Boston Legacy FC

History

Boston's second professional women's soccer club, the Boston Breakers, launched in 2009 and played in three leagues—Women's Professional Soccer, Women's Premier Soccer League Elite, and the NWSL—before shutting down in 2017. A limited fanbase was the main reason, with most reports pointing to poor marketing. Boston Unity Soccer Partners tried for an NWSL expansion spot in both 2024 and 2026, finally winning the latter bid. The club first revealed its name as BOS Nation FC in October 2024, a wordplay on "boss" and an anagram of "Bostonian."

Its marketing campaign used the slogan "there are too many balls in this town," meant to call out the male-dominated sports culture in Boston. But the campaign drew sharp criticism: the LGBTQ community called it transphobic, and others said it ignored Boston's existing women's sports teams. The club apologized publicly days later and dropped the campaign. A rebrand followed in March 2025, with the new name Boston Legacy FC.

The redesigned crest came out in June 2025, showing an eight-feathered swan to honor the eight original NWSL teams. The design also nods to Romeo and Juliet, two female mute swans that once lived in the Boston Public Garden. Boston Legacy FC will start playing in the 2026 season, alongside Denver Summit FC, bringing the NWSL to 16 teams.

Stadium

Boston Legacy FC intends to make White Stadium in Franklin Park its home venue. That stadium was described as the first in the country to serve as the home field for both a major professional sports team and a public high school’s athletics program, with Boston Public Schools using it for track and soccer. To keep the field in good condition, American football games would be banned until after the pro soccer season, except during MIAA playoffs and Thanksgiving contests.

The City of Boston originally planned to put up as much as $50 million for renovations, and BUSP added $30 million. By 2026, the projected cost had jumped to $325 million, with $135 million coming from city funds and $190 million from the team’s private investment. The work wasn’t finished in time for the debut season, so in May 2025 the club said it would play all its first-year matches at Gillette Stadium. In 2026, seven of fifteen home games were moved to Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, because of scheduling conflicts at Gillette during the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup.

The Emerald Necklace Conservancy and some local residents sued the city and the team over the White Stadium plan, but a court denied their request for a preliminary injunction, and the lawsuit was dismissed in April 2025. Their appeal was rejected by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in August 2026, letting the project move forward, though it was behind schedule. On August 27, 2026, the club announced that all 2027 home matches would be played at Centreville Bank Stadium, with a move to White Stadium planned for the 2028 season.

Organization

Boston Legacy FC is controlled by Boston Unity Soccer Partners, a women-led ownership group whose leaders are Jennifer Epstein, Stephanie Connaughton, Ami Danoff, and Anna Palmer. Among the investors are Aly Raisman, Elizabeth Banks, and Tracy and Brad Stevens; WNBA All-Star Aliyah Boston became an owner in July 2025. The club named Filipa Patão its first head coach on June 25, 2025. Domènec Guasch, previously a recruitment and contract manager for FC Barcelona Femení, is the general manager. Edward Gallagher, formerly a player recruitment manager for Brighton & Hove Albion women, became the club’s first director of player recruitment. In June 2026, construction began on a 30,000-square-foot training facility in Brockton, set to open by the end of 2026, with an all-seasons bubble dome finishing in January 2027.