{"id":329280,"date":"2026-05-04T18:19:28","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T18:19:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clevescene.com\/?p=329280"},"modified":"2026-05-04T18:19:43","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T18:19:43","slug":"clevelands-first-womens-soccer-team-will-be-called-the-astra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clevescene.com\/news\/clevelands-first-womens-soccer-team-will-be-called-the-astra\/","title":{"rendered":"Cleveland’s First Women’s Soccer Team Will Be Called The Astra"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Cleveland\u2019s first women\u2019s soccer team finally got its name and colors: the Cleveland Astra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Astra, which will play in the Women’s Premier Soccer League, is the Cleveland Pro Soccer group’s second team set to play at what is envisioned as a future stadium in the South Gateway District downtown. Both squads, including the Forest City men\u2019s team, are tentatively set to kick off games in 2028.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Astra — Latin for stars<\/em> — is a brand awash in Lake Erie Midnight blue and Golden Era gold, said CPS chief Michael Murphy, and meant to convey a sense of hope for a city that\u2019s gone far too long without a women\u2019s soccer team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Especially when MLS Next Pro, the league in which Forest City Cleveland will play, has expanded light years beyond any comparable lower division league for women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MLS Next Pro \u201chas a little more than 70 teams throughout the country,\u201d Murphy told Scene in a call. \u201cOn the women\u2019s side, there\u2019s zero. There\u2019s no lower division women\u2019s professional soccer league right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re committed to joining,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women\u2019s soccer, and women\u2019s sports in general, are having a spotlight moment. The celebrity of Caitlin Clark, popularity of the WNBA, and the record viewership for the 2024 NCAA Women\u2019s Final Four have ushered in new eyes for women’s sports. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cleveland\u2019s WNBA team, which is set to debut in 2028, is a sign of the times..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s a cultural shift in sports, Murphy said, that dovetails nicely with Forest City\u2019s debut and plans for the $50 million stadium. (CPS has secured about $20 million of the funding needed for that project.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Cleveland Soccer’s second team helps actualize the $50 million stadium in the South Gateway, Murphy said. Credit:<\/span> Cleveland Pro Soccer<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Although Cleveland had a women\u2019s basketball team, the Cleveland Rockers, in the early aughts, there\u2019s been no sizeable push for a women\u2019s soccer team on the same level as Murphy and crew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s a reality Murphy attributes to infrastructure. Huntington Bank Field, Progressive Field, Rocket Arena, Nautica Pavilion\u2014arenas have<\/em> gone up downtown in the past few decades. But not of the right niche or size to host soccer of this level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd during that same time period? There\u2019s been zero<\/em> dollars spent on women\u2019s professional facilities,\u201d he said. \u201cSo, you ask what\u2019s going on? Well, there haven\u2019t been the same opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to change that in a smart, scalable way,\u201d Murphy said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CPS has secured the site, just east of Bedrock\u2019s new development on the riverfront, yet ground hasn\u2019t been broken yet. The site does have its drawbacks: I-90 to the north could be bar to foot traffic, or even create a bottleneck on big game days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new RTA South Gateway stop on the Red Line, which runs to the north of the site, could help ease those logistics, Murphy said. (RTA has yet to confirm it\u2019s actually expanding Red Line access.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As with Forest City, CPS will be announcing team development and tryout details later this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s why we chose the Cleveland Astra: we\u2019ve always wanted to be the North Star — that point to look for when you consider what elite and professional soccer can be in Northeast Ohio,” Murphy said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Subscribe to Cleveland Scene newsletters.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Follow us: <\/em><\/strong>Google News<\/em><\/a> | <\/em><\/strong>NewsBreak<\/em><\/a> | <\/em><\/strong>Reddit<\/em><\/a> | <\/em><\/strong>Instagram<\/em><\/a> | <\/em><\/strong>Facebook <\/em><\/a>| <\/em><\/strong>Twitter<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cleveland\u2019s first women\u2019s soccer team finally got its name and colors: the Cleveland Astra. The Astra, which will play in the Women’s Premier Soccer League, is the Cleveland Pro Soccer group’s second team set to play at what is envisioned as a future stadium in the South Gateway District downtown. Both squads, including the Forest 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always wanted to be the North Star -- that point to look for when you consider what elite and professional soccer can be in Northeast Ohio,\" said Cleveland Pro Soccer's Michael Murphy.","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[106,108,23],"tags":[43992,1547,154,9223],"newspack_collection_taxonomy":[],"newspack_collection_section":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[134],"class_list":["post-329280","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cleveland-news","category-cleveland-sports","category-news","tag-astra","tag-cleveland-pro-soccer","tag-downtown-cleveland","tag-forest-city","entry"],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nCleveland Astra: A New Era for Women's Soccer - Cleveland Scene<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn about Cleveland Astra, a groundbreaking women's soccer team set to join the 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