San Diego Wave FC

San Diego Wave FC
Full nameSan Diego Wave Fútbol Club
Nickname(s)Wave FC
The Wave
FoundedJune 8, 2021; 3 years ago (2021-06-08)
StadiumSnapdragon Stadium
San Diego, California
Capacity35,000
OwnersArthur Levine
Lauren Leichtman
PresidentJill Ellis
Head coachLandon Donovan
(interim)
LeagueNational Women's Soccer League
2024Regular season: 10th of 14
Playoffs: DNQ
Websitehttps://sandiegowavefc.com/
Current season

San Diego Wave FC is an American professional women's soccer team based in San Diego, California, that competes in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). The team plays its home games at Snapdragon Stadium. The Wave began play in the 2022 season as an expansion team.

The Wave won the NWSL Shield with the league's best record in the 2023 season, the club's first trophy.[1] The club won the NWSL Challenge Cup in its 2024 edition.[2] On March 23, 2024, the club set an NWSL home opener attendance record with 32,066 people in attendance.

History

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The team is San Diego's first women's professional soccer team since 2003, when the Women's United Soccer Association folded and forced the San Diego Spirit to disband.[3]

In January 2021, Lisa Baird, the commissioner of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), announced that an expansion team in Sacramento, led by Ron Burkle and in conjunction with Sacramento Republic FC's expansion bid into Major League Soccer, would join the NWSL in 2022.[4] However, Burkle never confirmed the news publicly before exiting the Sacramento Republic's ownership group. Instead, on June 8, 2021, the NWSL announced San Diego as the location for an expansion team owned by Burkle to begin play in 2022.[5] On November 9, it was announced the team would be called Wave Fútbol Club.[6]

2022: Inaugural season

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San Diego Wave FC officially began play on March 19, 2022, in the NWSL Challenge Cup against fellow expansion team Angel City FC on the road, where they drew 1-1. They were eliminated from the Challenge Cup after finishing third in their group. The team began their inaugural season on May 1 and opened with three straight wins, sitting on the top of the table for over half the season before finally falling to the KC Current 2–1. Although briefly gaining the top spot twice late in the season, the Wave finished 3rd and qualified for the quarter-finals of the playoffs. After defeating the Chicago Red Stars 2–1, the team traveled to Providence Park to play against the Portland Thorns in the semi-finals, losing 2-1 following a Crystal Dunn goal in the final minutes of the game.

2023

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In the 2023 season, the Wave continued their winning ways, slightly improving upon their record in 2022 and securing the NWSL Shield with two games to spare after beating the Portland Thorns on September 30 and guaranteeing a bye for the playoffs. The Wave faced OL Reign in the semi-finals, losing 1-0 after Veronica Latsko scored in the 47th minute, marking the second year in a row the Wave were eliminated in the semis. Defender Naomi Girma was named U.S. Soccer's Female Player of the Year, recognizing her excellence for the Wave and for the U.S. women's national team.[7]

2024

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In the 2024 NWSL Draft, the Wave selected Kennedy Wesley with the 12th pick in the first round and Mya Jones with the 42nd pick in the third round. The Wave had traded away their natural 26th round pick in the second round, 40th pick in the third round,[8] and 54th pick in the fourth round.

On March 14, owner Ron Burkle announced the sale of San Diego Wave FC to Lauren Leichtman and Arthur Levine, managers of the Levine Leichtman Capital Partners investment firm, for $113 million and a total (and, at the time, league record) team valuation of $120 million. The new owners immediately paid $35 million for 35% of the team, and paid $78 million for the remaining 65% of the team at the end of the 2024 NWSL season.[9] This represents a large increase in team value from the $2 million Burkle paid just two years previously as an NWSL expansion fee.[10]

On March 15, the Wave won the Challenge Cup 1-0 over 2023 champion NJ/NY Gotham FC with an 88th minute goal from Alex Morgan.

On March 22, one day before their regular season opener, the Wave announced they had signed 16-year-old midfielder Kimmi Ascanio through the NWSL's Under-18 Entry Mechanism.[11]

On March 23, the Wave set the current record for NWSL season home opener attendance with 32,066 fans attending their 2-1 loss to the Kansas City Current.[12]

Colors and crest

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Wordmark also used as part of San Diego Wave FC's identity.

