Women's Professional Soccer, an upstart league based in San Francisco, said Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash and former Yahoo Inc. president Jeffrey Mallett have become investors and part owners in the league. Terms of the investments were not released, but the total investment is said to be six figures.
The leagues plans to launch in 2009 with eight teams was announced Feb. 5.
Teams will be based in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis and Washington. It's still looking for an eighth city.
Both Nash and Mallett said their interest in soccer led to their investment in the women's league. Nash, a two-time MVP in the NBA, played soccer as a child and his father played professionally in South Africa. Mallett, who is also an investor in the San Francisco Giants, is a former soccer player, having spent two years on Canada's National and Olympic soccer teams. Mallett said he's also acting as a “shadow” CEO, helping League Commissioner Tonya Antonucci rebuild the league.
On the sponsorship front, WPS will get help from the marketing arm of Major League Soccer, the 13-year-old pro men's league. Sponsors for Major League Soccer include Adidas, Budweiser, Kraft Foods, Home Depot and Visa. Some of those sponsors might extend their deals to include Women's Professional Soccer.. WPS is the successor to the Women's United Soccer Association, a soccer league that operated from 2001 to 2003 with players like Brandi Chastain, Julie Foudy and Mia Hamm.
