New Investment Fund Seeks to Boost Women's Football by Acquiring Clubs in Europe and South America.

Victoire Cogevina Reynal, the visionary founder behind Gloria, a football community that was acquired by OneFootball in 2022, has revealed an ambitious and groundbreaking endeavor. She has introduced a robust investment fund of $100 million, with the primary objective of procuring women’s football clubs across both Europe and South America.

Under the banner of Mercury 13 a name chosen in honor of a group of pioneering female aviators who were unjustly denied entry into NASA's astronaut program, this initiative strives to establish a comprehensive women's multi-club ownership (MCO) conglomerate. This strategic move follows the precedent set by Michele Kang, the owner of Washington Spirit, who successfully acquired Olympique Lyonnais Féminin in May. Kang's acquisition not only marked the inception of the first-ever female-owned and female-centric MCO but also made history by independently structuring the women’s team separate from the men’s.

Mercury 13's inaugural transaction is projected to involve Lewes Football Club, a prominent contender in The Women's Championship - a significant tier within women's football in England. Often hailed as Equality FC, Lewes gained widespread attention in 2017 for becoming the inaugural professional club to implement pay parity between their female and male players. Nevertheless, similar to the innovative approach with OL Féminin, this investment primarily focuses on establishing autonomy for the women’s team.