Nov 22, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; National Women’s Soccer League commissioner Jessica Berman listens to a question during a press conference ahead of the 2024 NWSL Championship match between the Orlando Pride and the Washington Spirit at CPKC Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kylie Graham-Imagn Images
On Thursday, just two days before the 2025 NWSL Championship, the league announced it would extend Commissioner Jessica Berman’s contract through the 2028 season. Berman, who was hired in 2022, initially agreed to a four-year contract, and this move marks the first extension she has been given as Commissioner.
“Jessica’s leadership has been instrumental in transforming the NWSL into a global sports property,” said Carolyn Tisch Blodget, Gotham FC owner and NWSL executive committee chair, in an official press release. “Her vision for sustainable growth, along with her ability to fuel enduring momentum, has positioned the league for long-term success.”
Berman has headed of the NWSL during a period of rapid growth for the league. She has overseen the league as its club valuations, media deals and general popularity have grown rapidly. Under Berman, the league has grown from 12 to 17 clubs. She was also named the 2024 Executive of the Year by Sports Business Journal.
“It’s been the honor of my career to lead the NWSL during such an extraordinary period of growth,” said Berman in an official statement. “Every success we’ve achieved, from expansion to investment to the player experience, is the result of collaboration across this league. I’m proud of what we’ve built and even more excited about where we’re headed. The best is yet to come.”
Berman’s onramp to the league came at a particularly tense time, as the NWSL was figuring out how to both cope with and move forward from patterns of abuse, harassment, and misconduct that came to light in 2021. One of Berman’s first moves as Commissioner was to discipline perpetrators of abuse and harassment that were identified in a joint league–union report, including handing down lifetime bans to various coaches and leaders in the league. She helped navigate the NWSL through a profoundly difficult era and helped reshape the league’s culture with cultural reforms and the implementation of new programs that prioritize player safety.
Berman’s contract extension also comes at another moment of uncertainty for the league, as Trinity Rodman, perhaps the most famous athlete in the NWSL, is set to depart the league at the conclusion of the 2025 season. Berman is facing pressure to raise the salary cap to incentivize players like Rodman to stay, as European clubs who will likely seek her out will undoubtedly have more money to offer. Berman is a defender of the league’s salary cap, however, stating in an interview with CBS that it’s “the reason our league is the most competitive league in the world.”
