The ink had barely dried on the paperwork for the blockbuster transfer of forward Alyssa Thompson to Chelsea, from Angel City FC, before U.S. women's national team coach Emma Hayes was in New York to address the NWSL's board of governors.
Hayes already knew that some NWSL executives were suggesting she was telling USWNT players that they needed to play in Europe. Thompson's move, driven by Chelsea's aggressive pursuit of the winger, was a tipping point that gave the longstanding rumors new life and set in motion a certain degree of panic inside NWSL circles.
So, Hayes took her own advice that she shared with media last year on her first official day on the job. «In the absence of communication,» she said, there is «usually the wrong type of conversation.»
Hayes stood in front of the boardroom of owners and NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman last month and, multiple sources told ESPN, asked them a simple question: Women's soccer players have fought their entire lives for freedom of choice. Why would I take that away from them?
The fact that Hayes felt compelled to address the matter so directly speaks to the level of consternation among some in the NWSL about losing top USWNT players to elite European clubs. Whether that should be such a major concern in a rapidly evolving global landscape is a different question entirely.
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As Hayes said: Players are free to sign contracts wherever they want.
Ten years ago, that wouldn't have really been true for a player that aspired to be a USWNT regular. But it's truer than ever thanks to the adoption of
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Emma Hayes
Alyssa Thompson