With 2021 blessedly behind us, it’s time for the world of women’s soccer to turn toward the new year with high hopes and lessons learned. The NWSL is moving into its tenth anniversary season (despite the lost 2020 regular season), and the stakes for a new start have never been higher.

The new year on the NWSL calendar will bring exciting soccer, fresh faces and a wealth of competition the now 12-team league has never seen before. But my NWSL New Year’s wishes are a bit bigger than what happens on the field, so let’s dive in.

Ratify the league’s first CBA

The NWSL’s success in 2022 likely begins and ends with solidifying the league’s first Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NWSL Players Association. The negotiating process gained some clarity when the U.S. Soccer Federation ended its allocation funding at the end of 2021, meaning players contracted with the U.S. women’s national team could officially join the NWSLPA for the first time.

The CBA is going to be important in all elements of player experience. In order for the NWSL to maintain a functioning workplace, one has to think the league will need to finalize the CBA — or be making significant progress in negotiations — before players report to preseason camp on Feb. 1. The agreement is going to set minimum and maximum wages, define the terms of a free agency period and set other standards such as maternity protections and salary cap flexibility.

All of these matters must be sorted so that players don’t have questions about the league’s future going into the 2022 season. More importantly, for the sustainability of the league, owners need to provide the players with the confidence that they can internalize as a group. It could be some time before the NWSL releases the findings of the investigations it launched into the league’s and teams’ handling of abuse claims, and players need to feel like their voices are being heard by their employers. That comes from good-faith negotiating leading to real changes that benefit the league’s labor force.

Searching for basic levels of safety, a number of players have taken a chance on fresh starts within the league rather than leaving the country or the sport. It is now up to the NWSL to reward that faith, and they need to start by putting it in writing.

Resolve ownership conflict

It’s a bit obvious that this wish is in reference to the ongoing saga of the Washington Spirit, now that the calendar has turned and Steve Baldwin has yet to commit to sell the team to minority owner Y. Michele Kang. As of this writing, Kang has the highest bid for Baldwin’s shares at $35 million, 40 percent more than the $25 million offer by billionaire Todd Boehly, Baldwin’s preferred buyer. Now, Baldwin’s fellow investors are pushing back, backing Kang (who also has the support of the players) and pressuring Baldwin to do his fiduciary duty and sell to the highest bidder.

Getting the Baldwin mess out of the league is paramount to both Spirit and league leadership, but it also speaks to a larger conflict the NWSL has to resolve: owners gripping tightly to situations that don’t serve players and fans. Baldwin is attempting to sell the Spirit to an outside buyer against the wishes of his players, and there are similar conflicts simmering elsewhere in the league.

Chicago Red Stars supporters group Chicago Local 134 has extended its ultimatum for majority owner Arnim Whisler to sell his shares in the club past the end of the year. Controversial signings by the Portland Thorns and North Carolina Courage have also led to discord between the clubs and their fans. The league hasn’t even begun to touch the sexual assault lawsuit in which new San Diego Wave FC owner Ron Burkle was named as a defendant. Burkle, who is also part owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins, is being investigated for violating Pennsylvania whistle-blower laws after the wife of a former team employee accused former head coach Clark Donatelli of groping her.

The NWSL cannot handle another year of scandal, and the first place to establish stability is with the same owners who allowed abuse to continue under their watch for years. From this vantage point, allowing Baldwin to hold the Spirit hostage and Burkle to operate without investigation feels like more of the same. The league can mitigate unequal power dynamics by creating the strong CBA proposed above, but it also has to commit to turning over a new leaf at the ownership level or these problems will continue.

California dreaming

It’s not necessarily written in the history of the NWSL to send best wishes to expansion sides, but what is 2022 if not a year for something new? Angel City FC and San Diego Wave FC are coming into the league carrying responsibilities greater than how many goals they score on the pitch, and it will be good for everybody if they hit the ground running in their first seasons.

The California teams have provided the NWSL with good press to close out a rough year and have clearly become a haven for players in need of fresh starts. Both clubs are women-led, and Angel City is women-owned, presenting a new way forward for a league struggling to reconcile its past.

They also have the potential to field two very exciting soccer teams, jumpstart a new regional rivalry, shake up the standings and provide a brilliant showcase for the league. Angel City’s first game at Banc of America Stadium is going to be the event of the season. One has to hope that CBS has the game circled in pen for a network television slot.

I’m not one for bold predictions, but I’d love (and expect) to see at least one of the California clubs in playoff contention by the end of the season. With a number of clubs entering new eras in 2022, the postseason race promises to be competitive and exhilarating.

Let televised games tell the story

Washington’s meeting with Chicago in the NWSL championship game was the culmination of a wild playoff race: The Houston Dash were eliminated in the last game of the season, the NWSL Shield-winning Thorns were dealt a massive upset and OL Reign were bounced on their home field. While the final was televised on CBS, the momentous games preceding it were relegated to cable at best (CBS Sports) and streaming services at worst (Twitch).

As advocates for women’s sports have been saying for years, putting games on national television not only provides the platform that elite play deserves but also helps tell the stories of the league to a wide audience. Imagine if the 525,000 people who tuned into the championship game had had weeks to learn about what makes Trinity Rodman special, or how Chicago’s midfield kept the team alive when injuries made their run seem impossible. It takes time and repetition to ingrain these narratives into the lives of casual sports fans, and that process goes hand-in-hand with TV coverage.

