Alexis Olympia, the daughter of Serena Williams, has become the youngest owner of a pro sports team in history. The two-year-old investor is officially a joint owner of a new National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) side called Angel City.
On Tuesday, the National Women’s Soccer League announced that it has awarded rights to a new expansion team in Los Angeles, now known as “Angel City.” The team belongs to an all-star 30-person ownership group headed by actress Natalie Portman.
“Today we take an exciting step by announcing the first women majority-owned and led ownership group,” Portman said. “I am thrilled by the opportunity to partner with this incredible group of people to bring a professional women’s soccer team to Los Angeles”.
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“Together, we aim to build not only a winning team on the field but also to develop a passionately loyal fan base. We also hope to make a substantive impact on our community, committing to extending access to sports for young people in Los Angeles through our relationship with the LA84 Foundation.
“Sports are such a joyful way to bring people together, and this has the power to make a tangible change for female athletes both in our community and in the professional sphere.”
The group boasts of the nation’s youngest pro sports owner: 2-year-old Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., daughter of Serena Williams and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, both of whom are also owners.
“I am proud to be a part of this wonderful group working to bring a women’s professional football club to Los Angeles. Chiefly, because I’m a fan of the game, but also because I believe there is massive potential for the sport and it’s been undervalued by too many people for far too long,” Ohanian said.
“As someone who spends hours kicking around a football with my two-year-old daughter, I want her to have a front row seat to this revolution. I’m personally investing on behalf of my family because creating more opportunities in women’s sports is important to my wife and me, and we want to be a part of making a better future for our daughter,” he said.
Other members of the ownership group include 14 former USWNT players as well as actors Uzo Aduba, America Ferrera, Jessica Chastain, Jennifer Garner, and Eva Longoria. The team’s official name and venue will be announced by the end of the year.
The NWSL Los Angeles expansion team is set to begin to play in 2022. The new team will pave the way for California to host professional women’s football for the first time in 10 years.
“The time has come to reshape expectations on and off the soccer field. This is the place. The time is now. Welcome to the beginning,” an Instagram post on Angel City’s official social media page reads.
