September 24 – Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve (pictured) and team president Carley Knox are the latest high-profile investors in Minnesota Aurora FC, the community-owned women’s soccer team pushing for a place in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).
“Our partnership was a no-brainer to help fuel this pathway to professional soccer,” Reeve told ESPN. “The Twin Cities will be an incredible market.”
Aurora has been a cultural sensation since launching in 2022. Built on a community-ownership model (which mirrors the club structure in Germany), the club has more than 5,000 investors and regularly sells out its 6,000-seat venue, in some cases drawing better crowds than some NWSL sides.
The momentum nearly carried Aurora into the league last year, but Minnesota withdrew late from the expansion process as franchise fees soared past $100 million, up from $2 million just a few years ago.
For Knox, who once played and coached Division I college soccer, the vision is clear: “For us, the No. 1 [goal] is getting us an NWSL team. We want to dive in full force… The community will absolutely get behind them in a way we haven’t seen before.”
Aurora’s pursuit comes as the NWSL expands again, with Denver and Boston joining in 2026. Commissioner Jessica Berman has confirmed the league will now consider bids on a rolling basis, keeping Minnesota’s hopes alive.
The investment by Reeve and Knox also echoes a broader trend of established sports figures backing soccer’s growth. LeBron James famously bought into Liverpool FC in 2011, well before Fenway Sports Group’s valuation of the club skyrocketed.
That move helped signal to American investors that soccer was no longer a niche play but a global growth market. Reeve and Knox’s decision carries a similar message: that women’s soccer, and particularly the NWSL, is a space where early believers can shape the future.
“We are 100 percent bought in,” Knox said. “I see the vision for the future.”
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