It’s the first free agency period for the NWSL. Ahead of the 2023 campaign, here is a list of players that could be signing new deals with teams or headed elsewhere.
The 2022 National Women’s Soccer League season may be over, but more fun is just starting. In lead-up to next year’s kickoff, the league is in the midst of its first-ever free agency period. Thanks to a collective bargaining agreement between the league and the NWSL Players Association, domestic women’s soccer fans can witness in real-time the wheeling and dealing of top players changing clubs and signing extensions to stay put.
Will a super team the likes we haven’t witness in NWSL history emerge? Could we see veterans teaming up just to say they’ve played alongside each other at least once in their storied career? It’s too early to answer both questions (and several others), but it’s at least a possibility moving forward.
Now, assuming you’re abreast of how the NWSL’s free agency works, next up comes familiarizing yourself with every player on the market, and we quickly witnessed a high-profile announcement to kick off the festivities: On Nov. 15, USWNT star Kelley O’Hara broke the news on Men in Blazers that after one season with the Washington Spirit, she’s joining NJ/NY Gotham FC.
Everyone else will have to find another creative method to reveal their next moves. While we wait, ahead are the names who could be making headlines in the coming weeks and months, courtesy of the NWSL.
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2022-23 NWSL Free Agents
| PLAYER | 2023 CLUB | 2022 CLUB |
| Lauren Barnes (D) | TBD | OL Reign |
| Nicole Barnhart (GK) | TBD | Washington Spirit |
| Katie Bowen (D) | Melbourne City (Australian A-League) | North Carolina Courage |
| Amber Brooks (D) | TBD | Washington Spirit |
| Danielle Colaprico (M) | San Diego Wave (2-year deal) | Chicago Red Stars |
| Jaelene Daniels (D) | TBD | North Carolina Courage |
| Débora De Oliveira (M) | Kansas City Current (2-year contract) | North Carolina Courage |
| Vanessa Dibernardo (M) | Kansas City Current (2-year contract) | Chicago Red Stars |
| Makenzy Doniak (F) | San Diego Wave FC (Option exercised) | San Diego Wave FC |
| Meggie Dougherty Howard (M) | TBD | Orlando Pride |
| Elizabeth Eddy (M) | TBD | Houston Dash |
| Kristen Edmonds (M) | NJ/NY Gotham FC (2-year contract) | Kansas City Current |
| Julie Ertz (M) | TBD | Angel City FC |
| Cali Farquharson (F) | TBD | Houston Dash |
| Mandy Freeman (D) | NJ/NY Gotham FC (2-year extension) | NJ/NY Gotham FC |
| Morgan Gautrat (M) | Kansas City Current (2-year contract) | Chicago Red Stars |
| Tobin Heath (M) | TBD | OL Reign |
| Rachel Hill (F) | San Diego Wave FC (2-year contract) | Chicago Red Stars |
| Tori Huster (D) | TBD | Washington Spirit |
| Estelle Johnson (D) | North Carolina Courage (2-year-contract) | NJ/NY Gotham FC |
| Kaitlyn Johnson (F) | TBD | San Diego Wave FC |
| Cheyna Matthews (F) | TBD | Racing Louisville FC |
| Yuki Nagasto | Chicago Red Stars (2-year extension) | Chicago Red Stars |
| Kelley O’Hara (D) | NJ/NY Gotham FC | Washington Spirit |
| Ifeoma Onumonu | NJ/NY Gotham FC (3-year extension) | NJ/NY Gotham FC |
| Denise O’Sullivan (M) | TBD | North Carolina Courage |
| Toni Pressley | TBD | Orlando Pride |
| Megan Rapinoe (F) | TBD | OL Reign |
| Brittany Ratcliffe (F) | TBD | North Carolina Courage |
| Domi Richardson (M) | TBD | NJ/NY Gotham FC |
| Katelyn Rowland (GK) | TBD | North Carolina Courage |
| Desiree Scott (M) | TBD | Kansas City Current |
| Abby Smith (GK) | NJ/NY Gotham FC (3-year contract) | Portland Thorns FC |
| Taylor Smith (D) | NJ/NY Gotham FC (3-year extension) | NJ/NY Gotham FC |
| Meredith Speck (M) | North Carolina Courage (2-year extension) | North Carolina Courage |
| Jasmyne Spencer (F) | Angel City FC (2-year extension) | Angel City FC |
| Nicole Stanton (M) | TBD | OL Reign |
| Jodie Taylor (F) | TBD | San Diego Wave FC |
| Erika Tymrak (M) | Orlando Pride (2-year extension) | Orlando Pride |
| Michele Vasconcelos (F) | TBD | Portland Thorns FC |
| Marta Vieira Da Silva (F) | Orlando Pride (2-year-extension) | Orlando Pride |
| Kealia Watt (F) | TBD | Chicago Red Stars |
| Arin Wright (D) | Chicago Red Stars (2-year extension) | Chicago Red Stars |
| McCall Zerboni (D) | TBD | NJ/NY Gotham FC |
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