On December 15, 2021, the team revealed its crest for its upcoming 2022 season in a press release, stating "the crest, encased in a shield, is a symbol of strength, for the city and team, to proudly stand behind. A powerful wave, cresting in the rich blues of the Pacific Ocean, sits front and center as the iconic mark of the Wave. And under the proud banner of the city’s name, are the vivid colors of the horizon, celebrating the beauty, fun, and vibrant culture of the city and its people".[13]

Sponsorship

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Period Kit manufacturer Front sponsor Back sponsor Sleeve sponsor
2022 Nike Kaiser Permanente Pechanga Resort Casino Gatorade
2023 Think Blue San Diego
Will Perform 		Bud Light
2024 PenFed Credit Union
24 Hour Fitness[14] 		Dexcom

Kit history

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2022 home
2022-23 away
2023 home
2024 home
2024 away

Stadium

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The club began play at Torero Stadium on the campus of the University of San Diego for its inaugural season. It moved to Snapdragon Stadium, located in the Mission Valley campus expansion of San Diego State University, for its last two home games of the 2022 season.[15] The Wave's opener at the new stadium against regional rival and fellow 2022 NWSL entry Angel City FC on September 17 drew a sellout crowd of 32,000, setting a new NWSL single-game attendance record.[16]

Players and staff

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Current squad

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Last updated on November 7, 2024.[17]

No. Pos. Player Nation
1 GK Kailen Sheridan (Captain)  Canada
4 DF Naomi Girma  United States
5 MF Emily van Egmond  Australia
6 DF Hanna Lundkvist  Sweden
7 FW Amirah Ali  United States
11 FW Jaedyn Shaw  United States
12 DF Kennedy Wesley  United States
14 DF Kristen McNabb  United States
15 FW Makenzy Doniak  United States
16 DF Kaitlyn Torpey  Australia
17 MF Kimmi Ascanio  United States
18 FW Mya Jones  Canada
19 FW Kyra Carusa  Republic of Ireland
20 DF Christen Westphal  United States
21 MF Savannah McCaskill  United States
22 GK Hillary Beall  United States
23 FW Elyse Bennett  United States
24 MF Danielle Colaprico  United States
25 FW Melanie Barcenas  United States
35 GK Morgan Messner  United States
69 FW Delphine Cascarino  France
75 DF Perle Morroni  France
77 FW María Sánchez  Mexico
— FW Trinity Byars  United States

Coaching staff

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As of August 16, 2024.[18][19]
Position Staff
Head coach Landon Donovan (interim)
Development Coach Jackie Bachteler
Assistant Coach/Head of Goalkeeping Louis Hunt
Assistant Coach Craig Barclay
Director of Recruitment and Analytics Chris Loxton

Records

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Year-by-year

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As of August 29, 2024

Season Regular season Playoffs Challenge Cup Avg. attendance
P W D L GF GA Pts Pos
2022 22 10 6 6 32 21 36 3rd Semi-finals Group stage 8,729
2023 22 11 4 7 31 22 37 1st Semi-finals Group stage 20,718
2024 14 3 6 5 12 13 15 11th Champions 24,406

Head coaching record

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As of August 10th, 2024

Only competitive matches are counted. Includes NWSL regular season, playoffs, and Challenge Cup matches.

All-time San Diego Wave FC coaching stats
Name Nationality From To W D L GF GA GD Win%
Casey Stoney  England July 14, 2021 June 24, 2024 65 32 28 94 82 +12 64.80
Paul Buckle  England June 24, 2024 August 15, 2024 0 0 2 0 4 -4 0

