Editor’s Note: To close out the year, we are recognizing our best stories of 2022. This is the first in that series, originally published on Feb. 24.

When Brooke Elby found herself suddenly traded from the Utah Royals to the Chicago Red Stars in a three-team deal in 2018, she considered quitting the sport of soccer entirely.

Staying in a Chicagoland hotel room while her car sat in a Salt Lake City parking lot for weeks with all of her things, Elby reflected on her position in the NWSL, a 6-year-old league where player rights were not yet protected under a collective bargaining agreement.

“That was the first time I ever really felt like I was such a pawn in this league, and really like no one valued me,” she says.

During her stay in that hotel room, Elby reached out to a number of trusted friends to figure out what to do. One of the people she contacted was Yael Averbuch West, president of the NWSL Players Association at the time, who presented Elby with a different path: Instead of walking away, she could get involved.

The NWSLPA has had only three presidents in its five-year history: Averbuch West, Elby and current president Tori Huster. The PA hired Meghann Burke as executive director in early 2021 to oversee operations and negotiations, but only active players in the league can serve on the board.

The work those three have put in behind the scenes led to a landmark achievement to start the year. On Jan. 31, before the 2022 preseason, the NWSL and the players association ratified the league’s first CBA, ushering in a new era of player protections and compensation.

As all three know, the responsibility of balancing playing and litigating is something you can’t prepare for until you’re in the thick of it.

Averbuch West played in Women’s Professional Soccer for three years before the league folded in 2012, making way for the birth of the NWSL in 2013. When she founded the NWSLPA four years later, she had to focus on her game while making sure she could pay her bills and commit enough time and energy to getting a fledgling union up and running. It didn’t help that the average NWSL salary at the time was far below a living wage.

“There was relationship-building, there was education, there was organization — fortifying our own constitution and bylaws — and going to preseason to meet with the players to explain what a union is,” says Averbuch West. “None of us were part of a union ever before; we’ve not worked in other industries.”

The NWSL officially recognized the Players Association as an exclusive bargaining representative after the 2018 season, but at the time, both parties agreed that progress had to be made before they could sit down and negotiate a CBA. So, Averbuch West threw herself into the groundwork.

“Yael has a knack for getting things done,” Huster says. “Her ability to just figure out the small tasks that need to get done, and then mobilizing people, has been super important in starting what is a small business.”

When Averbuch West suspended her playing career in 2019 and moved to an executive director role with the NWSLPA, Elby was ready to take over as president. In her second year in Chicago, Elby tackled administrative work with enthusiasm. She redid the website, opened a bank account, filed tax forms and created social media accounts for the NWSLPA.

The tasks were overwhelming for an active professional athlete, but Elby found solace in Averbuch-West’s support during the dark times, and the clarity that comes with a shifting of priorities.

“It was almost a freeing feeling,” Elby says. “I stopped caring if I had a job or not. If somebody was going to waive me, that’s fine. I cared about the players, and I was like, if I have to be the one to say something that nobody wants to hear, or that’s going to get somebody cut from a team, I’m willing to say it because this isn’t a career that I love anymore.”

In 2019, the NWSLPA began conceptualizing the CBA process knowing that, in order to make a contract happen, they’d need some outside help. Elby reached out to Becca Roux, executive director of the U.S. women’s national team players association, and Roux put the NWSLPA in contact with the NFLPA. The advice they gave to the NWSL players was simple: If you don’t yet have the legalities in place, you need to have the structure — and that comes with a staff.

With no extra income to work with, Elby started scouting outside sponsorships. Roux connected her with Hulu, a streaming platform that was already running a campaign with USWNT stars called “Hulu has Live Sports.” Spending the offseason in Los Angeles, Elby had the chance to stop by the Hulu offices and speak with executives, who wanted to help the players in any way they could. But because the NWSL unilaterally owned the name, image and likeness rights of all of their players, the PA couldn’t commit to a content deal alone.

“[Hulu] told me their vision for what they want to do with women’s sports, and my first answer to them was, ‘This is amazing,’” says Elby. “But as players, we had no rights to anything. So I can’t sit here and be like, ‘Yeah, let’s do content,’ because we couldn’t.”

So, they got creative. Hulu agreed to donate one dollar to the NWSLPA for every juggling video posted with the company’s official hashtag, for a total of $100,000. While the production didn’t quite meet the vision — the fans generated somewhere between 20,000 and 30,000 videos, boosted through the PA’s still modest social media followings — the Hulu execs stuck to their word and made sure the PA got the full $100,000.

