In May of this year, news from the USA caused a stir in the world of football.
After a year-long legal battle with its women’s national team, the US federation announced that men and women of the national team will now receive exactly the same pay.
A sign of equality between men and women. Even a football team that one day wants to become famous like Liverpool FC has committed itself to this equality: Angel City FC.
Actress as initiator
While US footballers can count themselves lucky with every participation in the World Cup, the women’s national team has dominated women’s football events for years. However, former greats like former national team player Abby Wambach are far from the millions in revenue of their male counterparts.
This is exactly what actress Natalie Portmann made us think: “Women are extraordinarily undervalued in sport. And this is in the United States, where sport is culturally relevant.”
She wasn’t a football fan at the time, but she still wanted to fight for equality. The past World Cup changed her perspective on the sport: “Watching my son idolize players like Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan as much as Lionel Messi or Karim Benzema, I realized that strengthening female athletes could quickly change culture.”
Support for female celebrities
After visiting a women’s national team game the same year, she faced abuse in US professional football. What followed were: meetings, phone calls, exchange of ideas.
This gave her an idea: a football team run by women, for women and women’s rights. She then went in search of investors and quickly found them. The list ranges from Hollywood greats like Eva Longoria or Jennifer Garner to sports stars like Serena Williams, Lindsey Vonn or Billie Jean King to venture capitalists and entrepreneurs.
Diversity is also very important in the club itself: of the 220 people who work in the club, 75% are women and 55% are “people of color,” Portman explains.
More revenue than the German women’s Bundesliga
According to Portman, $ 44 million has already been raised in this way. The German women’s Bundesliga, with all the teams combined, had a turnover of just € 15 million last season, a record.
The particularity of Angel City FC is that ten percent of all revenue goes to social or charitable causes.
Angel City FC amazes the audience
Fan interest in Los Angeles is great. The club has sold nearly 16,000 season tickets, more than any club in the men’s league, Major League Soccer (MLS).
The mission, backed by the support of the fans, is clear: “To be champions on the pitch and champions of justice off the pitch,” says Portman. The project is not only a source of enthusiasm for the fans, but also for the German goalkeeper Almuth Schult.
The 31-year-old former world goalkeeper is moving to the City of Angels in the best time to become a goalkeeper. Schult stressed the special characteristics of their new club: “Angel City is unique. It’s not just about football. It’s also about promoting and supporting women. I’m proud to be part of the team.”
build a brand
Sporting success is obviously important for the club, but a real brand should also be created.
“Angel City is trying to build something that has more meaning than just football. But for it to work, you also need to have a good football team. It must exist together,” says sporting director Eniola Aluko, “we must be a brand that belongs to the community. it helps and she understands, but we also need to make sure we bring players who can take us to the next level. “
Perhaps the club will manage to establish itself alongside the famous franchises of the city like the Los Angeles Lakers around basketball superstar LeBron James and one day it will actually be as famous as Liverpool FC.
