From expansion to to broadcast rights to VAR technology, changes are coming to the NWSL.

League commissioner Jessica Berman provided updates ahead of Thursday’s draft on these and more key topics. Here’s everything NWSL fans need to know to kick off 2023.

Expansion

Two teams are expected to join the league in 2024, with one in Utah and another in one of three locations (Boston, the Bay Area or Tampa, Florida).

Berman did not have any information to share about the second location or the logistics of the new teams joining the NWSL. But she will provide more details soon, she said, likely in “weeks.”

“When we have news to share, we will,” she said. “I think what I can say is that I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunities we have in front of us. And I think when we have news to share, you will all agree that, number one, it was worth waiting for. And number two, it will be a moment where we can all really recognize that the NWSL is a business worth investing in, and will really demonstrate and validate the value that we all know these players and this league deserve.”

Salary cap

The salary cap for the upcoming season has been raised by 25% to $1.375 million, and allocation money has been upped to $600,000.

Teams also are increasing their individual investments in coaching staffs, facilities and “other areas that we know our players need and deserve in order to perform at the highest level,” Berman said. Those investments are doubling and tripling from last year, she said.

Broadcast rights

With the NWSL’s broadcast rights deals set to expire at the end of the 2023 season, Berman and the league are interested in seeing what the market can offer.

That could include re-signing with CBS or reaching deals with other networks. The three factors that could influence a deal are term, reach and dollars, Berman said.

“We have not yet made a decision about what’s the primary driver, because it will depend on the market,” she said. “And the market will tell us whether and how we should balance those three, and oftentimes competing initiatives.”

The league’s current deals — with CBS, worth $4.5 million, and with Twitch, worth more than $1 million — appear to be undervalued compared to other sports broadcast deals. For example, MLS signed a deal with Apple TV in 2022 worth $250 million per season.

Up 71% from last season's championship.

(via @NWSL) pic.twitter.com/RJ4XdvnyX4

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) November 1, 2022

Rebranding

In addition to signing a broadcast deal and increasing salaries, the NWSL will focus in 2023 on renewing its brand and continuing to grow the league’s identity, Berman said. The NWSL will focus on investment into the league, whether that comes from sponsorship, expansion, media deals or “any other perspective.”

“Smart investment, future investment is an indication that the business is worth investing in, and that smart people have determined that it’s an area of growth,” Berman said.

VAR implementation

Video assistant referee (VAR) technology is coming to the NWSL, Berman reiterated Thursday. The league first announced in July that it would introduce VAR in 2023, and the process is already underway.

The investment has been approved by the NWSL board, Berman said, and VAR will be in place for the start of the season.

Still, it’s a challenging undertaking, as it takes extensive resources and training, Berman said. The process will take several months, and in order to properly implement VAR, at least six cameras are needed for each game.

🖥️// With @NWSL implementing video review in the 2023 season, a new cohort of video match officials are being trained to meet the demand.

Find out more >> https://t.co/hrhIM6RGKf.#PRO | #NWSL pic.twitter.com/zdLCrviXBf

— PRO (@PROreferees) November 26, 2022

In a season packed with parity, the NWSL enters its 10th weekend of the 2025 season with just seven points separating No. 2 San Diego from No. 12 Houston on the table — meaning a single win or loss could dramatically shift the standings.

The slate is a bit lighter this weekend with No. 4 Portland and No. 8 Gotham's trip to the 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup knockouts, where the Bats will face Liga MX side Tigres UANL tournament final shortly after Portland's third-place match against Club América on Saturday (Paramount+).

Their absence leaves room for other NWSL clubs to leapfrog the Thorns and Gotham on the league table, with only No. 1 Kansas City's position secure given the Current's four-point lead over the Wave.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

What to watch in the 10th weekend of the 2025 NWSL season

No. 6 Seattle Reign vs. No. 5 Washington Spirit, 10:00 PM ET on Friday (Prime): The Reign hosts a Spirit side with a 4-0-0 road record on the season and a high-octane offense that's scoring nine goals in their last three matches. Meanwhile, Seattle's 2025 campaign has featured only eight total goals across their nine matches.

No. 14 Chicago Stars vs. No. 1 Kansas City Current, 7:30 PM ET on Saturday (ION): While the league-leading Current is safe atop the NWSL table this weekend, their match is still full of question marks as Kansas City is without several key players, including MVP frontrunner Debinha, after a spat of injuries last weekend.

No. 2 San Diego Wave vs. No. 9 North Carolina Courage, 10:00 PM ET on Sunday (CBS Sports): The Wave are riding the league's best record (4-0-1) over the last five games, but the Courage is also on the rise, coming to Seattle on a 3-0-1 stretch and achingly close to a lift above the playoff line.

With San Diego's 17-year-old midfielder Kimmi Ascanio blasting three goals in the last four games and North Carolina attacker Jaedyn Shaw — the Wave's original teen scoring phenom — returning for the first time to face her former club, Sunday's closing NWSL match could be rife with youth firepower.

