‘It’s important we attract the best’: inside the NWSL’s groundbreaking deal that abolishes the draft

In an exclusive interview, commissioner Jessica Berman discusses the decision to become the first major US sports league to remove the draft, increasing revenue and expanding mental health support for players

Early on Thursday, the National Women's Soccer League announced a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with its players' association. Ratified almost two years ahead of schedule, it's a landmark deal underscoring the league's commitment to innovation and player empowerment. Key elements of the agreement include increased salary minimums and a growing salary cap, expanded healthcare options and a groundbreaking shift to a fully free agency model, making the NWSL the first US professional league to abolish the draft.

The timing of this agreement is strategic. With the CBA now extending to 2030 (the former CBA was set to expire in 2026), NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said that the goal of this preemptive return to the negotiating table was to lay a solid foundation for long term labor stability. While only in the second year of their immediate media rights deal - already historic for its 40-fold increase - she said sights are already set on the next set of contracts due in 2027.