I’m selling out for a cause with @hulu 1️⃣ Say ‘Hulu has live sports’ while juggling. 2️⃣Add #HuluHasLiveSportsChallenge 3️⃣ Tag your friends! 4️⃣ Hulu will donate $1 to the @NWSL_players for every post, up to $100k. You’re up @saverbuch and @sammweber! pic.twitter.com/1knM4qetT0

— Yael Averbuch West (@Yael_Averbuch) May 16, 2019

“That was probably the coolest experience to be a part of,” Elby says, “just being able to talk to these executives who didn’t care about how it was going to benefit them directly, but cared about in the future, how this was going to benefit women’s sports.”

In 2022, revenue from group licensing largely covers the costs of the NWSLPA, and the union was recently able to hire former player Sydney Miramontez, effectively doubling full-time staff. As part of the new CBA, the NWSL has agreed to pay the players $255,000-$300,000 per year for group licensing rights. The PA also accepts direct donations from the public. NWSL sponsor Ally, which signed on as the union’s first official partner earlier this month, will match any contributions of up to $25,000 made to a recently established players fund.

Elby’s work in 2019 not only set the NWSLPA up to become a legitimate business, but also prepared the players for collective action. It was actually during that season under Elby’s presidency that the NWSL had its first, albeit brief, work stoppage.

In late April, the Red Stars and Reign FC had to make a call on whether to play an early-season match in Chicago, despite inches of snow covering the field. The league determined the game was to be played as scheduled, but after attempting to warm-up on the slippery surface, players weren’t so sure. Elby, acting as PA president, asked her team’s locker room and the Reign’s captain whether they believed they could play the game safely, and both sides expressed concerns about possible injuries.

“These are our bodies you’re asking us to use and to put at risk for a game that you just don’t want to reschedule,” says Elby, who called many members of the league office that night to make the players’ wishes known. The game was ultimately called off and rescheduled for the next day.

“It was all these women. They were the ones who really stood up for what mattered,” she says.

Elby retired from professional soccer at the end of the 2019 season, and Huster took over as president in early 2020. Instead of diving right into CBA talks, however, Huster began her tenure navigating the pandemic and fighting for player protections heading into the NWSL’s first-ever Challenge Cup.

The experience actually proved pivotal in setting the stage for the current CBA. The NWSLPA arranged guaranteed contracts for players uncomfortable with competing during the pandemic, a model the WNBA Players Association adopted ahead of the league’s 2020 Wubble season. They also maintained constant communication with leadership, particularly Managing Director of Competition and Player Affairs Liz Dalton, to ensure the proper protocols were in place.

The Challenge Cup successfully sheltered players from COVID-19, but even then, the fissures forming within the league began to crack. Players struggled with their mental health during a long month in a strict quarantine bubble, and the league failed to reckon with the conversation about racial equality that swept the nation during the summer of 2020.

Elby and Averbuch West shared the responsibilities of co-executive director until Burke came aboard officially in early 2021. That was when CBA talks became more serious, and the PA started interviewing outside legal counsel. Amid the instability of the 2021 season, with multiple abuse scandals rocking the league, Huster had to juggle playing, contract bargaining and standing in as a player advocate for basic safety.

“Through the entire process, I’ve just tried to be somewhat of a vehicle,” Huster says. “And we’ve had so many conversations even all through last season with the player group at large, and just trying to, through myself and through my position, reflect what it is that the players are trying to say.”

“She’s just one of those people who gets it,” Elby says of Huster. “She knows what all the players are thinking. She will put their opinions over hers first, she will always listen.”

For Huster, there are very few silver linings in what players had to go through last year, but she does find solace in the way players fought for each other and the progress they made along the way.

“These former players felt this pain, and we still can see their pain. And without their pain, this wouldn’t be possible,” Huster says. “We wouldn’t be where we are together as a collective, or able to come together as we did.”

It took the threat of a work stoppage to finally get the deal done, but in 2022, the players will enter their first NWSL season with rights protected under contract. Those include a 60 percent increase in the minimum salary and guarantees for maternity and mental health leave. Hanging over all of it is the understanding that the sacrifices players made for decades in women’s soccer led to this moment.

“I don’t think there was any point that I was like, ‘Well, I wish this existed when I was there,’ but I can be like, ‘This exists now because I was there,’” Elby says.

Even with the huge milestone behind them, for all three women, the work goes on. Averbuch West has transitioned into a new role as general manager of Gotham FC. She envisions a future where players are part of the decision-making process and work with ownership to create a better league for everybody. Elby is currently in business school at Columbia University, expanding her knowledge base before returning to the world of women’s soccer (she’d love to be commissioner one day).

