Louisville's NWSL expansion team has a name, and it's a nod to Kentucky's favorite spirit

Tim Sullivan | Courier Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption NWSL to Louisville: National Women's Soccer League comes to Louisville LouCity FC leaders and ownership officially announced a new National Women's Soccer League team for Louisville to arrive in 2021.

Louisville's new women’s soccer team has a name that should resonate with potential sponsors in the bourbon business: Proof Louisville FC.

The National Women’s Soccer League filed a trademark application last week with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office seeking exclusive rights to use Proof Louisville FC on drinkware, clothing, keychains, backpacks, lip balm and other merchandise. Louisville City FC President Brad Estes confirmed Tuesday that Proof Louisville FC had been chosen for the new team out of “probably 100 names.”

"I think it's neat, pun intended," said Karl Schmitt, president and CEO of the Louisville Sports Commission. "Three fingers neat."

“For us, the bourbon industry is a big thing here,” Estes said. “It’s a huge component to our economy. But this is not a name that is specifically tailored to bourbon. It defines our community, where we are at this stage of our life cycle as a city. We’re proving every day that we’re growing and that we belong in the upper echelon.”

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With Lynn Family Stadium scheduled to open in 2020, and Louisville’s expansion NWSL franchise set to begin play in 2021, the owners of Soccer Holdings LLC are pursuing a place in Major League Soccer by their deeds as well as their words. To that end, “Proof” has meaning far beyond alcohol strength.

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“When you look at the definition of the word ‘proof,’ it talks about resiliency; it talks about strength,” Estes said. “That’s what we think this team will represent. We think the name will represent them, what they do on the field and it will represent our city very well.”

Whether it will also come to represent Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark, Evan Williams or some other stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail has yet to be determined.

“We’ll find out shortly,” Estes said. “It’s great that (proof) has a double meaning relative to the industry.”

Louisville City FC’s fan group, the Coopers, derives its name from the barrel-makers essential to bourbon production.