Is the NWSL's traditional style changing or just evolving?
The USA's premier domestic competition has always been labelled as "transitional", but with more international talent than ever before both on and off the pitch, is that changing?
The NWSL has always been well thought of as one of most competitive domestic leagues in the world, largely thanks to a number of factors.
The USA as a nation has also always been a world leader in the women’s game, therefore developing top domestic talent through its in-depth college system, combined with various nuances such as the trade system and the allocation of North American players split evenly across the teams, has made its domestic league one of the best to follow.
Now in its eleventh full season, the league is both evolving, developing and growing year on year, with the current 2024 campaign seeing 14 franchises competing against each other after the relaunch of Utah Royals and debut of Bay FC.
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Its style has always traditionally mimicked how people view the US game, a transitional style of play based around rapid counter attacks, playing into the strengths of the athletic players the college system has produced for the league over the past decade.
Now though, the league is more international than ever before, despite a limit still in place on how many non-North American players a team can have on its roster.
Between two new teams and that rule expanding from five internationals to seven at the start of 2024, it means an extra 38 international spots were up for grabs this season, taking the total to 98 across the whole league.
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