A few weeks before Vlatko Andonovski was introduced as the Kansas City Current’s new head coach and athletic director in October 2023, he was already on a business trip. Andonovski was in South Africa to attend the COSAFA Women’s Championship, an annual competition held by 14 national teams in the southern section of the continent. Malawi made history by winning its first championship, thanks in part to the tournament’s top scorer, Tenwa Chawinga, who scored nine goals in five games.
That’s the legend of Chawinga, whose Wikipedia page is full of astonishing statistics, such as 55 goals in 57 games in Sweden for Kvarnsvedens IK and 84 goals in 83 games for Wuhan Jianghan University FC in China. She was one of several women’s soccer players who had impressive careers, but they did so on the fringes, playing in leagues with limited visibility both in their home countries and abroad. However, that does not mean that players like Chawinga are resigned to staying there.
Chawinga signed for Current the following January and was one of several players from a wide variety of international clubs to reach the NWSL this season. Many have also found success with their big breaks: Chawinga scored 20 goals in the regular season, while league newcomer Barbra Banda is second on the list with 13. This reflects the NWSL’s own new bespoke strategies that navigates an increasingly competitive women’s football. landscape, as well as a hug from the league clubs.
“soccer is the most global sport out there right now, bar none,” Caitlin Carducci, director of soccer for the Kansas City Current, told CBS Sports. “[It’s a] “It is obvious that we should look everywhere possible to find the best players and that is how they say we are the best league in the world.”
NWSL spending spree
NWSL rosters have long relied on domestic talent, largely because international roster spots were few and far between. Teams were limited to just four international spots for several years, and while that increased to five ahead of the 2022 season, the league made a big call ahead of the 2024 campaign to expand the allocation to seven. They also introduced a new transfer fee policy with a threshold of $500,000 that could be used for both domestic and international signings. Introducing those measures was key to the league’s strategy to stay competitive.
“When we talk about things we, as a league, can do to give teams more opportunities to attract and retain top talent, expanding international roster spots and adjusting the parameters around team spending were key levers that we knew we could use to offer teams more flexibility to invest in high-quality players from around the world,” said NWSL sporting director Tatjana Haenni. “The allocation of more international roster spots has also preceded an increase in international scouting and global market awareness. That in turn has introduced different playing styles and identities into the league’s clubs.”
Not only were the league’s teams able to sign more international talent, but they also splashed out money doing so. Expansion team Bay FC set the women’s soccer winter transfer record when they signed forward Rachael Kundananji from Madrid CFF for a reported fee of $862,000, while the Pride currently sit in second place in the category for the acquisition. of Shanghai Gang Shengli after allegedly spending $740,000. .
“I think it’s made the league more globally competitive,” Pride athletic director Haley Carter said. “Being able to spend those resources to bring in athletes like that, and that’s the direction the transfer market is going and it’s not something the NWSL can control, so we don’t want to be in a position where we’re reactionary. I think get ahead [by] have that transfer mechanism.”
The NWSL’s new rules have coincided with several clubs significantly improving their scouting operations, spending money on signings and other measures to leave no stone unturned. The Pride, for example, has hired a director of scouting and analytics, as well as a talent identification scout, who join a group of other club staff to establish specific talent profiles and pipelines for each position . Spending money on travel plays a role, as does watching hours and hours of videos about potential recruits.
Finding those images is sometimes easier said than done, as the Chinese Women’s Super League serves as a hub for talented players who are hard to watch. Relying on connections is the key to getting those players drawn: Former Racing Louisville head coach Kim Bjorkegren, for example, had pre-existing knowledge of that league’s players after working for Beijing Jingtan. Andonovski knew Chawinga’s agent and used him as a starting point for negotiations. Meanwhile, The Pride called a friend while recruiting Banda, who made a name for herself after scoring two hat-tricks in three games at the 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as Grace Chanda.
“To be honest, exploring it is all about the international game and Lisa Cole, who is an American soccer coach, was the technical advisor for Zambia,” Carter said. “She was with them in the run-up to 2023. [Women’s] World Cup and, of course, we were watching those games… We [also] noticed [Chanda] in the run-up to the World Cup. Unfortunately, she couldn’t participate in the World Cup, but at the same time we see Barbra, we see Grace and then we talk to Lisa.”
