NWSL announced Kansas City as an expansion side in the fall of 2020 in light of having to relocate Utah Royals FC after Royals owner Dell Loy Hansen failed to find a buyer for his MLS, USL, and NWSL brands. The Kansas City ownership group led by Angie and Chris Long stepped in ready to field a team within their market. The Royals branding stayed in Utah, while the roster moved to Kansas City, but with the tight timeline of the NWSL draft and preseason, the team has introduced a temporary name, badge, and website as they prepare for their first draft day.
You've waited patiently for it, and we couldn't be more excited to share our Inaugural Season KC Crest! We Play For You, Kansas City. #WePlayForKC pic.twitter.com/bFoziQqkft
— KC NWSL (@KCWoSo) January 12, 2021
The team announced that they will be operating under the temporary name KC NWSL, and new branding for the team includes the colors red, blue and teal. The red and blue chosen to represent the primary colors in the state flags of the region, while teal was chosen to reflect a fresh color and feel to the club for the bright future of the team and organization. The inclusion of two stars isn't meant to represent the two former NWSL championships won by FC Kansas City, but instead are meant to represent the states Kansas and Missouri, while the three stripes are a nod to the Santa Fe, Oregon and California National Historic Trails as an ode to the history of the region's railways and crossroads.
"It is important to us to articulate who and what we play for: our players, our fans and our city," said Co-Founder Angie Long. "We are so proud of this inaugural crest and how it represents our city. At the same time, we're excited to continue our long-term strategic branding process over the course of this upcoming year: taking the time to listen to our fans, starting with our Founding Members, and reflect their participation in the process."
The temporary design and name is a starting point for the club as Kansas City gets set to embark on their newest NWSL journey. The club will continue to work on their brand development process, which will be guided by a newly announced Brand Advisory Council to be led by KC NWSL Co-Owner Brittany Matthews, and is meant to bring together design experts, soccer insiders, branding leaders and prominent Kansas City voices.
"We're looking forward to adding to Kansas City's championship history, and we're bringing that same approach to the club's name and brand," Matthews said. "We want to create something that is distinctly designed to capture the fabric of Kansas City and to authentically represent our athletes and our sport."
KC NWSL is set to participate in their first ever NWSL draft on Wednesday. The team currently holds the 14th, 15th, 16th and 37th overall picks.
