A new Legacy begins
Boston Legacy FC concludes inaugural 2026 NWSL season
“Dear Boston…,” wrote Jennifer Epstein, alongside Stephanie Connaughton, Ami Kuan Danoff SM ’19, Anna Palmer, and the Boston Unity Soccer Partners in a 2023 announcement that professional women’s soccer was back in Boston, with the Boston Legacy slated to make their National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) debut in the 2026 season. The Legacy joined the NWSL as the league’s 15th team.
In 2013, the Boston Breakers were a founding member of the NWSL, playing through the 2017 season before folding in 2018. At the time, in 2018, this left the “City of Champions” with just two professional women’s sports teams: the Boston Renegades (flag football) and the Boston Pride (ice hockey), which was dissolved in 2023 when their league was bought out to make way for the new National Women’s Hockey League.
The movement to bring women’s professional soccer back to Boston was more than adding another team to the field. “It’s time we write the story of a new sports legacy about the greatest female athletes and the greatest sports fans. We play here, in Boston, we play to win, and we play to make us all proud,” the co-founders wrote in the announcement of the team’s founding.
The Legacy played to a 7–5–14 first season, with forward Amanda Gutierres leading the team with 10 goals. Aïssata Traoré is also a strong scorer for the Legacy; the forward put in seven goals during the 2026 season. Casey Murphy is the Legacy’s primary goalkeeper, appearing in 21 games in 2026 and recording 66 saves. It’s only the Legacy’s first season, and as was said in the 2023 team announcement, “while winning championships will be the goal, it’s more than just the wins that excite us, it’s how sports brings communities together and presents unique opportunities for both the athletes and the fans to forge meaningful connections across neighborhoods, race, gender and economics.”
After a 2–0 loss to the Seattle Reign on Saturday, Sept. 26, the Legacy are no longer in contention for the NWSL playoffs, but they still have much to look forward to. The Legacy are currently in on a $252 million renovation of the historic White Stadium in Boston and expect to begin play there beginning in the 2028 NWSL season. While they wait, the team plays matches at Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket, R.I., and occasionally Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. when available. Once renovations are complete, the Legacy will become one of the few NWSL teams with its own dedicated venue, joining the Kansas City Current with CPKC Stadium and the Denver Summit, which also plans to complete its venue in 2028.