The team is San Diego's first women's professional soccer team since 2003, when the
Women's United Soccer Association folded and forced the
San Diego Spirit to disband. In January 2021,
Lisa Baird, the commissioner of the
National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), announced that an expansion team in
Sacramento, led by Ron Burkle and in conjunction with
Sacramento Republic FC's expansion bid into
Major League Soccer, would join the NWSL in 2022. However, Burkle never confirmed the news publicly before exiting the Sacramento Republic's ownership group. Instead, on June 8, 2021, the NWSL announced San Diego as the location for an expansion team owned by Burkle to begin play in 2022. On November 9, it was announced the team would be called Wave Fútbol Club.
2022: Inaugural season San Diego Wave FC officially began play on March 19, 2022, in the
NWSL Challenge Cup against fellow expansion team
Angel City FC on the road, where they drew 1-1. They were eliminated from the Challenge Cup after finishing third in their group. The team began their inaugural season on May 1 and opened with three straight wins, sitting on the top of the table for over half the season before finally falling to the
KC Current 2–1. Although briefly gaining the top spot twice late in the season, the Wave finished 3rd and qualified for the quarter-finals of the
playoffs. After defeating the
Chicago Red Stars 2–1, the team traveled to
Providence Park to play against the
Portland Thorns in the semi-finals, losing 2-1 following a
Crystal Dunn goal in the final minutes of the game. Wave members were heavily represented in the end-of-season awards, with
Alex Morgan winning the
Golden Boot,
Kailen Sheridan winning
Goalkeeper of the Year,
Casey Stoney named as
Coach of the Year,
Naomi Girma being crowned as both the
Defender of the Year and
Rookie of the Year.
2023 In the 2023 season, the Wave continued their winning ways, slightly improving upon their record in 2022 and securing the
NWSL Shield with two games to spare after beating the Portland Thorns on September 30 and guaranteeing a bye for the playoffs. The Wave faced
OL Reign in the semi-finals, losing 1–0 after
Veronica Latsko scored in the 47th minute, marking the second year in a row the Wave were eliminated in the semis. Defender
Naomi Girma was named
U.S. Soccer's Female Player of the Year, recognizing her excellence for the Wave and for the
U.S. women's national team.
2024 The Wave kicked off 2024 by winning the
Challenge Cup 1–0 over
2023 champion NJ/NY Gotham FC with an 88th-minute goal from
Alex Morgan. However, during the season, the Wave failed to replicate their successes from prior years. The team finished 10th in the regular season standings and did not qualify for the playoffs for the first time in club history. The Wave also competed in the
NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup and the
CONCACAF W Champions Cup, but they failed to make it out of the group stage in both competitions. Amid a 7-game winless streak, the club fired head coach
Casey Stoney, who had been part of the Wave since 2022. Stoney was replaced by interim coach
Paul Buckle, who led the team through the summer of 2024. After Buckle's departure,
Landon Donovan managed the team to the end of the season. 2024 also featured notable off-the-field events in the Wave's history. On March 14, owner Ron Burkle announced the sale of San Diego Wave FC to Lauren Leichtman and Arthur Levine, managers of the Levine Leichtman Capital Partners investment firm, for $113 million and a total (and, at the time, league record) team valuation of $120 million. The new owners immediately paid $35 million for 35% of the team, and paid $78 million for the remaining 65% of the team at the end of the 2024 NWSL season. This represents a large increase in team value from the $2 million Burkle paid just two years previously as an NWSL expansion fee. The Wave also hired
Camille Ashton as sporting manager and general manager to replace Molly Downtain, who left in the offseason. Finally, the club hired former
USWNT player
Shannon MacMillan as Chief Impact Officer on July 1, 2024. In July, several former Wave employees spoke out on
social media, alleging that the club and president
Jill Ellis created an unhealthy and abusive work environment. The Wave denied all allegations and threatened legal action against those who spoke out. In mid-October, five former employees filed a lawsuit against the Wave and the
NWSL, alleging
discrimination,
sexual harassment,
wrongful termination, and
retaliation. In December, the Wave announced Jill Ellis's immediate departure to become Chief of Football at
FIFA.
2025 Leading up to the 2025 season, the Wave announced that interim coach
Landon Donovan would not be returning to his position. On January 7, 2025, Swedish manager
Jonas Eidevall was announced to be filling the role, becoming the Wave's second-ever full-time head coach in club history. == Ownership ==