The NWSL Players’ Association released the official list of prospective 2024 free agents last week, naming the restricted and unrestricted free agents now allowed to take conversations with teams across the league.

This year’s free agency period is complicated by two expansion clubs in Utah and the Bay Area joining the NWSL in 2024. With the expansion process on the horizon, teams will have to both pursue players out of contract and look to strike deals with those on their roster who are still under contract.

A number of stars grace the free agency shortlist, and it’s clear that some NWSL clubs have a tougher negotiation period ahead of them than others. Here are a few clubs in danger of letting some of the biggest names in the sport walk elsewhere this winter.

Chicago Red Stars

Unrestricted: Tierna Davidson, D; Casey Krueger, D; Mallory Swanson, F; Yuki Nagasato, M

When the old U.S. national allocation status went away in 2021, the Red Stars made sure to lock down their four players who fell under that status to two-year contracts: Tierna Davidson, Casey Krueger, Mallory Swanson and Alyssa Naeher.

Entering the 2024 free agency period, the only player of that four who has signed onto an additional year with the club is Naeher. The Red Stars have a significant amount of rebuilding to do both on and off the field under new ownership, and retaining the other three players of their long-standing USWNT foursome will likely be at the top of the priority list. Standout midfielder Yuki Nagasato has also not yet signed her mutual team option, leaving Chicago facing the possible loss of veteran leadership and available talent.

Swanson has indicated that she’d like to stay in Chicago (where her husband Dansby plays for the Cubs of the MLB), and Krueger is similarly settled in the Midwest. Davidson, however, might be a difficult player for the Red Stars to retain. With expansion approaching, the center-back is looking to get back into the USWNT roster conversation and might seek out a change of scenery in the process.

Portland Thorns

Unrestricted: Crystal Dunn, M; Meghan Klingenberg, D; Becky Sauerbrunn, D; Christine Sinclair, F

The Thorns similarly have major talent to retain if they want to avoid a major overhaul in 2024. Crystal Dunn, Meghan Klingenberg, Becky Sauerbrunn and Christine Sinclair have all played consistently for the club this year, excluding Sauerbrunn’s foot injury that left the two-time world champion off the USWNT roster for this year’s World Cup.

Of the four star players entering unrestricted free agency this year, Sinclair and Sauerbrunn might consider hanging up their boots entirely, but they are still a big part of Portland’s race to the NWSL Shield in 2023. Dunn has been a revelation while playing in a more advanced position following the injury to Golden Boot leader Sophia Smith, showcasing the versatility that makes her one of the most valuable NWSL players of all time.

Klingenberg has also quietly been one of the most consistent performers in the league in the years since her USWNT career ended. A key locker room presence for Portland, she has adjusted her game to retain her effectiveness into her mid-30s. While the Thorns do a good job bringing in young talent to shore up positions, it’s hard to imagine what the team would look like without any of these free agents.

OL Reign

Unrestricted: Emily Sonnett, M/D; Rose Lavelle, M
Restricted: Tziarra King, F; Angelina, M

Portland’s longtime rivals also have some work to do to maintain a through-line between their longtime stars and up-and-coming talent. Megan Rapinoe, who has played for the Reign since their inception in 2013, will be retiring at the end of the season. Jess Fishlock, another member of the Reign’s original three alongside defender Lauren Barnes, has signed an extension through next season.

Beyond the true veterans, the Reign have a number of starters with the opportunity to turn elsewhere after this season. Rose Lavelle has had her moments of being unstoppable for Seattle since her unexpected trade from the Spirit in 2020, but she’s also been plagued by injury in recent years.

Emily Sonnett became one of the team’s starting defensive midfielders after another surprise trade from Washington earlier this year. If the Reign are in the process of parting with their longtime culture-setters in their locker room, they at least might want to focus on holding onto USWNT mainstays like Lavelle and Sonnett.

The Reign also have a few young contributors up for restricted free agency — meaning that if they do not receive a qualifying offer from their current team, they can negotiate with other teams. Tziarra King and Angelina have both been skillful additions to the Reign’s roster, and with head coach Laura Harvery likely having to reshape the concept of her starting XI, they provide depth the club might be reluctant to lose.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

Sweden veteran defender Magda Eriksson is hanging up her international boots to focus on her health, with the 32-year-old officially announcing her retirement from her national team on Sunday.

Eriksson will continue competing at the domestic level for her German club, Bayern Munich.

