Sky Blue FC was founded in 2007 to promote and develop women’s soccer in New Jersey and New York. The organization was created in anticipation of Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS), a new league to replace the defunct WUSA that was slated to start with seven teams in the spring of 2009. Sky Blue finished fourth in its inaugural season with a 7–8–5 record, but went on to win the first WPS championship, 1–0 against the Los Angeles Sol.
Sky Blue’s key performers that year included college stars Tasha Kai and Keeley Dowling, along with New Jersey natives and Team USA standouts Christie Rampone and Heather O’Reilly. O’Reilly netted the lone goal in the championship match.
Sky Blue missed the playoffs in 2010 and 2011, and WPS folded prior to the 2012 season.
The club partnered with the New Jersey Wildcats of the W-League until the start of the National Women’s Soccer League in 2013. In the reallotments of players, Sky Blue retained Rampone, who helped the club finish 10–6–6 in its first NWSL campaign, playing its home games at Rutgers.
From 2014 to 2017, Sky Blue finished out of the playoffs. Among the highlights during this down period was a 2016 Rookie of the Year performance by Raquel Rodriguez (left) and the league’s first four-goal game by Sam Kerr, who went on to win the NWSL Golden Boot and league MVP in 2017.
A trade for Carli Lloyd held promise for the 2018 season, but the club went winless until their final game. During the year, players complained publicly about poor training and travel conditions, and cost-cutting by ownership that made them feel like a “semipro team.” Julia Ashley, a Jersey product acquired in the 2019 draft, refused to sign based on the bad press. That season, Sky Blue missed the playoffs for the sixth year in a row. Co-owners Phil and Tammy Murphy (New Jersey’s governor and first lady) took control of the team and proceeded to clean house.
Heading into 2020, Sky Blue forged an agreement to practice and play at Red Bull Arena. The Covid-19 pandemic delayed the start of the season, but the team surprised the experts by reaching the semifinals of the Challenge Cup to open their season. Kailen Sheridan was spectacular in goal during the tournament. Unfortunately, Sky Blue was unable to keep up its momentum in the truncated season.
In 2021, Sky Blue ceased to be, as the club changed its name to Gotham FC. They finished the year 8–5–11 to register their first winning record since the start of the league, and also made the finals of the Challenge Cup. Lloyd played her final season and then became part owner of the team with the Murphys, followed by NBA star Kevin Durant, WNBA legend Sue Bird and former Giants quarterback Eli Manning. Their investments gave the club a stable financial base for the future and enabled Gotham FC to weather yet another down year in 2022.