Huster is rehabbing an Achilles tendon injury and hopes to be back on the field with the Washington Spirit in 2022. In the meantime, she knows that a ratified contract is just step one. Unless teams are held accountable to the terms, the contract is just a piece of paper. Huster intends for the PA to serve as a support system for players whenever they need help.

In that sense, the work will always be bigger than soccer.

“I really think it’s not supposed to end,” Huster says. “I think we have to continue to adapt, and just be ready. Things are constantly changing and evolving, and if we don’t, we’re gonna potentially get left behind, or somebody will get left behind.”

“I think that’s the hardest balance that I’ve seen Tori and Yael manage so well,” Elby says. “You’re not just doing something for you, but you’re doing it for your friends. And they’re not just your co-workers, they’re your life, the people who are going to stand next to you at your wedding.”

Advocacy for a group of over 250 people will never be simple, and as the league expands, the hurdles ahead are daunting. But as the NWSLPA continues to evolve in the image of its first three leaders, the next generation of players can feel more secure in their freedom to get involved.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports covering soccer and the NWSL. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

When San Diego's home match against the Washington Spirit ended in a 0-0 draw on June 22nd, the NWSL officially pressed pause on the regular season, entering an extended summer break as international tournaments kicked off around the world.

And while the US club league has dimmed its lights before — most recently during the 2024 Paris Olympics — this is the first year it's ever stopped play to accommodate major regional competitions like Copa América, WAFCON, and UEFA Women's Euro 2025.

Why the new approach? The league's global presence has never been stronger. And that's not just because high-profile players like Naomi Girma and Crystal Dunn swapped their NWSL jerseys for European kits earlier this year. It goes the other way, too. Once an assumed stronghold for homegrown talent, the NWSL has diversified its ranks, with top players heading overseas this window.

US broadcasters buy into growing Euros interest

No event has showcased this shift greater than the European Championship. The tournament was once siloed away from the average Stateside soccer fan. But this year, 18 NWSL players representing 12 countries are Switzerland-bound — three-times the number playing in England just three years ago.

And fans are ready to dig in. The 2025 Euros will be the most accessible in history, with FOX Sports recently doubling down on broadcasting the competition in the US.

The network has committed to 31 matches, including 19 games on linear TV and every knockout round match. It will also provide pre- and post-game analysis, aiming to develop a major market player while riding out the sport's popularity boom.

With increased visibility and plenty of familiar faces, NWSL fans are set to become Euro 2025's prime audience. And for players, showcasing the league's impact shapes the perception of football in the US, allowing the NWSL the opportunity to strengthen its reputation despite never taking the pitch this July.

Euros stars say perceptions of the NWSL are shifting

Only one NWSL player featured on England's 2022 Euros-winning roster. That was Houston forward-turned-defender Rachel Daly, before she returned to the WSL and retired from international play. 

That number tripled in 2025, after Gotham FC defender Jess Carter, Spirit defender Esme Morgan, and Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse were called up to the Lionesses's title defense in Switzerland.

It's not Carter's first Euros, but this will be the first year she joins from an NWSL team. An England mainstay since her 2017 senior debut, she said she never felt like a move to the US would jeopardize her national team standing. Just so long as her performance stayed consistent.

"People were probably apprehensive about coming here before, because it's so far away from your family and friends," Carter told Just Women's Sports. "But also because the NWSL was traditionally known as just a transitional league. And to a lot of people in Europe, it wasn't technical enough."

Carter isn't alone in her assessment. Both Morgan and Moorhouse told JWS they were familiar with the NWSL's reputation as a "kick and run" league. Though that stereotype didn't match their experiences on the ground.

"Most [NWSL] teams are trying to play possession-based football, albeit a little more direct than Europe," Morgan said. "I think that's far more exciting to be a part of, and also more challenging as a defender because there are such fast transitions."

"The league is changing here in the US," echoed Carter, who departed Chelsea for Gotham in 2024. "It's becoming more technical."

NWSL play helped Morgan secure her spot with England

That hybrid style — plus more starting opportunities — have bolstered Morgan's status with England. Coach Sarina Wiegman already knew the Manchester City product as a powerful line-breaker on the ball. And her ability to wear down the low block while holding the lion's share of possession has only improved. 

"I felt confident coming here," she continued. "As long as I continued to work on the things that I wanted to improve, and every weekend was putting in good performances for the Spirit, that would be enough to put me in the running for selection."

