USL Super League sells its name to increase relevance

The USL Super League, the newest Division I professional women’s soccer league in the United States, secured a major corporate sponsorship, selling its naming rights to financial services company Gainbridge, officials announced last Tuesday.

League president Amanda Vandervort and Gainbridge CEO Dan Towriss confirmed the partnership during the Business of Women’s Sports Summit hosted by Deep Blue. Although financial terms were not disclosed, Towriss said the agreement is a seven-figure deal, signaling growing corporate investment in women’s sports.

“It’s a testament to where women’s sports have come, that it’s attractive for a brand to take over the naming rights,” Towriss said, as reported by Annie Costabile of Front Office Sports.

The deal comes as the USL Super League concludes its inaugural season and prepares for its second. Initially expected to receive Division II sanctioning, the USL received Division I status from U.S. Soccer last year after meeting requirements that included launching with at least eight teams, placing 75% of teams in markets of over 750,000 people, and ensuring stadium capacities of at least 5,000.

Vandervort emphasized that the league’s main goal is to expand access to professional women’s soccer across the country.

“Before we launched the USL Super League there were 12 women’s professional teams in the NWSL,” she said. “But there were a lot of communities that didn’t have access to women’s pro soccer.”

The USL launched with teams in Washington D.C., Charlotte, Dallas, Lexington,  Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Spokane and Brooklyn, and will expand to nine teams next season. Operating under a franchise model, the USL’s structure mirrors international soccer more than the NWSL, notably with no draft or salary cap.

Despite sharing Division I status, a competitive gap remains between the NWSL and USL. The NWSL has loaned players to the USL, similar to NBA teams loaning players to the G League, though concerns persist about whether USL minutes offer comparable development.

The USL’s regular season wraps up May 31, with playoffs to follow.

Vandervort remains optimistic: “We’ve demonstrated and proven the case for women’s professional soccer in all of these cities. Now it’s about the fans and players being able to perform.”