Sacramento Reportedly to Receive MLS Expansion Club

An MLS expansion team will soon call Sacramento home.

Tony Bizjak and Marcos Breton of the Sacramento Bee reported that the California capital will have the MLS' 29th expansion team, marking the league's fourth club in the state and second in Northern California.

"Sources said league officials will hold a press conference in downtown Monday followed by a fan event in the afternoon, celebrating the franchise award," the Bee reporters wrote.

MLS declined comment when asked about the league's reported expansion to Sacramento.

The 24-club league added six franchises from 2015 to 2019, with FC Cincinnati joining this season. Inter Miami CF (2020), Nashville SC (2020), Austin FC (2021) and a to-be-named St. Louis team (2022) are set to begin MLS play shortly.

Bizjak and Breton offered more details, noting that a group led by Los Angeles billionaire Ron Burkle "has said it plans to begin construction immediately on a $250 million, 20,000-plus seat stadium on undeveloped land in the downtown railyard east of Seventh Street."

Per Bizjak and Breton, the Sacramento MLS team "will take over" the banner of the United Soccer League's Republic FC side. The club released a statement on Twitter soon after the report dropped.

The investment group received help from the Sacramento City Council to land the team, per Bizjak and Breton:

"The City Council this year agreed to offer the soccer investment group a $33 million incentive package to help it seal the deal with MLS. That included setting up an infrastructure financing district that would use future increased property tax to reimburse the soccer development group for building an estimated $27 million worth of streets, sewers and other new infrastructure on land near the stadium. The deal also includes $2.4 million worth of building permit fee waivers and other tax rebates, and up to $3 million worth of traffic control and policing on city streets adjacent to the stadium during soccer matches."

The new Sacramento MLS team will mark the second major American sports franchise, with the NBA's Kings, calling the city home since 1985. The WNBA's Monarchs played in Sacramento from 1997 to 2009 before dissolving.

It is currently unknown when Sacramento's MLS team will begin play, but until that date, the MLS is about to enter its 2019 postseason. The 14-team playoff will begin Saturday.