Alex Morgan Trusts in the NWSL: Talent Endures Despite Departures

The former forward of the United States women’s national soccer team, Alex Morgan, expressed her confidence in the National Women’s Soccer League’s (NWSL) ability to attract and retain the best players, even under the restrictions of a salary cap. “I think the NWSL still has a lot of appeal for national and international talent, despite the salary cap,” Morgan commented in an exclusive interview before the retirement ceremony of her number 13 jersey with the San Diego Wave. The NWSL has experienced the loss of important young talents, such as Alyssa Thompson, who joined English Chelsea. Thompson, a rising star for the United States, had just signed a new contract with Angel City in January.

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In January, the San Diego Wave lost defender Naomi Girma, who also joined Chelsea in the first women’s soccer transfer valued at one million dollars. Morgan, now a minority owner of the Wave, where she ended her nearly 15-year career in 2024, began her professional career in the now-defunct Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS), which had no salary cap and disappeared after three seasons. The NWSL’s salary cap for 2025 is $3.3 million, with a gradual increase to $5.1 million in 2030, according to the new NWSL collective bargaining agreement. Morgan, a two-time world champion and Olympic champion, ranks fifth in the history of the United States women’s national team with 123 international goals.

Morgan believes that the NWSL offers the right balance to attract the best players. She highlights the combination of salaries, improved facilities, and competition as key factors.

This is the most competitive league in the world, without a doubt. In every match, you have to give your best. You face challenges in every encounter. The team in last place can beat the first. It doesn’t matter who you face; it’s the most competitive league.

Alex Morgan

Former US women’s national team players Tobin Heath and Christen Press discussed Thompson’s transfer to Chelsea on their podcast “The Re-Cap Show”, titled “The NWSL Salary Cap Problem”. “In Europe, it’s almost as if one team has more power than the entire NWSL, and that’s really worrying,” Heath pointed out. NWSL teams have maintained their competitiveness in the transfer market. Orlando Pride set a new world record in August by paying Tigres $1.5 million for Mexican playmaker Lizbeth Ovalle. Angel City got a slightly lower sum from Chelsea for Thompson. The London City Lionesses reportedly paid a world-record fee to Paris Saint-Germain for French international Grace Geyoro, although London City have disputed that figure, claiming it was lower. However, since January, several women’s soccer transfers have been made for more than one million dollars. Morgan concluded by highlighting the importance of football academies in the face of the increase in transfer figures, predicting that in the near future there will be talk of transfers of 2, 3, 4 or 5 million dollars.