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NWSL

The National Women's Soccer League and Los Angeles Angel City ownership group formally announced Angel City Football Club (ACFC) as the team name on Tuesday.

The expansion team was announced in August, with founder and president Julie Uhrman at the helm of the star-studded ownership group that includes actor Natalie Portman, USWNT hall of famer Mia Hamm and Serena Williams. The club teased the name reveal Tuesday night after Portman's appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." 

"On behalf of the NWSL and our member clubs, we are thrilled to officially welcome Angel City Football Club, and this exciting and committed ownership group, to the league," NWSL commissioner Lisa Baird said. "The soccer community in Southern California is filled with passionate fans of the game and I can't wait to see them rally around their own team and help us continue to grow the NWSL."

The announcement of the formal name included an introduction to an expanded ownership group that now includes even more big names, with Hollywood actors, musicians, and executives, sports icons.

Here's a look at the prolific names involved in addition to the founding investor group:

  • Lindsey Vonn, Gold Medalist and Alpine Skiing Legend 
  • PK Subban, Gold Medalist and NHL-All Star 
  • Becky G, Latin pop superstar
  • Sophia Bush, actress and activist 
  • James Corden, actor and late night host 
  • Cobi Jones, MLS/U.S. soccer legend and sports broadcaster
  • Ryan Kalil NFL All-Pro

Tennis icon Billie Jean King and Ilana Kloss and WNBA legend Candace Parker and her daughter Lailaa we're also among the new ownership group members, with Parker and Lailaa the second athlete/daughter ownership combo along with Serena Williams and Alexis Olympia Ohanian, Jr.

"We need everyone to invest in women's sports and Ilana and I are proud to stand with the Angel City FC ownership group and help make history in Southern California," King said, the legendary tennis player and activist who is also a part owner of the Dodgers. "Angel City's mission to make an impact on and off the field and to provide an opportunity to some of the best professional female athletes in the world to play on a stage as powerful as Los Angeles sends a strong message to young girls in the community and beyond."

The last top tier women's professional soccer club in Los Angeles was the L.A. Sol of Women's Professional Soccer (WPS). With Tuesday's announcement of a 2022 start date, the timeline will mark over a decade since a first division women's professional soccer team called the state of California home.