Team records

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Further information: List of San Diego Wave FC players
As of November 9, 2024.[20] Current players in bold. Statistics are updated once a year after the conclusion of the NWSL season.
Most appearances
Player Appearances
# Name Nat. Pos. Wave career NWSL Playoffs Cup Cont'l Total
1 Christen Westphal United States DF 2022– 59 3 15 3 80
2 Makenzy Doniak United States FW 2022– 61 3 9 4 77
3 Kristen McNabb United States DF 2022– 59 3 9 4 75
4 Naomi Girma United States DF 2022– 58 3 9 2 72
5 Kailen Sheridan Canada GK 2022– 62 2 4 3 71
6 Emily van Egmond Australia MF 2022– 58 3 5 4 70
7 Amirah Ali United States FW 2022– 48 3 14 3 68
8 Alex Morgan United States FW 2022–2024 48 3 11 1 63
9 Jaedyn Shaw United States FW 2022– 47 3 7 2 59
Sofia Jakobsson Sweden FW 2022–2024 45 3 10 1 59
Top goalscorers
Player Goals scored
# Name Nat. Pos. Wave career NWSL Playoffs Cup Cont'l Total
1 Alex Morgan United States FW 2022–2024 19 1 5 0 25
2 Jaedyn Shaw United States FW 2022– 13 0 1 0 14
3 Makenzy Doniak United States FW 2022– 9 0 0 0 9
4 Amirah Ali United States FW 2022– 5 0 2 1 8
5 Taylor Kornieck United States MF 2022–2023 4 1 2 0 7
6 María Sánchez Mexico FW 2024– 1 0 1 4 6
7 Kristen McNabb United States DF 2022– 4 0 0 1 5
8 Kyra Carusa Republic of Ireland FW 2023– 4 0 0 0 4
Sofia Jakobsson Sweden FW 2022–2024 4 0 0 0 4
10 Belle Briede United States MF 2022–2023 2 0 1 0 3
Most assists
Player Assists
# Name Nat. Pos. Wave career NWSL Playoffs Cup Cont'l Total
1 Alex Morgan United States FW 2022–2024 8 1 1 0 10
2 Christen Westphal United States DF 2022– 6 0 1 0 7
3 Makenzy Doniak United States FW 2022– 5 0 0 0 5
Sofia Jakobsson Sweden FW 2022–2024 4 1 0 0 5
María Sánchez Mexico FW 2024– 4 0 1 0 5
Jaedyn Shaw United States FW 2022– 4 0 1 0 5
7 Delphine Cascarino France FW 2024– 3 0 0 1 4
Taylor Kornieck United States MF 2022–2023 3 0 1 0 4
Kelsey Turnbow United States MF 2022–2023 3 0 1 0 4
10 Katie Johnson Mexico FW 2022 3 0 0 0 3

Honors

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References

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  1. ^ Stone, Chris (October 15, 2023). "San Diego Wave Wins NWSL Shield in Just 2nd Year: No. 1 in Regular Season". Times of San Diego. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  2. ^ "Late Morgan header grabs S.D. Challenge Cup win". ESPN.com. March 16, 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
  3. ^ Zeigler, Mark (June 8, 2021). "Women's pro soccer coming to San Diego in 2022". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on June 8, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  4. ^ Kassouf, Jeff (June 8, 2021). "San Diego confirmed as 2022 NWSL expansion market; Ellis to serve as team president". The Equalizer. Archived from the original on November 5, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  5. ^ "San Diego To Be Home to NWSL Expansion Team, Led by Jill Ellis as President". NWSL. June 8, 2021. Archived from the original on November 5, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  6. ^ "San Diego NWSL new side to be called Wave FC". November 9, 2021. Archived from the original on September 4, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  7. ^ "Girma 1st defender to win U.S. female POTY". ESPN.com. January 11, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  8. ^ "NWSL offseason trade tracker: San Diego Wave bring back Sierra Enge, land Elyse Bennett in trades". CBSSports.com. December 20, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
  9. ^ Linehan, Meg; Staff, The Athletic. "San Diego Wave sold at $120M valuation, an NWSL record". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  10. ^ "Source: Wave being sold for NWSL record figure". ESPN.com. March 15, 2024. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  11. ^ Emerick, Tyler (March 22, 2024). "San Diego Wave FC Sign U.S. Women's Youth National Team Midfielder Kimmi Ascanio". San Diego Wave Fútbol Club. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
  12. ^ Emerick, Tyler (March 24, 2024). "San Diego Wave FC Fall to Kansas City Current 2-1 at Snapdragon Stadium". San Diego Wave Fútbol Club. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
  13. ^ "San Diego Wave FC Unveils Official Team Crest and Colors". www.sandiegowavefc.com (Press release). December 15, 2021. Archived from the original on November 29, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
  14. ^ Emerick, Tyler (February 23, 2024). "San Diego Wave FC Announces Extended and Expanded Partnership with 24 Hour Fitness". San Diego Wave Fútbol Club. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
  15. ^ "NWSL expansion team San Diego Wave FC unveil official crest". CBS Sports. December 15, 2021. Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  16. ^ "Match Recap: San Diego tops Angel City in front of capacity crowd for first win at Snapdragon Stadium". National Women's Soccer League. September 18, 2022. Archived from the original on May 18, 2023. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  17. ^ "Roster". San Diego Wave FC.
  18. ^ "Coaching Staff". San Diego Wave FC. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  19. ^ "San Diego Wave name Landon Donovan interim coach". San Diego Wave FC. August 16, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
  20. ^ "San Diego Wave FC Stats and History". FBref. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
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