The moment the Portland Hearts of Pine men’s professional soccer team received the green light to begin in Maine, the ownership group turned its focus to starting a women’s team as well.

“This club was always built to be for all of Maine, and to have a men’s component and a women’s component to it,” said Kevin Schohl, the franchise’s president and chief business officer. “This is something that was always part of the official vision for the club.”

Now, that vision has become a reality. The Hearts of Pine announced Thursday that they were given rights to a USL W League franchise, which will begin play in May 2027.

It’s not the first women’s soccer team to come to Portland; Maine Footy of United Women’s Soccer, which plays at Deering’s Memorial Stadium, began play in 2023. But the new, as-yet-unnamed team will check a box for the Hearts of Pine that has been a goal since the team came into existence.

“Having a women’s team has been part of the plan since Day 1,” Gabe Hoffman-Johnson, the founder of the Hearts of Pine and the organization’s chief community officer, said in a release. “The community has been asking for this, and we are excited to make it official.”

Tom Caron, a Lewiston native and NESN broadcaster who is a part owner of the franchise, said the new team will look to capitalize on “explosive growth” in interest in the women’s game.

“I think this is the perfect time,” he said. “From the start, it was always (that) we’ll get the men’s team off and running, (they) get their footing and then we bring the women’s team in and everything grows from there. This is always part of Gabe’s vision. I’ve learned to follow Gabe’s vision.”

The USL W League is a preprofessional league — meaning players aren’t paid — that holds its season in the spring and summer. Teams are comprised of college and international players.

The Hearts of Pine, whose popularity in the state and its largest city has surged since the team debuted last year, have publicly pursued adding a women’s team. They held town halls on March 7, 12 and 22 to receive input from the community, with one item being whether the team should have its own name and brand or use the men’s club’s.

“We hear it all the time, ‘When are you going to have a women’s team?'” said Schohl, who said the team will settle on a brand and name in either late summer or early fall. “There’s a craving from the community for this.”

One sticking point has been the team’s home field. While the Hearts have hoped to use Fitzpatrick Stadium for both clubs, their lease allows for 25 free home games (including playoffs), with the men’s team expected to use over 20 next year.

On Tuesday, however, Portland’s housing and economic development committee approved an agreement that would give the Hearts 33 dates at Fitzpatrick — 25 for the men’s team, eight for the women’s team — with the organization paying for the additional dates.

Schohl said the agreement, which will be voted on by the City Council on June 15, would give the women’s team its home for the short USL W season.

“We’ll have about six regular-season home games,” he said. “The (lease) provides for up to eight dates so that we can host a couple of playoff games. It’s a pretty small amount of dates we would need.”

‘A good development league’

The USL W League started in 2022 and has 96 teams across the country.

“It’s a good development league,” said Meg Linehan, a women’s soccer writer for The Athletic. “The bigger mission is how do you develop players into eventually, hopefully, professional players. … These are all players that have been playing their whole lives. There are absolutely players within the USL W who are going to become professional players.”

Schohl said the team will look to fill its roster with local and national talent.

“We want to be pushing the limit as high as we can,” he said. “We can look to recruit some of the best Division I college soccer talent to come play here. … We’ve shown an ability to punch above our weight in terms of market size.”

Linehan said the USL W is “more accessible” for teams looking for success than a higher-tier professional league.

“Costs are lower. … You have to house and take care of players, but because of college eligibility and all that, generally you are not paying a salary,” she said. “(And) it’s all very regionalized, so travel is much more limited. … It’s a much more affordable and local approach to the game.”

The new team will play in the Northeast division, alongside teams from Newtown and Hartford in Connecticut, Newburgh in New York, Ludlow in Massachusetts and Burlington in Vermont.

“I think it’s going to be fun,” Linehan said. “There are going to be some healthy rivalries starting in 2027, and that is going to take games to a whole new level.”