The Indiana Fever and New York Liberty will bring winning momentum into their first season clash on Saturday, with each claiming victories in Thursday night's WNBA action.

First, the Fever avenged their lone 2025 season loss, defeating the Dream 81-76 on Atlanta's new home court on Thursday after narrowly falling to the Georgia squad in Indianapolis two days earlier.

Forward Natasha Howard led Indiana with 26 points, with guards Kelsey Mitchell and Caitlin Clark posting 17 and 11 points, respectively.

After missing the Fever's first two games with a right ankle sprain, guard Sophie Cunningham came off the bench to put up nine points, six rebounds, and three assists in her season debut on Thursday.

Notably, Clark — no stranger to historic streaks — saw her three-point stretch end in Thursday's win, with the second-year Fever star going cold from beyond the arc for the first time in her WNBA career.

Clark's five three-point misses snapped a 140-game sharpshooting streak that dates back to a matchup against Purdue her sophomore season at the University of Iowa — the only NCAA game in which she failed to make a three.

New York, on the other hand, couldn't miss from deep on Thursday, with the Liberty breaking the WNBA regular-season record with 19 three-pointers in their 99-74 win over the Chicago Sky.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

Eight Liberty players contributing to the new three-point mark, with guards Natasha Cloud and Kennedy Burke leading the charge with four threes each in respective 18- and 17-point performances.

The impressive sharpshooting landed the reigning WNBA champs in the regular-season history books, but New York's 19 threes still trail the overall league record of 23, drained by the Las Vegas Aces in a 2022 playoff game.

How to watch the New York Liberty vs. Indiana Fever this weekend

The Liberty will put their 2-0 record to the test in Indiana on Saturday, tipping off against the one-loss Fever at 1 PM ET.

Live coverage of the clash will air on CBS.

The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League final kicks off on Saturday, as underdogs Arsenal and defending champs Barcelona each chase history in a head-to-head clash at Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon, Portugal.

The Spanish titans aren't just hunting their third European championship in a row — a victory keeps Barcelona's hopes of completing a second straight quadruple alive with their Copa de la Reina finale looming next month.

To do so, however, they'll have to outlast the only English team to ever lift the European trophy, a feat Arsenal accomplished back in 2007.

Making their first Champions League final in 18 years, this season's Gunners are scrappy, boasting an explosive offense that led the league in scoring behind joint-WSL Golden Boot winner Alessia Russo.

The WSL runners-up bounced back from three first-leg deficits against Häcken FC, Real Madrid, and OL Lyonnes en route to the championship match — leading Barcelona star midfielder Aitana Bonmatí to call their appearance "a surprise."

"They absolutely deserve it, because scoring four goals against [eight-time Champions League winners] Lyon in the second leg is not easy at all," the back-to-back Ballon d'Or winner told ESPN. "I congratulate them for that because I think it was a big surprise, but a well-deserved one."

On Saturday, the pair will square off for the first time since 2021, when Barcelona defeated Arsenal twice in Champions League group-stage play.

"It's going to be a tough game — it's a final," said Barcelona defender Caroline Graham Hansen. "You just have to be prepared to leave your heart and soul out there and see who the better team on the day will be."

How to watch the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League final

Arsenal and Barcelona will battle for European glory at 12 PM ET on Saturday, with the Champions League grand finale streaming live on DAZN.

The NWSL's Kansas City Current officially placed defender Alana Cook on the Season Ending Injury list on Thursday, after the center back tore her left ACL, MCL, and meniscus in last Friday's 1-0 win over Orlando.

Since joining the Current in a 2024 midseason trade from Seattle, the 28-year-old starter has anchored the backline of her new team to the tune of 10 shutouts in 19 matches.

The injury is also a setback to Cook's USWNT return, with the defender logging her 30th cap and first international minutes since October 2023 just last month.

"Alana has made a big impact for our club on and off the pitch in a short period of time, and our hearts absolutely break for her," said Kansas City head coach and Cook's former USWNT boss Vlatko Andonovski in a club statement.

"Throughout her career, Alana has proven to be determined, resilient, and disciplined with an optimistic spirit," he continued. "We are confident she will carry those same attributes into her recovery process. The team will stand by her every step of the way, and we eagerly await the day she is able to join us on the pitch again."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

Kansas City attack also suffers injury losses

Cook's season-ending knock wasn't the only blow to the NWSL-leading Current, as attacking midfielder Debinha and striker Temwa Chawinga also exited Friday's pitch with injuries. With five goals each, both are currently in a four-way tie for second in the Golden Boot race.

Andonovski told the media on Wednesday that while 2024 MVP Chawinga is still undergoing evaluation, Debinha "is not probably going to be back until after the summer."

With both being considered 2025 MVP frontrunners, the losses may leave fans wondering how long Kansas City can maintain their spot atop the league.