As the owner of the Sioux Falls City Football Club located in South Dakota, Emily Thomas draws on her extensive background in exercise physiology and cardiac rehabilitation in sports. She brings a unique perspective to her advocacy for women athletes, as she has firsthand experience with the rigors and difficulty of being a college athlete herself.
Ms. Thomas’ knowledge informs her dedication to addressing and mitigating the barriers female athletes face on and off the field. With her singular position and perspective, she is proud to say that the Sioux Falls City Football Club embodies her values, operating with integrity and remaining dedicated to its mission of inclusivity, equity, and mental health awareness. First and foremost, she prioritizes merit over monetary considerations and all other factors, ensuring that only deserving and exceptional individuals join her team. Ms. Thomas even extends her principled discipline to her partnerships, as she is only willing to work in a mutually beneficial way with organizations that share the core values of the Sioux Falls City Football Club. She strives to maintain clarity and consistency in her messaging to give her fans a clear picture of the organization they support.
The Sioux Falls City Football Club came into existence in response to the absence of a post-college women’s football club in the city. Ms. Thomas’ eldest daughter is an avid soccer enthusiast who left home at the age of 14 to chase her soccer dreams due to a lack of local opportunities. Ms. Thomas was motivated to address this vacancy and began establishing the team alongside her husband, Eric. With the primary goal of advocating for equitable treatment for female soccer players, she rejects the notion of “pay to play” and has set her sights on dismantling barriers that have marginalized aspiring women athletes. Central to the mission of the team is the provision of comprehensive financial support for players, including lodging for out-of-town members and transportation to away games.
Ms. Thomas has worked tirelessly to elevate the stature of her athletes and treat them with the reverence and respect that their male counterparts enjoy. Despite more than 100 men’s soccer teams competing at the professional level, only 15 professional women’s teams currently exist. Knowing that achieving equality does not occur overnight, Ms. Thomas hopes and plans to seize every chance to highlight the need for greater support and investment in women’s athletics.
Among her professional achievements, Ms. Thomas considers establishing the Sioux Falls City Football Club to be the apex of her career. She considers the endeavor to be her true calling and regards it as the culmination of her life’s journey. Already, the team has facilitated the transition of three players to professional women’s soccer teams, a milestone that led the team to be selected among a handful of others to inaugurate the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL). During its first two years in operation, the Sioux Falls City Football Club was honored within its sphere as Franchise of the Year. Seeking only to amplify the voices of women, Ms. Thomas is passionately driven to see her team win the WPSL championship.
In 1996, Ms. Thomas graduated from Augustana University with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science. She went on to complete a Master of Science in exercise physiology and cardiac rehabilitation at Northeastern Illinois University in 1997. In 2024, she was recognized for her indelible contributions with a nomination for the Women of Excellence Award. In her free time, Ms. Thomas enjoys completing puzzles, attending concerts, playing sports, and traveling to watch her children play sports. She hopes to continue growing the women’s professional soccer ecosystem, providing sorely needed opportunities to talented athletes. In the long term, Ms. Thomas sees herself as the owner of both pre-professional and professional women’s soccer teams in her home state of South Dakota.