My wish is for CBS to air more NWSL games on the flagship network, but also to weave women’s stories into their Champions League coverage, Serie A coverage and beyond. Midge Purce did a brilliant job talking about the NWSL Championship during men’s Concacaf World Cup qualifying, and she’s not the only player with the ability to represent the league in that capacity. The league’s partnership with CBS has already paid dividends with strong viewership returns on TV and on Paramount+. Now, the network has the ability to take the ubiquity of the league in the soccer landscape to the next level, and it should take that responsibility seriously.

CBS should also work with the league to invest in and possibly even take over production responsibilities from Vista Worldlink, which has been handling game broadcasts for a number of years. Make the CBS deal a partnership in practice, not just in name, and people will watch.

Peace of mind for NWSL fans

It feels like this goal might be too lofty considering some of the larger issues the NWSL needs to resolve. But my genuine wish for longtime NWSL fans this year is that the league gets to a place where they can be content to support it again. I don’t want supporters to feel like they have to turn off parts of their brain in order to cheer for their team, or that they have to ignore issues that are important to them. Teams should not be asking their fans to betray causes they hold dear in order to find solace in the joy of sports.

Soccer — like all sports — is a capitalistic effort, and that effort isn’t going to align with the values of every fan who wants to buy a ticket to a game. But teams should be joining their fans in a commitment against racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia in the locker room rather than resisting them. The NWSL has a minor miracle on its hands in a fan base that truly cares about these values, and leaning into them isn’t as difficult as those in positions of influence might lead you to believe.

So when I say I wish for peace of mind for the fan base, I say it knowing that not all sides are going to get what they want. But fewer unforced errors from the top, more success stories of supporting players and true accountability for wrongdoing would go a long way toward making sure the NWSL thrives, and doesn’t simply replace the fans who got the league here in the first place.

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

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

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Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

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Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.

For the first time in history, three different WNBA teams have completely sold out of season ticket plans well before the league's May 14th kick-off.

Call it the Caitlin Clark effect, attribute it to this year’s tenacious rookie class, or look to the skyrocketing visibility of veteran players across the board. But no matter the cause, facts are facts: Tickets to the 2024 WNBA season are selling like never before. 

On Monday, the Dallas Wings became the third team to sell out of season ticket memberships in the league’s 27-year history. The announcement from Arlington came shortly after the Atlanta Dream issued their own season ticket sell-out statement, also on Monday, and almost seven weeks after the back-to-back WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces made headlines by becoming the first-ever WNBA team to sell out their season ticket allotment.   

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According to the Wings, season ticket memberships will fill nearly 40% of the 6,251 seats inside their home arena, College Park Center. The club also said that their overall ticket revenue has ballooned to the tune of 220% this year, spanning not just season tickets but also a 1,200% increase in single ticket sales. There’s currently a waitlist to become a Dallas season ticket holder, a status that comes with extra incentives like playoff presale access and discounts on additional single-game tickets. 

In Atlanta, season tickets aren't the only thing flying off the shelves. The Dream also announced that they broke their own record for single-game ticket sales during a recent limited presale campaign. Sunday was reportedly their most lucrative day, with five different games totally selling out Gateway Center Arena. Individual tickets for all upcoming matchups will hit the market this Thursday at 8 a.m., while a waitlist for season ticket memberships will open up next Tuesday at 10 a.m.

"Excitement around women's sports, particularly basketball, is at an all-time high and nowhere is that felt more than here in Atlanta," Dream president and COO Morgan Shaw Parker said in the team’s statement. "We’ve continued a record-setting growth trajectory over the past three years under new ownership — both on and off the court — and 2024 is shaping up to be our best season yet."

As of Tuesday, season ticket sales revenue for Caitlin Clark’s hotly anticipated Indiana Fever debut haven’t yet been announced by the club. But if these numbers are any indication — not to mention the explosive demand for Fever away games felt by teams around the country — it won’t be long before we see some scale-tipping figures coming out of Indianapolis.

25-year-old American pro golfer Nelly Korda secured her spot in LPGA history on Sunday, notching her fifth-straight title at this weekend's Chevron Championship in The Woodlands, Texas.

Ranked No. 1 in the world by Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Korda joins Nancy Lopez (1978) and Annika Sörenstam (2005) as just the third LPGA player to rack up five consecutive tour wins. She is also the third No. 1-ranked player to capture The Chevron Championship victory since the rankings debuted in 2006, accompanied by Lorena Ochoa and Lydia Ko.

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The Florida native shot three-under 69 in Sunday's final, besting Sweden's Maja Stark despite Stark's valiant come-from-behind attempt in the 18th. Korda finished with a four-day total of 13-under 275, celebrating her two-stroke win by cannonballing into Poppie's Pond, much to the crowd's delight. She left The Club at Carlton Woods with $1.2 million from an overall purse of $7.9 million.

It wasn't long ago that the two-time major champion's current winning streak seemed unimaginable. After maintaining her No. 1 position for 29 weeks, Korda underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from her left arm in 2022. She returned to the course not long after, but failed to win a single tournament in 2023 before seeing a surge in form during the first four months of 2024. As of today, she hasn't lost a tournament since January.

Korda will attempt a record sixth-straight win at next week's JM Eagle LA Championship at Wilshire Country Club in Los Angeles, where she'll vie for a cut of the $3.75 million purse.