The NWSL's speed has also elevated her play. "[Wiegman] has spoken to me the last couple of times about being really pleased with what I've been able to do, in terms of being a little bit more aggressive, proactive, physical in my duels, and winning aerial balls," she said. "I've developed so much in that space since playing in America."

Both Morgan and Carter competed with England at the 2023 World Cup, 30-year-old Moorehouse is gearing up for her first major tournament with the national team. And coming from an Orlando side stacked with international talent — namely Brazil legend Marta and Zambia superstar Barbra Banda, among others — the goalie credited her NWSL team for keeping her on her toes every day.

"Marta humbles me on a daily basis, I'm not gonna lie," she laughed. "To see that day in-day out, it's only for the better. It's only going to improve my game."

Summer NWSL schedule benefits Euros-bound players

As coveted national team roster spots reflect both consistency and form, NWSL players have a quiet advantage. Thanks to the summer NWSL schedule, they're guaranteed to be completely match-fit going into any major tournament.

That the NWSL runs opposite to the more traditional fall-to-spring European setup has sometimes been a point of tension overseas. This was especially true in past years, when the league did not suspend regular-season play for more than a weekend or two during longer international windows. That practice forced previous Euros competitors to choose between club and country. 

This year, however, players view the cross-conditioning to be as much of an asset as an anticipated challenge when they return to finish out the season.

"I spoke to quite a few of the US girls in the past about the fact that the summer schedule might have helped their performance in international tournaments," said Morgan, pointing out the NWSL-heavy USWNT's major tournament success.

"I feel like I'm peaking at the right time, going into the tournament in midseason," echoed Moorhouse, who is set to serve as backup to Chelsea goalkeeper and presumptive England starter Hannah Hampton.

Learning to balance club and country

Still, there are downsides. It's not always easy to travel in and out of market ahead of a big international opportunity, but each player finds their own way to stay on top of whichever task is in front of them, whether at home or abroad.

Sometimes that divide between club and country is literal. "We have a [NWSL] team app where we have communication," Gotham and Germany goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger told media after her Euros call-up. "I was like, 'Look, if you need something, you have to text me on WhatsApp. Because this app is not working for me when I'm at the international break, and the same way around.'"

For Carter, the NWSL's schedule helps her compartmentalize, keeping her laser-focused on both individual and team goals.

"I'm someone that either is all in or all off," she explained. "I've got to make sure that I'm still eating right, training right, when all I want to do is sit by the beach and have an ice cream."

"I want fans to fall in love with women's football even more"

Carter and Berger aren't the only Gotham standouts packing their passports this month. Star forward Esther González is also committed to play for the always-dangerous Spanish national team. Fellow forward Jéssica Silva will represent Portugal and recent signing Josefine Hasbo is set to join Denmark. And the excitement is palpable, both on and off the pitch.

"It's really great to see that our fans get to support us even whilst we're not at Gotham. Because they're invested in us as people, not just Gotham," says Carter. "I want fans to fall in love with women's football even more, regardless of where it's being played."

As for Morgan, she could be battling against the Spirit's newest signing, Italy's Sofia Cantore. The rest of their teammates will definitely be watching from home — along with a very special guest.

Before Morgan left, her teammates assured her they would be up in the morning cheering her on. "And mak[ing] my kitten watch too, which is very cute," she added.

She said she likes imagining NWSL fans following their favorite club players through the tournament, staying engaged in the game even as the league takes a break.

Encouraging NWSL fans to watch the 2025 Euros

Moorhouse echoed Morgan's hope that the Euros will allow US fans to continue weaving women's football into their lives during the downtime.

"In the US, when I get up on a Saturday morning, all the games are on," she said, referencing the time change. "To me, that's so cool. I'm eating my breakfast, drinking my coffee, and I've just got football on the telly."

"Go and get your breakfast," she urged. "Get your pancakes. And watch some good football."

The third Grand Slam of 2025 is officially underway, as the world's top tennis stars hit the grass courts in London for the annual Wimbledon Championships on Monday.

World No. 16 Barbora Krejčíková enters as the Slam's reigning champion, with all of the WTA's current Top 10 — none of whom have ever won at Wimbledon — looking to dethrone the 2024 victor.

No. 3 Jessica Pegula looks to be an early frontrunner, as the US star picked up steam following her defeat of No. 4 Iga Świątek 6-4, 7-5 in Saturday's championship match of the 2025 Bad Homburg Open, a Wimbledon tune-up tournament.

