NWSL CEOs: Player reforms ‘have gone too far’ since abuse scandal

Two years after abuse scandals rocked the NWSL, some general managers are expressing concerns that player reforms have “gone too far,” according to an ESPN poll, drawing pushback from the players’ association.

An anonymous ESPN survey of general managers from each of the league’s 14 teams unanimously found that the league’s culture has undergone a drastic change in accountability since two investigations in 2022 uncovered systemic abuses across the NWSL.

But the prevailing sentiment was that “the pendulum had swung too far the other way,” a phrase used verbatim by two different GMs. “I think it’s still a very stressful place for the staff,” the GM said.

“I think you have to be very measured in every conversation, every interaction you have with athletes. We have to err on the side of extremely positive or conservative policies that I think in any other professional or corporate environment wouldn’t necessarily exist.”

Last month, the league and players’ union signed a new, six-year collective bargaining agreement that guarantees full freedom of action after contracts expire, eliminates the need for the player draft, raises the salary cap, significantly increases the minimum wage and extends parental leave and child care benefits.

The new CBA is the result of reforms introduced after the scandal.

The league implemented coaching training programs and hired key people to oversee recruiting processes, all based on the first historic collective bargaining agreement signed in 2022.

The general managers, who spoke to ESPN on condition of anonymity to freely express their opinions on a range of issues raised in the survey, were asked about the reforms, and some voluntarily expressed their concerns.

“There’s a fear among the staff about what you can say, what you can’t say, what you have to ask players for permission to say, what you don’t have to say if it gets you in trouble,” one GM said. “And that, for me, is going too far.”

But NWSLPA president Meghann Burke said it was “disingenuous” for general managers to simultaneously advocate for improved player protections and say players have too much power.

“I categorically reject the notion that there is an evidentiary or factual basis for the narrative that players have too much power,” Burke told ESPN, adding that she has heard such sentiments privately for years, including from people who have since been removed from the league.

“It’s disingenuous that we simultaneously agree that the league has been completely transformed and we’ve created a healthier, better work environment and culture, and at the same time we say that the players have too much power because you can’t have one without the other. The players did the work of transforming this league. There was no savior — no league, no team, no one else — that was going to come in and transform the NWSL. It was the players themselves.”

GMs cited an inability to — or perhaps fear of — meet with a player one-on-one about game tactics or results.

Burke believes these are misinterpretations of what is not permitted.

As Burke argues, it is acceptable for a coach or general manager to meet a player for coffee in a public place, to cite one common hypothesis.

“People change much more slowly than the rules and words on paper,” she said, adding that she has empathy for those trying to keep up in real time. She said she is genuinely encouraged that people are thinking about their behaviors, and that such reflection will help them crystallize the rules more over time.

“I think it’s OK for people to be unsure, and that’s part of this transformation process, and I think as we get more comfortable with the changes that have been made over the next few years, people won’t be so sure,” Burke said.

The league office, echoing GM concerns, is also actively thinking about how to better support coaches, not just players. In an exclusive interview with ESPN earlier this year, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said players can’t be at their best without a top coach, and the league needs to provide coaches with more resources to help them understand what’s right and what’s not.

Berman emphasized that this work must be done in addition to — not instead of — improving the league’s conditions for players.

“They should feel hyper-aware of what they’re doing, but not to the point where they feel unsupported or paralyzed,” Berman said of coaches.

“We’re trying to do that for the coaches and the sports staff, the technical staff, to make sure that we have their trust as well. We need the players’ trust, we need the coaches’ trust and we all need to work together to provide the best possible working environment for everyone. That’s also in the players’ interests. The players need that as well.”

The league has implemented coaching training programs. For the past two years, the NWSL has partnered with the Positive Coaching Alliance to host a summit on “establishing and maintaining team and organizational culture” and how to build trust and facilitate difficult conversations.

The NWSL also has made key hires to oversee HR and other strategies, including Lauren Lopez as head of people and culture in December 2022 and Olivia Wynn, a former U.S. Department of Justice investigator, as the league’s chief security officer in June 2023.

Berman’s four-year term as commissioner began on April 20, 2022.

“We don’t want them to feel like everyone is waiting for them to make a mistake,” Berman said of the coaches.

“We want them to feel like we live in a world where, aside from people who have done terrible things, we’re all human. We all make mistakes. As long as — as I said in every press release when we were issuing discipline — you own up to it and you’re willing to work on yourself and you’re committed to being better and you’re going through your treatment and your training, that’s who we want. We don’t expect perfection.”

One CEO said of the increased scrutiny following the reforms: “It was a bit counterproductive — and I think that needs to be made clear.”

This drastic shift in accountability comes after allegations of abuse made headlines in 2021.

Paul Riley, who has coached multiple NWSL teams, was accused of sexually coercing female players while coaching the Portland Thorns.

Meanwhile, former Chicago Red Stars coach Rory Dames and former Washington Spirit coach Richie Burke allegedly verbally and emotionally abused players.

The games were canceled because players refused to take the field following the Riley allegations, leaving the league’s future in question.

An investigation commissioned by US Soccer and led by former U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates, the results of which were released in October 2022, confirmed the allegations of abuse and revealed other, previously unpublicized, instances of abuse by former Racing Louisville coach Christy Holly.

The league and the NWSL Players Association subsequently conducted a second investigation.

Most importantly, the investigation detailed how previous NWSL leadership failed to heed the concerns of alleged victims and enabled potentially abusive coaches to operate.

Since then, the NWSL and NWSLPA signed their first collective bargaining agreement in early 2022 and agreed to a new one last month.

The NWSL Players Association was first formed in 2017, and in 2021, the union became an affiliate of the AFL-CIO, joining the NFL and MLB players associations on the AFL-CIO Sports Council.

The league and players also worked together to develop a coaching code of conduct and an anti-fraternization policy, each of which was publicly cited this year in the firings of staff members from the Kansas City Current and Houston Dash.

The quick resolution of these last two incidents is a sign that the processes are working. But they were also black-and-white scenarios: any relationship involving a player or coach (or anyone in authority over a player) is strictly prohibited.

Some general managers have expressed concerns to ESPN about the gray area of ​​day-to-day interactions and whether a player complaint could disproportionately damage a coach or employee’s reputation due to a misunderstanding.

“The league has gone from one end of the spectrum to the other,” another GM said. “We need to find a middle ground.”

These opinions were repeated many times, but were not unanimous.

Several general managers have spoken positively about the changes brought about by the reforms, with one saying the tide of victory must indeed tip in the players’ favor after the league settled its accounts with alleged abuses by coaches.

As another GM put it, “The conversations we’re having throughout the process have increased transparency and openness among our teams, which is very healthy.”