The fledgling Northern Super League gets an early feel for its appeal starting Thursday, with all six clubs now taking deposits for season tickets.
The women's pro soccer league, set to kick off next April, is offering fans a first crack at a season ticket if they put down $50 per seat. Seat selection priority, likely in October, will be determined by the order in which deposits are received.
The deposit is not refundable but if not used for a season ticket, can be used for a credit for a single-game ticket or other ticket packages as they are made available.
League president Christina Litz called the start of the season-ticket deposit campaign "a very important step in our fan evolution."
"We're all excited to see how this does. But look, we're here for the long haul," she said. "I think it's really important that as we see these bursts of excitement around women's sports and new leagues and new teams, we have to keep the perspective that long-term fan growth and the development of the league takes time.
"We have a group of owners at our clubs who are committed to building, so this takes many many steps. But suffice to say we're not going anywhere. This is the beginning of professional women's soccer in Canada and we're not going back."
In its inaugural season, the NSL will feature Vancouver Rise FC, Calgary Wild FC, AFC Toronto, Ottawa Rapid FC, Halifax Tides FC and a Montreal franchise that has yet to reveal its full name. Each club will host 12 or 13 home games in the inaugural 2025 season.
Halifax has already started accepting ticket deposits.
"If Halifax is any sign of the enthusiasm … the market is ready for this and excited," said Litz.
"That being said I know how hard it is to sell a ticket these days in the world of sports. There's a lot of competition for that share of attention and share of wallet," added Litz, whose resume includes executive stints with the Canadian Football League, Woodbine Entertainment and Manitoba's True North Sports and Entertainment. "So everybody is really mindful that you can't take that for granted, that you have to make sure that your building and experience and package is really fan-first, fan-focused."
The new league is owned equally by the clubs, with co-founder Diana Matheson's Project 8 group also holding an ownership share. Matheson, a former Canadian international, is the league's chief growth officer.
Each team will play a 25-game regular-season schedule, facing the other clubs five times. The top four sides will make the post-season with No. 1 playing No. 4 and No. 2 taking on No. 3 in two-legged semifinals, followed by a standalone championship game.
The league is looking at an initial $1.6-million salary cap for each team (up from the $1.5 million originally announced), covering rosters numbering 20 to 25. As it currently stands, there will be an additional cap on player benefits such as housing and transportation.
Franchises will be allowed up to seven foreign players. The league also allows teams one marquee player, whose salary will not count against the cap.
AFC Toronto will play out of York Lions Stadium while Ottawa Rapid FC is playing at TD Place and Calgary Wild FC at McMahon Stadium. Halifax is working with the city to make Wanderers Ground its home while Montreal and Vancouver Rise FC have yet to announce where they will play their games.
Litz promises more news is coming.
"We are literally weeks away from major announcements coming on league sponsorship, our on-field jersey partners, player signings."
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2022
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