A 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinalist, Pegula has already earned three titles this year, gaining significant momentum as she hunts a career-first Grand Slam trophy.

"[Pegula has] an amazing game, and showed it throughout the tournament," Świątek said following Saturday's loss. "Hopefully, we will have many more finals together."

The first day of 2025 Wimbledon action saw No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka cruise through her first-round match against Canada's No. 194 Carson Branstine in straight sets, while No. 8 Madison Keys battled to a narrow three-set victory over Romania's No. 58 Elena-Gabriela Ruse.

Fellow US contender No. 12 Amanda Anisimova played the most dominant first-round match of the Slam, ousting Kazakhstan's No. 33 Yulia Putintseva 6-0, 6-0 to open her tournament run.

Italy's No. 5 Jasmine Paolini, a 2024 Wimbledon finalist, also kicked off her 2025 run with a win, downing Latvia's No. 402 Anastasija Sevastova in three sets on Monday afternoon.

Pegula will open her campaign against Italy's No. 116 Elisabetta Cocciaretto on the second day of first-round action at 6 AM ET, with Świątek, 2025 French Open champ No. 2 Coco Gauff, and 2024 Wimbledon quarterfinalist No. 10 Emma Navarro also rounding out Tuesday's bill.

How to watch the 2025 Wimbledon Championships

The 2025 Wimbledon women's tournament runs through the July 12th championship.

Live continuous coverage of the London Grand Slam airs on ESPN.

The Minnesota Lynx are back on the prowl, after the return of MVP frontrunner Napheesa Collier from injury fueled the WNBA-leaders to two straight weekend wins.

Minnesota first outlasted the No. 4 Atlanta Dream 96-92 in overtime on Friday before thumping the last-place Connecticut Sun 102-63 on Sunday, with Collier racking up 49 points over the two-game span.

Collier's bounce-back couldn't have come at a better time, as the WNBA announced Sunday that the Lynx forward will captain the 2025 All-Star Game alongside Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark.

"It's really cool," Collier said of the news. "I went from never being a starter to captain."

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Both Collier and Clark will have an early chance to test their leadership skills in Tuesday's 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup championship game, when the defending champs Minnesota Lynx will take on first-time finalists Indiana.

With a second straight title on the line, red-hot Minnesota hold the advantage coming into the Commissioner's Cup final, but a healthy Clark could make all the difference for up-and-down No. 8 Indiana.

Meanwhile in the WNBA standings, as the Lynx continue to hold court at the top, this weekend saw the Mercury overtake the Liberty at No. 2, thanks in large part to Phoenix's 106-91 Friday victory over New York.

Along with Sunday's 90-81 loss to the Dream, the reigning champs have dropped five of their last seven games, as now-No. 3 New York struggles without injured center Jonquel Jones.

How to watch the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup final

While the other 11 league teams rest until Thursday, the Minnesota Lynx and Indiana Fever will take Tuesday's court in a battle for the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup.

The in-season tournament's grand finale will tip off at 8 PM ET, with live coverage on Prime.

The world No. 1 USWNT earned another lopsided result against No. 25 Ireland on Sunday, handing the Girls in Green a second straight 4-0 loss despite extensive lineup changes on both sides.

Veteran forward Lynn Biyendolo opened the scoring in her first match as USWNT captain, followed by first-ever senior team goals from both debutant defender Izzy Rodriguez and attacker Yazmeen Ryan.

Second-half USWNT sub Alyssa Thompson found the back of the net in the 86th minute to finish padding the 4-0 scoreline over Ireland.

With one more friendly against No. 8 Canada set for Wednesday, USWNT head coach Emma Hayes rotated all 11 starters on Sunday, trusting bubble players to overcome inexperience to produce a result.

"The level has been set to be relentless in the pursuit of performing and progressing," Hayes said after the game. "It's not about understanding everything in our playbook, but developing the confidence and bravery to deliver."

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The victory also marked the USWNT's 600th program win, with midfielder Sam Meza joining Rodriguez in picking up the 23rd and 24th first caps of the Emma Hayes era.

"I feel like everyone is not only trusting the process, but carrying out all the things we ask them to do," said Hayes of her new additions. "Everybody showed themselves so well."

Though the US keeps stretching its depth and coming out on top, the need to develop strong connections on the pitch could force tough roster decisions in the future.

How to watch the USWNT vs. Canada on Wednesday

The USWNT will cap their three-friendly summer break against rivals Canada on Wednesday at 7:30 PM ET.

Live coverage of the clash in Washington, DC, will air on TNT.