The Northern Super League’s international reach was on full display this October. Players from across the Canadian league traded their club colours for national-team kits, taking on everything from major qualifying campaigns to international friendlies.
Opinion piece: Women’s football has spent years arguing that it deserves more money. Now that the money is finally arriving, it is worth asking where it comes from – and what women’s football is willing to sacrifice to get it.
As the world champions meet the United States in a two-game series, the rivalry reflects a women’s game that is becoming more global, more interconnected and harder for any one nation to dominate.
A professional football contract used to be relatively easy to define. Salary. Contract length. Bonuses. Transfer provisions. Termination. Women’s football is making that picture considerably more complicated.
As women’s football grows more commercialized, the search for the best talents has intensified: scouting players early gives clubs an opportunity to develop outstanding talent and, potentially, generate considerable transfer fees later on. In the NWSL, this phenomenon has been particularly striking, with dozens of minors signing under-18 contracts, sometimes as young as 14 when they make their debut. How did the youth boom develop, what risks come with it, and what is the role of players and agents?