“An easy sale”
The new and improved scouting operations in the NWSL reflect a broad increase in investment across the league. Teams may spend more on transfers and salaries than in previous years, while ownership groups are eager to invest their money in training facilities, stadiums, medical staff, private chefs and more to improve player experience and performance. Added to the level of competition, it makes it easier for clubs to present themselves to potential talent.
Naturally, each club has its own outlets, especially Current. They are one of the few NWSL teams with their own training facilities and are the first women’s sports team in the country with their own stadium.
“We’re never second fiddle to anyone,” Carducci said. “We never have to adjust our schedule because there’s another team there and everything is designed for a women’s professional soccer team and then when you can look at someone and say, ‘Look at this stadium that’s yours and no one else’s.’ You’re always the priority in this building’, and then have an office to go to every day in the training facility with two top-notch grass fields, everything one could want in modalities and an athletic training room and meeting room . living room and dressing room, not to mention a cafeteria and a full-time chef who learns about our players, knows what they want and makes the things they want. Everyone knows everyone’s tendencies. That’s an easy sell.
Carducci said that description helped convince Chawinga, who had never been to the United States before, to join the Current, while Carter said moving to the country was “a dream come true” for Chanda. Moving to the NWSL also comes with financial benefits: Carter said salaries are “better, overall, than any other league in the world” and can present players with other business opportunities. Banda, for example, was a speaker at the Women’s Sports Business Summit organized by Axios and Deep Blue, a sports and entertainment agency.
A renewed calendar
The NWSL’s global approach was also not reserved for signing new players this season. The clubs participated in the inaugural NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Women’s Summer Cup, which Corriente won, while Concacaf also launched the W Champions Cup this season. International friendlies were a big part of the teams’ winter and summer schedules, with trips to Colombia and matches against opponents from England, Spain and South Africa being on the schedule for a variety of NWSL teams.
“The NWSL has become much more sophisticated in terms of playing styles,” Carducci said. “There is, rightly or wrongly, a reputation of ‘it’s just a big, fast league physically,’ and that’s not the case. We have a lot of talent in the league, both coaches and players… See other teams and other leagues and then feeling uncomfortable and seeing players you don’t see every week and the adjustments you have to make, that also helps with the weekly chess match that happens in the NWSL.”
The batch of international friendlies and global talent also allows the NWSL to expand its presence abroad. The league now has broadcast deals with nine companies on six continents, and Carter says people in Zambia stay up into the early hours of the morning to watch Banda and Chanda play thanks to the NWSL’s Africa deal with ESPN.
It also provides an opportunity for staff at NWSL clubs to network with their counterparts elsewhere, which can be useful in building relationships that are useful in scouting players, as finding contact information for lesser-known clubs can be a challenge, Carducci admitted. Chatting with international clubs also comes without the baggage of competition week in and week out, according to Carter.
“Another positive is having the ability to work with clubs from other leagues, exchange best practices and it’s not like you have to worry about some kind of competitive advantage there because you’re not competing against each other in the championship in the same way,” Carter said. Topics of conversation range from “things like [organization] charts, job descriptions, player care policies and player issues, and team operations. “Plan your preseason, plan what you are going to do during any type of break.”
The global approach taken by the NWSL is in line with other recent political changes that reflect international soccer more than American sports. The league simplified free agency in its new collective bargaining agreement, which was ratified in August, and most notably abolished the college draft. There have also been signs that the league is considering a switch to the fall-to-spring schedule that is common in Europe, according to a report from The Equalizer in 2023.
An NWSL spokesperson told CBS Sports they have no comment at this time, although that hasn’t stopped Carter from speaking to clubs in England about their schedule. Although Carter said he has “no idea” if a schedule change is imminent, he is in the process of gathering as much information as he can.
“Another thing I’m working on with some clubs in England, for example the Women’s Super League clubs, is around a possible calendar change,” Carter said. “The FA Women’s Super League changed its calendar a few years ago and there are implications associated with that. And if the NWSL ever decides to change the calendar, I want to make sure we are prepared and know the things we should think about.”, contractual considerations and did they have to play a shortened season? How did you deal with some of those things?
