LOS ANGELES — What becomes rapidly apparent in conversation with Angel City FC president Julie Uhrman, especially with her presence magnified by the club’s otherwise empty Santa Monica offices early on a Monday morning, is that she doesn’t do many things by half measures. It’s especially clear when it comes to the goals of the NWSL side that she helped co-found. Thus, the club’s planned “Equity House” event in Sydney this month, coinciding with the staging of the 2023 Women’s World Cup across Australia and New Zealand, has lofty goals.
That shouldn’t be surprising even without that insight into the executive, given the ambitious nature of the club’s genesis as a majority female-owned startup that, per Hollywood star and co-founder Natalie Portman, had “equity and impact at the forefront of everything we did.” Uhrman, for her part, has spoken of the NWSL becoming the third-most popular sporting league in the U.S., alongside a goal of the Angel City brand becoming the women’s sports equivalent of the New York Yankees when it comes to cultural cache and recognition around the globe.
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Playing at BMO Stadium near downtown Los Angeles, the club boasts more than 16,000 season ticket holders and sold the 22,000-seat venue out for the seventh time in its history the day before she spoke to ESPN, as it celebrated its annual Pride Game against Houston Dash. Uhrman has spoken previously of the club securing approximately $50 million in committed sponsorship revenue, 10% of which is redirected into local community organisations as part of the club’s “unique impact model.” Last year, Sportico reported that Angel City had been valued at more than $100m.
Now, the one-time Hollywood executive has her and Angel City’s sights set on Australia; well, the bits of the organisation not run by general manager Angela Hucles are pointed Down Under. The football department, under Hucles, is trying to steer the club to its first playoff appearance, and recently moved to part ways with coach Freya Coombe with the club in 11th place in the standings; the on-field realities that exist alongside this enterprising off-field dynamic are, in their own way, just as complicated.
During the Women’s World Cup, however, Uhrman and her team will stage a series of events surrounding the Equity House concept, highlighted by an “Angel City Equity Summit” at the Sydney Opera House on Aug. 4, when they will host 100 leaders from sport, business, government and not-for-profit sectors. In addition, the team will sponsor Festival 23 in Sydney. which will stage workshops focusing on gender equality, climate change, social cohesion and youth employability for teenagers and young adults.
“Equity House is an opportunity to bring thought leaders from around the world together to talk about gender equity,” Uhrman told ESPN. “It’s important to keep talking about the subject so we can eventually get there. In sports, we think about it a lot from a pay-equity standpoint. And that is critical. But it’s also about demanding more for these incredible female athletes: Paying what they deserve, and creating the business structure around it so that the revenue is there to support the business.
