According to a report from Sports Business Journal, Connor Barwin, former linebacker and current Head of Football Development and Strategy for the Eagles, is leading an ownership group’s efforts in bringing the 16th NWSL team and a new stadium to Philadelphia, which would start play in the 2026 season.
The league’s hope is to award the newest expansion team by the end of the year, joining NWSL’s newest addition, BOS Nation FC – who really dropped the “balls” on their branding announcement this week – for the start of the 2026 season. Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, and Nashville are thought to be the other cities competing with Barwin’s group to be awarded NWSL’s next expansion team.
The Ownership Group and early Plans for NWSL Philly expansion
Per the report from SBJ’s Alex Silverman and Chris Smith, part of the reason the NWSL hasn’t made an official visit to Philadelphia yet is the lack of a preferred site for a new stadium identified by Barwin and the rest of the Ownership Group, said to be comprised of un-named celebrities, female business leaders from the local area, and USWNT players with ties to the Tri-state region.
Plans from Barwin’s group hope to include a new stadium to go along with their new team, with games temporarily played at Lincoln Financial Field until a new and more permanent home is finished being constructed. But realistically, where in Philadelphia would this idea of a team eventually settle down?
Where Would They Play?
Back before the Phillies built and moved into Citizen’s Bank Park down at the Sports Complex, the Inquirer published some info on potential sites for team’s new stadium, including ideas for Broad and Spring Garden, 30th Street on the banks of the Schuylkill River, FDR Park, Port Richmond – or what we’d probably call Fishtown in 2024 – right by Graffiti Pier, and of course, the eventual outcome, staying in South Philly. Interestingly, I still think some of these ideas are worth considering for a potential new NWSL stadium.
Broad and Spring Garden
Although sketches from the Broad and Spring Garden location look really awesome, a lot of the concerns raised in the Sixers-Chinatown conversation come right back up, minus the disruption of an ethnic enclave. This feels like the least likely of those locations as I’m not sure how much space there actually is to build in that part of the city these days, but maybe they could team up with Temple to finally get their Football stadium built, which had it’ plans put on hold when the school renewed their lease at Lincoln Financial Field.
30th Street
The 30th Street location probably has a ~little~ bit more room, and is located near multiple modes of public transportation, but traffic would likely still be an issue. There are currently athletic fields owned by Penn in the site of the original plans, which would be easier than knocking down a bunch of buildings, businesses, and homes like the Broad and Spring Garden proposal likely would.
It might not be the most popular location, and I know it likely comes with some hurdles, but the thought of biking down the Schuylkill River Trail, one of the best locations in all of Philadelphia, before making my way to the stadium for a match is something I, personally, have a great time day-dreaming about.
Port Richmond / Fishtown
The Port Richmond / Fishtown area is an interesting idea to me, even if it doesn’t have as good of public transportation access as the others. The neighborhood has gone through a drastic transformation over recent years, so much so that I think the original site for the Phillies Stadium would probably be out of question, but there’s still an area just north of Graffiti Pier with a lot of vacant land.
PLENTY of space down there for a stadium and then some. I was wrangled by a Bull (railroad cop) there once, so I think likewise of Graffiti Pier, the land might be owned by Conrail (for now), so I don’t think any real plans for the land are in the pipeline, other than the hopeful renovations of Graffiti Pier. The direct access to I95 is certainly a plus, but there’s not much else over in that little pocket of the city East of the highway right now.
FDR Park
I don’t like the idea of FDR Park as a location, but I’m not sure it could be ruled out as a potential location just yet, even if it’s pretty unlikely. We know plans for 12 new multi-purpose fields are planned for FDR park, with the possibility of 2 of those fields being used for training locations during the 2026 World Cup.
If Barwin’s group could get their stuff together quickly, which I’m not sure this is something you’d want to rush, maybe a few of those 12 multi-use fields could be turned into a new multi-use stadium. Likewise of the currently planned multi-purpose fields, I don’t think this would be the most popular idea with residents of South Philadelphia, many of which cite environmental concerns. This is probably my least favorite, and least likely outcome of the bunch.
Sports Complex
Even if it’s not my favorite of the ideas, I think the Sports Complex probably gives a new NWSL team the best chance to do well from the jump. It’s familiar to fans in Philadelphia, has a great tailgating culture, it’s got adequate parking and access to public transportation, and it means fans won’t have to change their game-day routine too drastically once the team moves from their temporary home of the Linc to their permanent, new home.
Plus, if the plans from Comcast’s $2.5 Billion dollar plan to improve the Sport Complex looks half as good as the initial renderings, what a full game-day experience it could be for soccer fans in South Philly. Obviously, much of that hangs on whether they can manage to fit a new stadium into the plans before too much is set in stone or not.
Navy Yard
One idea, not part of the Phillies’ original plans outlined by the Inquire, is the Navy Yard down in South Philly. Sitting just south of the Sport Complex, the Navy Yard broke ground on a new “live, work, stay, and play” neighborhood in 2023, which will see over $6 Billion Dollars of investment and continual development over the next 15-20 years.
In 2024 a stadium in the Navy Yard might be a bit difficult to envision flourishing and being a part of a Philly sports fan’s routine, but it could be an opportunity for the potential new team to get themselves in one of the city’s new hot-beds ahead of the curve, and was a location the 76ers’ considered before ultimately deciding to abandoning The South Philly Sports Complex and move their eventual new stadium to Market Street.
Will the NWSL come to Philadelphia?
We’re still a long way away from a professional Women’s team coming to Philadelphia, but news of a new ownership group forming with plans to build a new stadium is more than we’ve had to chew on and digest in quite a while.
I think a lot of people are into the idea of a new NWSL team planting its flag within the boundaries of Philadelphia proper, and think the team would see a lot of those fans that just can’t see past Union’s flaws show up. Hopefully for the Union, who don’t seem to be involved much in the new group’s efforts to bring NWSL to Philly, making the decision to invest in a $50+ Billion Dollar Sportsplex of their own and further cementing their home in Chester doesn’t have them regretting their decision a few years down the road.
Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