The longtime captain sat out the most recent international window due to a head injury, watching as world No. 3 Sweden fell to No. 1 Spain in the two-leg 2025 Nations League semifinals.

"It's by far the toughest decision I've ever made," Eriksson said in her social media announcement. "But I'm listening to my body and mind instead of my heart."

"I've landed in the fact that unfortunately it's a decision that has to be made."

After an 11-year career with the Swedish senior national team, Eriksson retires as a two-time Olympic silver medalist, earning those podium finishes in Rio in 2016 and at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Games.

Often leading Sweden through major tournaments where early domination dissolved into a third-place finish, Eriksson also helped her team eke onto the World Cup podium in both 2019 and 2023.

"It is heavy news," said Sweden head coach Tony Gustavsson after Eriksson announced her international retirement, calling her "one of our most important players for a long time."

"[Magda's] professionalism, courage, and heart have left a strong mark on the national team," he added.

Chelsea FC's £1 million gamble is paying dividends, as USWNT rising star Alyssa Thompson continued her goal-scoring momentum for the six-time defending WSL champs on Sunday.

The young forward found the back of the net in the ninth minute of the Blues' 1-1 Sunday draw with Liverpool, solidifying her status as a decisive attacking threat for her new club.

"You can see how much talent she has and the quality she brings to the team," Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor said of Thompson earlier this month. "She's improving game after game, becoming more connected to her teammates, and understanding the way we want to play better."

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Thompson left NWSL side Angel City for Chelsea on a then-record £1 million transfer fee in early September, with the 21-year-old going on to notch three goals and one assist in four matches across both WSL and Champions League play.

"Being able to play with players that are the best in the world is an amazing opportunity," said the striker. "I want to learn, grow, and develop a lot. I feel like Chelsea is such an amazing environment to do that in."

Beyond individual accomplishment, Thompson's success underscores Chelsea's depth as they continue to hunt domestic and continental honors on a now-34 match WSL unbeaten streak — while also looking to potentially draw more USWNT stars away from the NWSL.

Women's professional baseball has landed a home base, with Front Office Sports reporting on Monday that the newly formed WPBL will play the entirety of its 2026 debut season at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois.

The incoming league prioritized a neutral venue without an existing baseball team to house its four inaugural clubs — New York, Boston, LA, and San Francisco — for its first campaign, with barnstorming games also planned for each team market.

"Our sport is for everybody," WPBL co-founder Keith Stein told FOS. "It's for middle America, everybody. We thought, 'Our teams are on these two coasts, it would be good to be in the middle of the country.'"

Founded in 2024 as the first professional women's baseball outfit in the US since 1954, the WPBL will hold its first-ever draft on Thursday, with the league's four teams drawing from a pool of 120 eligible players.

The WPBL recently fielded an oversubscribed Series A investment round, telling FOS that they're closing a $3 million raise with another round planned ahead of its August 2026 season-opener.

Each 30-player team will operate under a $95,000 salary cap for the first year, with the league also covering living costs throughout the seven-week season as well as giving players a percentage of sponsorship funds.

How to watch the first-ever WPBL Draft

The 2025 WPBL Draft kicks off at 8 PM ET on Thursday, with live coverage streaming across the league's Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube channels.

Las Vegas Aces boss Becky Hammon spoke her mind last week, telling CNBC Sport that the WNBA might need "a change in leadership" for the league's CBA talks to successfully progress.

"I just think [player relations] might be too fractured at this point, but we'll see," Hammon said, while also noting that she's had only limited interactions with WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.

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Citing Engelbert's "private conversations...with individual players — or lack of the conversations," Hammon described the commissioner's current relationship with players as "rocky" while describing her widely criticized leadership style.

"I don't know if she can ever regret, retract, and get that traction back from those conversations," the Aces boss posited.

"When the players speak, people need to sit up and listen," she continued. "I think [Engelbert is] sitting up and listening now."

Hammon also voiced support for Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier after the five-time All-Star described the WNBA as having the "worst leadership in the world" in her now-viral 2025 exit interview.

"I completely agree with Napheesa that the players should be making more than coaches," the Las Vegas sideline leader — who publicly earns seven figures per year — continued. "They're due for a huge increase in salary, and it's got to be something that is sustainable. That's the biggest thing you got to remember, that this league is still a young league."

Ultimately, while the 2025 WNBA season is over, CBA concerns loom large over the league's current offseason and 2026 campaign, leaving Hammon and others looking to avoid a lockout as the November 30th extension deadline nears.