Gotham FC Leaves New Jersey For Queens

QUEENS, NY— For nearly a decade, Gotham FC searched for stability while playing home matches across New Jersey.

The club won championships, signed some of the biggest names in women's soccer and established itself as one of the National Women's Soccer League's elite teams.

Now, the reigning NWSL champions are making their biggest off-field move yet.

Gotham FC announced it will leave Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, after the 2027 season and become a permanent tenant at Etihad Park, New York City FC's new soccer-specific stadium in Willets Point, Queens, beginning in 2028.

The agreement gives Gotham a five-year lease with an option to remain long term, making the club the primary tenant alongside New York City FC.

"For day one, our ambition has been bigger than championships," Gotham FC Governor Carolyn Tisch Blodgett said. "We are building one of the world's most iconic clubs and helping define the future of women's sports."

The move comes as Gotham continues one of the most successful stretches in franchise history, winning two NWSL championships in three seasons and capturing its first continental title.

Why Is Gotham FC Leaving New Jersey?

Club executives said the decision centers on access.

Research commissioned by Gotham found moving to Queens places roughly three million more people within a 75-minute trip by subway, bus or Long Island Rail Road.

"We think it will tremendously open up our fan base," Tisch Blodgett said.

Attendance has steadily grown in Harrison, but Gotham averaged just over 8,500 fans during each of the past two seasons, below the league average of nearly 11,000.

The club believes moving closer to New York City's population center gives it room to grow.

"World-class athletes deserve world-class environments," Tisch Blodgett said. "This move allows us to keep raising the standard for our players, supporters and the game itself."

New home: Etihad Park, Willets Point, Queens

Move begins: 2028 season

Current home: Sports Illustrated Stadium, Harrison, New Jersey

Stadium capacity: 25,000

Primary tenant: New York City FC

Training facility: Whippany, New Jersey

What Happens To Gotham's New Jersey Roots?

The move shifts home matches across the Hudson River, but much of the club's daily operations will remain in New Jersey.

Players are expected to continue living there because they spend most of their time training rather than playing matches.

Gotham will move into and renovate the New York Red Bulls' former training complex in Whippany.

"We have been nomads in a sense," Gotham President of Soccer Operations Yael Averbuch West said. "We have some of the best players in the world, and they deserve to be playing in an absolutely world-class arena."

Averbuch West, who grew up in Montclair, recalled playing in small college stadiums early in her professional career.

"That wasn't my reality," she said, "but I would have loved to have had that opportunity."

What Will Matchday Look Like?

Although New York City FC will operate Etihad Park, Gotham officials said supporters should expect the venue to feel like Gotham's home whenever the club plays.

The stadium will feature permanent locker rooms for Gotham, club branding throughout the venue and merchandise locations dedicated to the team.

Brad Sims, president and chief executive of New York City FC, said the stadium's digital displays, including a nearly eight-story LED entrance feature, will change depending on the event.

"When it's a Gotham match, we want fans to feel that they are at a stadium that was designed, built and executed for a Gotham game," Sims said.

Why Does This Matter Beyond Gotham FC?

Etihad Park will become New York City's first soccer-specific stadium.

Besides MLS and NWSL matches, the venue expects to pursue international soccer, concerts and other major sporting events.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani called Gotham's arrival an investment in the city's next generation of players.

"Bringing Gotham FC to Queens means that the young girl kicking a ball around Jackson Heights, Jamaica or the South Bronx will be able to take the train and watch some of the best players in the world in her own city," Mamdani said.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said New Yorkers will finally have a permanent home for the state's championship women's professional soccer club.

Fans Will Get An Early Preview

Supporters won't have to wait until 2028 to see Gotham play in Queens.

The club will host the Washington Spirit at Citi Field in "The Queens Classic," giving fans an early look at Gotham's future neighborhood.

Club officials said ticket sales had already surpassed 30,000 before the announcement, setting a record for attendance at a women's sporting event in New York City's five boroughs.

For Gotham, the match serves as more than a showcase.

It offers a glimpse of what the club hopes becomes its future: larger crowds, a permanent home and a broader reach in one of the world's largest sports markets.