FC Kansas City was an American professional women's soccer club based in Kansas City, Missouri. The team was one of the eight founding clubs of the National Women's Soccer League in 2012, and began play in 2013. They were two-time NWSL champions, having won titles in 2014[1] and 2015.[2] After the 2017 season, the NWSL re-acquired owner Elam Baer's membership interest and subsequently ceased the team's operations.[3]
In November 2012, it was confirmed that a Kansas City-based women's professional soccer team had been accepted into a new women's professional soccer league, later named National Women's Soccer League.[4] The KC ownership group was composed of Chris Likens, his two sons Brad and Greg Likens, and Brian Budzinski, the same owners of the Missouri Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League.[5][6]
On December 12, 2012, FC Kansas City announced that Vlatko Andonovski, a former professional player and head coach of the Kansas City Kings of the PASL and Missouri Olympic Development Program (ODP), would be head coach of the team.[7] On January 11, 2013, a new logo was unveiled for the team that features the team's colors: blue, white and black. According to a team-issued press release, "the new logo also represents the ever-flowing qualities that make up the game of women's professional soccer."[8][9]
The Blues finished second during the regular season with an 11–6–5 record earning a berth to the playoffs. Post-season, the team swept the majority of the league's annual awards with Lauren Holiday receiving Golden Boot and League MVP honors, Erika Tymrak the recipient of the Rookie of the Year, and Becky Sauerbrunn winning Defender of the Year. Head coach Vlatko Andonovski won Coach of the Year.[17] Four players were also named to the league's Best XI: Nicole Barnhart, Leigh Ann Robinson, Becky Sauerbrunn, and Lauren Holiday.[18]
New ownership
In January 2017, it was announced that FCKC had been purchased by Elam Baer, the CEO of Minneapolis-based North Central Equity, LLC.[19] Jean-Yves Viardin was named the new general manager and Vlatko Andonovski remained as head coach.[20] NWSL Commissioner Jeff Plush stated, "Elam is committed to strengthening FC Kansas City’s roots throughout the entire Kansas City metropolitan area and beyond. Elam and his partners will look to build off of what has been started by the Likens family, whose support of and many contributions to the establishment and growth of the league will never be forgotten."[20] Less than a year later, however, mismanagement and absentee ownership forced the league to re-acquire Baer's NWSL membership interest in order to cease the team's operations in November 2017.[3] All of the team's player contracts, draft picks, and other player-related rights would be transferred to the expansion team Utah Royals FC.[21]
The team announced on January 8, 2014, that they would move to the Durwood Soccer Stadium on the UMKC campus through 2015.[29]
However, for the 2015 season, FC Kansas City entered into a partnership with Sporting Kansas City to use their training grounds at Swope Soccer Village for training and the complex's championship field for matches.[30] The stadium has seating for 1500, but was expanded to 3,557[31] using the bleachers FC Kansas City had purchased for use at Durwood Stadium for the previous season.[32]
April 11, 2015 FC Kansas City hosted Sky Blue FC at Sporting Park for its inaugural home match of the season, drawing a crowd of 8,489.[33]
As of April 2017, FC Kansas City games were streamed exclusively by Go90 for American audiences and via the NWSL website for international viewers.[34] For the 2017 season, the Blues will be featured in three nationally-televised Lifetime NWSL Game of the Week broadcasts on June 3, August 16 and September 9.[35][36]
Ahead of the 2013 season, it was announced that games would be broadcast on the team's website and YouTube.[37] Eight games were broadcast locally on Time Warner Cable’s Metro Sports.[38] During the 2014 season, nine games were broadcast on the same channel.[39]
Supporters
FC Kansas City's official supporters group was called the KC Blue Crew.[40]
