It appears Trinity Rodman’s free agency could be a highly influential one for the NWSL.
The league’s Board of Governors are in advanced discussions about implementing a new roster mechanism that would allow teams to pay star players such as Rodman significant salaries beyond the salary cap, according to ESPN. A proposal is reportedly out for a vote and could be approved ahead of a board meeting next week.
If the measure is passed, it would mark a significant chance in how the league does business with its most important players, almost entirely spurred by the prospect of Rodman leaving the Washington Spirit for a more lucrative deal with a top European club unbound by a salary cap.
The Spirit previously had a deal on the table that Rodman was reportedly ready to accept, with an average annual value of over $1 million, but NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman vetoed it last week, arguing it went against the spirit of a rulebook the league is now in the process of changing.
The NWSL Players Association has filed a grievance on Rodman’s behalf over the decision.
According to ESPN, the new mechanism would give each team a set amount of money to spend on players who meet certain criteria, with the possibility of spreading it around multiple players. So basically a second salary pool to be used for stars. Discussions have reportedly been going on daily in recent weeks, with debate over which kind of players should be eligible for the extra money. That criteria remains unclear for now.
That would be a bit different than MLS’s Designated Player Rule, which is how the top American men’s league deals with matters such as Rodman. Under that system, teams can simply sign up to three players on contracts that exist outside the salary cap, which has facilitated major acquisitions such as David Beckham, Lionel Messi and Son Heung-min.
However they address it, it’s plainly clear the NWSL needs some way to compete with the European clubs as the money in women’s soccer grows larger and larger. Big names such as Naomi Girma and Alyssa Thompson have already headed across the Atlantic, and Rodman appeared poised to join them as long as the Spirit were forbidden to meet her asking price.
There are still plenty of details not currently available, for now, the news appears to be what Spirit fans were hoping for, as well as any other fanbases with notable players who could go East.
