Liberty governor Clara Wu Tsai.
“This facility is a sign of our commitment to the team, to the city of New York, and to the advancement of women’s sports.”
“The New York Liberty strive to be the standard on and off the court and this facility will be a game changer as we continue our relentless pursuit of excellence,” said Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb.
“A key part of this process has been the active involvement of our players in creating a year-round home for themselves and their families, and the collaborative effort to redefine the standard of player care and experience. When our athletes step into what will be the crown jewel of the WNBA, they will see themselves and their insights reflected throughout.”
Liberty expand facility offerings beyond top-tier WNBA standards
In addition to common amenities like dining, workout, and recovery areas, the facility will forgo a traditional locker room and instead provide every player with a private suite. Each suite will be stocked with a wardrobe and sneaker storage, a vanity with face-illuminating lighting, and a seven-foot daybed.
In addition to interior comforts, the center also features an outdoor basketball court. The court will host both practicing players and community-based clinics, allowing for greater neighborhood integration.
“I am grateful to be a part of an organization who recognizes the power of investment in their players, and ensures we have everything we need to be at top of our game at all times,” said star Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu.
“It was amazing to sit down with Populous and walk through what is most important to us as athletes to be successful in all aspects of our lives. This facility is a massive next step for the New York Liberty.”
“One of the main things that drew me to the New York Liberty organization is the level of investment in us as athletes," added center Jonquel Jones. "We just won a championship, and in the same way they expect us to level up and step up our game, our ownership group and leadership continues to raise the bar, and this facility is a perfect example of that."
Bay FC released renderings for the 2024 NWSL expansion team’s first-ever dedicated training facility on Wednesday, with award-winning design firm Olson Kundig overseeing the state-of-the-art complex’s development.
"In order to be a global sports franchise, the team needs its own home and dedicated facility," said Bay FC CEO Brady Stewart in the club's statement. "Tom Kundig and the Olson Kundig team understand our priority of player-centricity and also designed an inspirational and stunning space which reflects a sense of home for our players and staff."
"Olson Kundig are true innovators and are helping us future proof the facility and create something uniquely designed for our athletes that will nurture the whole person and unlock maximum potential."
Bay FC’s training facility, which is expected to open before the 2027 NWSL season, prioritizes a seamless experience for athletes, balancing private and communal spaces with an emphasis on wholistic player care.
Located at the center of the Bay on Treasure Island, a man-made island constructed in 1937, the complex will include three training fields and boasts sweeping views of San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, North Bay, the Bay Bridge, and East Bay.
Even more, the center will provide resources to support long-term off-pitch success, including career development, education, and business training resources.
"Players commit to training together, building relationships, and working as a team every day," remarked Kundig. "The design acknowledges the complexity of that commitment — to the sport, the team, and the place that supports them both."
Bay FC joins expanding roster of teams with top training centers
As rising professionalization continues to shape women’s sports, top-of-the-line training centers have become a key way for clubs to stand out — even across the West Coast's crowded real estate market.
Bay FC's new 2025 WNBA neighbor Golden State and the NWSL's LA club Angel City have both recently embraced the dedicated facilities trend, while Portland’s 2026 WNBA expansion team announced last month that it will share a new $150 million sports performance complex with the NWSL’s Portland Thorns.
Dedicated facilities are increasingly becoming the status quo in the NWSL and WNBA, and Bay FC’s thoughtful design should be a selling point for top talent for years to come.