Bay FC made its first hire official on Wednesday and found the head of its business side.

But the club has its first soccer-side hire, too.

A source confirmed to Bay Area News Group that Bay FC is tapping Lucy Rushton, former general manager of Major League Soccer club D.C. United, to the same role for the Bay Area’s NWSL expansion team. ESPN was first to report Rushton’s hiring.

“We’re excited to be combining forces with Lucy to bring our football vision to life as we build our roster for 2024,” Aly Wagner, Bay FC co-founder and co-chair, said in a statement. “Her background and expertise in utilizing data and analytics will push our club and the women’s game to the next level.”

Rushton, 34, is a native of England who spent 18 months as the GM in the nation’s capital. She had previously worked as head of technical recruitment and analysis at Atlanta United in the MLS for five years, helping that club win an MLS Cup, and in England for Reading and Watford.

When she was hired as GM in Washington D.C., she was only the second female general manager in MLS history. The first was Lynne Meterparel with the San Jose Earthquakes from 1999-2000 (though she was not as involved in on-field personnel decisions).

Now, Rushton will move to Meterparel’s old stomping grounds in the Bay Area on the women’s side of the sport, where Rushton has no prior experience. But she’ll be working with an ownership group that has plenty of it themselves.

“Football has been my lifelong obsession. I’m incredibly excited to join Bay FC and I look forward to combining everything I’ve learned in the men’s game with the deep expertise Aly, Brandi [Chastain], Leslie [Osbourne] and Danielle [Slaton] bring on the women’s side to build a team, an infrastructure and a culture that gives players the opportunity to perform at their absolute best,” Rushton said in a statement. “I want every player to want to play for Bay FC, and know that we will give them the platform to develop, progress and achieve their dreams.”

In Rushton’s two seasons in charge, D.C. United just missed the MLS playoffs in 2021, finishing in eighth in the Eastern Conference, before finishing with the worst record of any team in the league in 2022. Though she was dismissed in October, reports at the time indicate that part of the logic behind her dismissal was to allow new head coach Wayne Rooney more control over roster decisions.

Earlier on Wednesday, the club officially announced the hire of Brady Stewart as the CEO of Bay FC.

Stewart comes to Bay FC after a long career in the consumer and retail industry, with her longest stint coming at San Francisco-based Levi Strauss and Co. In her 16 years at Levi’s, Stewart was in charge of growing the direct-to-consumer business for the 170-year-old clothing company.

After working with such an established and well-known company, Stewart will oversee Bay FC’s attempts to can build the same type of feeling for a brand-new organization, team and brand — a challenge she’s excited to take on.

“This is my dream job, because it is your opportunity to give a legacy,” Stewart said in an interview with this news organization on Tuesday. “It’s a legacy for the Bay Area, it’s a legacy for women’s sports, and if we do it right, it’s a global iconic brand.”

Stewart’s work with Levi’s gave her a taste of the sports business world through that company’s sponsorship with the San Francisco 49ers, hoping to build a connection with consumers.

“Brady is a world-class leader with a proven instinct for innovating and accelerating growth in changing markets, and she’s going to drive our founding vision of building Bay FC into a franchise that represents more than just a soccer team,” Alan Waxman, co-chair of Bay FC and co-founder and CEO of Sixth Street, said in a statement. “She has a deep love and appreciation for both the game and the Bay Area, and she knows how to galvanize passionate people towards a common goal. Our entire investor group is here to support her, and we’re excited for where she’s going to take Bay FC.”

Stewart technically started her new job on Monday before officially being announced as CEO on Wednesday. She and Rushton are the first two of several hires the team will need to make over the coming 90 days as Bay FC works to get ramped up before the club’s first NWSL match in March 2024.