{"id":487458,"date":"2026-07-06T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2026-07-06T14:06:31","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T13:06:31","slug":"womens-football-ownership-crux-football-bex-smith-montpellier-fc-rosengard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sportspro.com\/features\/finance-investment\/womens-football-ownership-crux-football-bex-smith-montpellier-fc-rosengard\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cIt\u2019s not that it doesn\u2019t work\u201d: Crux Football\u2019s Bex Smith on why women\u2019s soccer needs a new ownership model"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Bex Smith attended one of her first games as owner of Montpellier HSC F\u00e9minines, she felt like the only person in the stadium yelling.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A few months later, as the relegation-threatened French side took on St \u00c9tienne, the atmosphere had changed. Flags waved, seats were filled, and even the mayor was in attendance as Montpellier were cheered on to a crucial win in their fight to retain their top-flight status. There might have been a little over 600 fans there that night but, for Smith, it was an early example that her instincts were right.<\/p>\n

Montpellier are one of two women\u2019s soccer teams now part of Crux Football, the multi-club ownership (MCO) group co-founded by Smith last year<\/a> after securing investment from the likes of former Netflix vice president Cindy Holland and US national team great Julie Foudy.\"\"<\/p>\n\n

Montpellier were the first club to join the Crux Football portfolio in October 2025 (Image Credit: Crux Football)<\/em><\/p>\n

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The Crux of the matter<\/h3>\n

A former New Zealand captain who won a treble with Wolfsburg, Smith has become a prominent voice on the development of women\u2019s soccer since retiring from the game, most notably through her role as competitions manager of the Women\u2019s World Cup at Fifa.<\/p>\n

But whichever lens Smith has viewed the game through, one thing has consistently stood out. Despite having some of the world\u2019s best players, top leagues and most recognisable clubs, the existing ownership structures for women\u2019s soccer teams in Europe simply aren\u2019t working.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe still can\u2019t get people into the stands, commercial is lagging, and we don\u2019t know who the fanbases are, really,\u201d Smith tells SportsPro. \u201cFor me, it\u2019s not the fact that women\u2019s football doesn\u2019t work or it\u2019s not popular enough, because we\u2019ve seen plenty of examples where it is when dedicated resources are put towards it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The best example of that in Smith\u2019s eyes is the National Women\u2019s Soccer League (NWSL), which has seen the average franchise valuation surge 179 per cent<\/a> to US$184 million since 2023. Several NWSL teams remain affiliated to a men\u2019s team, but a number of its highest revenue-generating sides operate independently. And while some of the growth will be down to the fact that the NWSL is a closed league, removing the threat of relegation for investors, Smith sees it as evidence of what happens when women\u2019s teams are prioritised.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, in her role as chief executive of Crux, the aim is to pull women\u2019s clubs out from the men\u2019s structure, provide them with independent leadership, and build out their commercial and marketing teams, ultimately allowing them to operate as standalone businesses with a sole focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey wake up every single day and all they focus on is the women\u2019s football club,\u201d says Smith, speaking on the sidelines of SportsPro London in April. \u201cI think that\u2019s the key to driving the next stage of growth in the European women\u2019s game.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n

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