U.S. Soccer is no longer managing the National Women’s Soccer League, although some aspects of the partnership remain, NWSL Commissioner Lisa Baird said Tuesday.
Baird spoke on a wide-ranging conference call with reporters ahead of the league’s draft Wednesday night. She also announced that a franchise in Sacramento would join the NWSL in 2022.
U.S. Soccer’s management of the NWSL was supposed to come to an end at the close of 2019 but was extended through 2020. The change gives team owners more control over the league.
U.S. Soccer, which has managed the league since its launch in 2013, will continue to invest in the NWSL, Baird said.