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Multi-club ownership group Mercury 13 acquires majority stake in Bristol City Women

Mercury 13, the U.S.-based multi-club ownership group focused exclusively on women’s soccer, is adding a second team to its portfolio.

The group has agreed to acquire a significant majority stake in Bristol City Women, marking its second move on the continent after purchasing Serie A side Como Women in 2024. The size of the investment has not been disclosed.

If approved by the league, the deal will see the Lansdown family – owners of Bristol City for the past three decades — hand over stewardship of the women’s side to Mercury 13 while retaining a minority stake.

The women’s team is part of the wider Bristol Sport Group, founded by Stephen Lansdown in 2012, which includes Bristol City’s men’s and women’s football teams, the Bristol Bears’ men’s and women’s rugby sides, the Bristol Flyers basketball club, their associated charitable foundations, and Ashton Gate Stadium, a 27,000-seat, year-round venue that hosts more than 600 events annually and draws over one million visitors. The deal will be first of its kind in England, establishing a new model for women’s football combining an integrated club structure with commercial independence.

“It is a special and important time for Mercury 13, with this acquisition will start proving how we can add value to the clubs in our portfolio,” Victoire Cogevina Reynal, the co-founder of Mercury 13, told The Athletic. “We had a year rebuilding Como women, and it’s been a great pilot, and now we couldn’t be more excited to extend it into other countries, other leagues, other audiences, as well, and continue making this vision a reality,” she added.

Founded in 2023 by Cogevina Reynal and Mario Malave in 2023, Mercury 13 set out to build a portfolio of clubs in Europe and South America with the ambition of redefining “the landscape of the women’s game through strategic investment, competitive ambition and fan-focused growth.”

In 2023, the group entered exclusive talks to acquire lower-division English side Lewes FC but ultimately walked away. A year later, Mercury 13 made its first move, securing a controlling stake in Como.

Mercury 13 said Bristol City were identified early in their market mapping as a club of significant potential with the infrastructure, legacy and fanbase to evolve into one of the leading names in English women’s football.

Bristol City Women, formerly known as Bristol Academy WFC, were a founding member of the Women’s Super League (WSL) in 2011. The team reached two Women’s FA Cup Finals (2011 and 2013), finished as runners-up in the WSL in 2013 and competed in the UEFA Women’s Champions League twice, including reaching the quarter-finals in 2014 and playing Barcelona. They were promoted to the top flight at the end of 2022-2023 season but were relegated the following year.

Bristol Sport Group has invested significant sums into both the men’s and women’s sides, including a £50m redevelopment of Ashton Gate and Robins High Performance Centre. Under Mercury 13’s stewardship, the women’s club will call Ashton Gate its home and will continue to train at the performance centre. Additionally, Mercury 13 will invest in the club’s Tier 1 Academy and will be developed to ensure a clear and competitive pathway from youth to first team.

“The growth in women’s football is astounding. We have always said we would look at investment if it was the right partner at the right time, and I believe now is that time for City Women,” Lansdown said in a statement. “Mercury 13’s ambition for women’s football matches our own; their dedicated investment and focus on women’s football will accelerate Bristol City Women’s growth and I look forward to seeing what the club can achieve in the years to come.”

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

Bristol City, Sports Business, Women's Soccer

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