To land NWSL franchise, Blank had to overcome 1 obstacle — his own stadium

The gleaming, billion-dollar sports palace that Arthur Blank built (with considerable taxpayer help) oddly enough posed a detriment in his yearslong pursuit of a women’s professional soccer team.

For various reasons, a gigantic stadium well-equipped for Super Bowls and World Cup matches isn’t what the National Women’s Soccer League looks for, or even wants.

However, Blank and NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said on a videoconference with media Wednesday — a day after the newest NWSL franchise was officially launched — that when the team begins play in 2028, Mercedes-Benz Stadium won’t be an issue.

But here’s why it will present a challenge for the fledgling club, which has yet to be named.

The wave in professional soccer in the United States, and particularly in the 12-year-old NWSL, is soccer-specific stadiums. Of the 14 teams in the league, 12 play in venues constructed for soccer, each with capacities of 25,500 or fewer.

A year ago, Berman went so far as to say there was “probably nothing more important” than for clubs to have their own training facilities and stadiums, the latter because they would give the teams first choice of the most optimal game dates and times and be suited for their spectators.

For a team that may not be competitive initially and will be fighting from the start to earn attention and dollars in a competitive market, having a stadium and home schedule that makes attendance as appealing and convenient as possible is essential.

Of all the benefits the new team will enjoy in playing at MBS, an open calendar to slot games and being in a venue that perfectly suits its fan base are not among them. Hence, the obstacle the NWSL and Blank’s team had to clear.

Given Blank’s history as a supportive owner, his interest in an NWSL franchise and the demonstrated support of the Atlanta market for soccer, it would have been easy for the NWSL to swing its doors wide.

But Berman said the league worked with Blank’s team for several years on scheduling models for MBS before it was satisfied it could work.

MBS is a busy venue. Annually, it hosts about 50 public events — largely games and concerts — and roughly 150 private events. The NWSL schedule begins in the middle of March and runs into November, followed by the postseason, meaning its season overlaps with both Atlanta United and the Falcons. Games are typically held on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, the days the Five Stripes and Falcons (including exhibition games) typically also occupy the venue.

It is not difficult to think that Falcons and Atlanta United scheduling, not to mention other lucrative events, would take priority over the NWSL team.

It might not seem like a big deal to divvy up dates. But, for instance, consider that both Atlanta United and the women’s team figure to draw at least partially from the same pool of fans. That being the case, they’re probably going to want to avoid having both teams play home games on the same weekend. And the new franchise may determine that day games are better than night games to help draw young families, which would further reduce the number of preferred windows.

It’s not an easy puzzle to assemble.

On top of that, although Blank plans to create a configuration for games that will limit seating to 28,000 and presumably aim to feel like a smaller space, it will be a much different environment than what a packed house in a 15,000-seat, soccer-specific venue can offer. (Average NWSL regular-season attendance this year was 10,720, according to ESPN.)

It still may not seem like a big deal. But when Berman (the NWSL commissioner) said “there’s probably nothing more important” than teams having their own facilities, it carries weight. The NWSL is a growing league; Berman looks like she knows what she’s doing.

All that said, Blank has his franchise, which means concerns have been sufficiently addressed. He acknowledged that it was a complicated process to ensure the schedule will give the team a chance to succeed, but that “we’re comfortable with where we are in that regard.”