#nwsl

#nwsl

Image source, Getty Images West Ham have sold defender Anouk Denton for a club record fee of 200,000 to American side Bay FC. The 22-year-old has been a key player for the Hammers since signing permanently from Arsenal in 2023, making 67 appearances. Denton became the first West Ham player to represent the Lionesses since 1996 when she made her England debut against Ghana in December.

"I've achieved nearly everything I dreamed of in this sport and gave all I had to give." "I'm ready to embrace the life that awaits me on the other side. I look forward to spending more time with my family and being a more present mom. This was not a decision made lightly, but was one made with immense gratitude for everything I've experienced as a professional soccer player."

Absolutely not. I don't think anyone is but I don't really know when else to put it in to be honest. I mean you're asking players to cut their offseason short when everyone's just had competitions and Euros and traveling across the world. And then we come in after very limited time off and have to play again.

Hosts Alex Kirshner, Lindsay Gibbs, and Ben Lindbergh recap NFL conference championship weekend, where the Patriots braved a blizzard better than the Broncos, and Sam Darnold proved that resurrected quarterbacks really can win it all. Later, they get into Trinity Rodman's three-year NWSL deal that keeps her in D.C., but has caught the ire of the players' union. The panel wraps with a breakdown of the Mets' busy offseason and whether they can actually come out on top in 2026.

American forward Jordynn Dudley, a two-time NCAA champion with Florida State University, has signed for Gotham FC, a source with knowledge of the deal confirmed to ESPN. Dudley has signed with the 2025 NWSL and Concacaf champions through 2028 and is with the team in London as it prepares for the first FIFA Women's Champions Cup. Dudley was named an All-American all three years of her college career, marking the first time an FSU player has earned the honor three times.

Liverpool have signed Republic of Ireland midfielder Denise O'Sullivan on a permanent deal from North Carolina Courage. The midfielder had a year remaining on her contract with North Carolina but it is believed Liverpool have paid a club-record fee in the region of 300,000. The 31-year-old brings a wealth of experience having picked up 128 caps for her country since making her debut in 2011. She has represented clubs in the United States, Australia, Scotland and England, as well as her native Ireland.

"It was like this new era had come. I wasn't sure if I would ever feel that again. I think back to 2013 and 2014 and all the newness of what that felt like, and all the excitement around that. I didn't feel I'd ever have that again -- and I had it again last year. It was really fun turning up to work every day and working with the staff and the players was really, really fun. And that was credit to everybody involved in the environment we tried to create."

Manchester City are in advanced talks to sign the United States midfielder Sam Coffey from Portland Thorns, the Guardian understands. The 27-year-old has been granted permission to fly to Manchester to try to finalise the move, which multiple sources have said is close to completion, and could give City a big boost in their quest to win a first Women's Super League title since 2016.

The NWSL's Board of Governors, which consists of team owners and commissioner Jessica Berman, is in advanced discussions about implementing a new roster mechanism that would allow each team to pay star players significant salaries beyond the current salary cap, multiple sources confirmed to ESPN. If passed, the change would mark a significant shift in the NWSL's long-term strategy with the short-term goal of keeping Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman in the league.

"When I came back from the Euros, I just felt a little different," Fishlock told ESPN. "Something had shifted perhaps in what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go, and I think that I'm still such a competitor. That will never leave me, unfortunately, which is a gift. Even though its 14 years in the making -- golly -- I still really want to bring a championship to Seattle."

"It's been the honor of my career to lead the NWSL during such an extraordinary period of growth," Berman said in a news conference. "Every success we've achieved, from expansion to investment to the player experience, is the result of collaboration across this league. I'm proud of what we've built and even more excited about where we're headed. The best is yet to come."

When the National Women's Soccer League settled with three separate attorneys general earlier this year-following investigations by all three into the league's years of failure to prevent or adequately respond to player reports of harassment and sexual misconduct-the agreement came with several requirements. One was that the league would pay $5 million to players who were abused. Another was a mandate for the league to submit regular reports to the three AGs about what it was doing to keep the abuse from happening again,

positioning the Pride among the NWSL's and world's elite clubs.

Louisville and North Carolina entered Sunday's NWSL Decision Day as the two teams fighting for the eighth and final playoff spot, and Racing Louisville had to defeat Bay FC if North Carolina also won due to the Courage's superior goal difference, which is the first tiebreaker. The North Carolina Courage defeated Gotham FC 3-2 on Sunday in a simultaneous match.

"We are thrilled to welcome the Kansas City Current and San Diego Wave FC to our exhilarating 7v7 tournament, where they will compete against top clubs from across the Americas," Sarah Cummins, CEO of W7F, said in a news release. "This high-stakes competition showcases the talent and ambition fueling the women's game today. "We know the fans will come out and cheer on these world-class teams as they compete for the title and a significant prize, reflecting our ongoing commitment to creating opportunities that reward excellence and elevate women's football on the global stage."

Seattle Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey said she used ChatGPT for tactical advice this past offseason, which ultimately led her and her staff to test out a new formation with five defenders. Harvey, who is a three-time NWSL Shield winner and three-time NWSL coach of the year, told the "Soccerish Podcast" that she had not previously played in a back-five or heavily researched it.

The Current fell 1-0 to the Houston Dash on Saturday, but it's star Temwa Chawinga that may go down as the far more impactful loss. After suffering a non-contact injury in the first half, the forward was carried off the field. While the severity of the injury isn't known, Kansas City head coach Vlatko Andonovski said after the game that Chawinga's injury was in the "upper leg" rather than the knee. Even so, plenty of folks in Kansas City will be holding their breath.

The NWSL still lacks a unified academy system, but with the college draft being abolished and combines -- including a youth combine to scout talent as young as 13 -- age is not holding recruitment back as it did in years past. Now, more teams are increasingly identifying young players who can make a difference -- and several already are, in big ways.