USC star JuJu Watkins, the consensus NCAA women’s basketball player of the year in 2024-25, is joining the investor group for the Boston Legacy Football Club, the National Women’s Soccer League expansion club announced Thursday.
Boston Legacy touted Watkins as the first college athlete to invest directly in a professional women’s sports team. Boston Legacy and Denver Summit FC will make their NWSL debuts in March, bringing the league’s membership to 16 teams.
“Boston Legacy FC is creating a space for women to achieve, lead and inspire others at the highest level,” Watkins said in a statement released by Boston Legacy, “and I’m proud to be part of the movement pushing women’s sports forward.”
Watkins is sidelined for the 2025-26 season as she recovers from a torn ACL she suffered in March in the NCAA tournament. She has said she intends to return to USC next season.
As a sophomore last season, the 6-foot-2 Watkins helped the Trojans to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. She earned the Naismith Trophy, the John R. Wooden Award, the Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Year Award presented by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association and The Athletic National Player of the Year Award, among other honors.
Watkins averaged 23.9 points and 3.4 assists last season and 27.1 points and 7.3 rebounds as a freshman. She was named first team All-America both years.
Without JuJu Watkins, USC’s 2024-25 season ended with an Elite Eight loss to UConn. Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
“JuJu’s investment marks a groundbreaking moment for women’s sports and the power of (name, image and likeness),” Boston Legacy controlling owner Jennifer Epstein said in a team release. “As the first college athlete to directly invest in a women’s professional sports team, she’s showing that today’s student-athletes aren’t just building their own brands — they’re shaping the future of the game.”
Boston Legacy’s other investors include three-time Olympic gymnastics gold medalist Aly Raisman, Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and his wife, Tracy, Aliyah Boston of the WNBA’s Indiana Fever and Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears.
Watkins has signed NIL deals with Unrivaled — a 3-on-3 women’s basketball league — as well as Fanatics, United Airlines, NerdWallet, Morgan & Morgan and other companies, according to on3.com.