The NWSL Western New York Flash will relocate to Cary, N.C., ahead of the '17 season, with the sale of the club "expected to be announced in the coming days," according to sources cited by Kassouf & Farley of soccer site FOURFOURTWO.com. The team had played its home games in Rochester "through the first four seasons of NWSL." Sources said that players "were informed of the news on Thursday." Kassouf & Farley note Stephen Malik, who owns NASL club North Carolina FC (recently rebranded from the Carolina RailHawks), last month announced his "intentions to acquire an NWSL franchise within six months." The Flash have "struggled to take root while splitting time between home games in Rochester and training sessions and headquarters in Elma, N.Y., outside of Buffalo." The Flash averaged 3,868 fans in '16, "ranking fifth in the 10-team league but hardly enough to ever fill" Sahlen's Stadium, the team’s 13,000-plus seat venue (FOURFOURTWO.com, 1/6). In Rochester, Jeff DiVeronica notes the Flash, which won last year's NWSL title, "suited up hometown soccer star Abby Wambach" during the league's debut season in '13, but attendance began to drop in '14 and Wambach "suffered a knee injury that kept her out much of the season." As the club " began to struggle on the field" in '14 and '15, it "started to lose its identity and fanbase." Trying to rebuild its roster, it "traded away established players and even stars, such as Carli Lloyd, who less than a year later criticized the organization for the surprising move" (DEMOCRATANDCHRONICLE.com, 1/6).
