The NWSL FC K.C. is "expected either to fold or move to Salt Lake City," according to a source cited by Maria Torres of the K.C. STAR. Real Salt Lake reportedly will "announce its acquisition of an NWSL team in a news conference" today. Sources said that Sporting K.C. was "not interested in purchasing" the two-time NWSL champion. FC K.C. this year became "embroiled in a league investigation after sexually suggestive emails allegedly sent by some of the team’s former owners were made public." The team, which was owned by Chris Likens, his sons Brad and Greg, and Brian Budzinski, was "put up for sale shortly afterward." After announcing an attendance of 3,340 in the season opener, FC K.C. "struggled to draw a crowd as large at Swope Soccer Village" (K.C. STAR, 11/16). FOURFOURTWO.com's Richard Farley noted while Sporting K.C. had been "linked with the team, and another ownership group in Minnesota was said to be in line to take over the club," FC K.C. will "instead be headed west." It will become the NWSL’s "first team in the Rocky Mountain region." Replacing those initial options with a "stable, well-backed ownership group -- one with an established brand in a proven soccer market -- is another step toward stability for the NWSL." Behind the scenes, the impact of "adding another 'big' ownership group to the NWSL landscape could be huge" (FOURFOURTWO.com, 11/15).
GOING TO THE LAKE HOUSE: In Salt Lake City, Maddie Lee in a front-page piece notes the new NWSL team will "play at Rio Tinto Stadium." Real Salt Lake Owner Dell Loy Hansen has "alluded to his interest in bringing an NWSL team to Utah for years." A source said that he "plans to continue his focus on youth development" and "wants to launch a girls academy team." The investment is "in line with Hansen’s commitment to increasing Utah’s visibility within the world soccer scene" (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 11/16).
