NWSL and players' union remove restrictive High Impact Player criteria in settlement
The National Women’s Soccer League and the NWSL Players Association announced on Friday they have settled a dispute that removes the eligibility criteria for the league’s High Impact Player (HIP) rule, allowing any player to be named a HIP under new conditions. The settlement addresses multiple grievances between the league and the union and was confirmed in statements from both sides.
The HIP rule, introduced late last year, had permitted teams to spend an additional $1m above the salary cap to retain star players and was ratified by the league’s board of governors before going into effect on 1 July. Under the original version, a player had to meet one of eight criteria — including US national team minutes, Ballon d’Or recognition, NWSL Best XI honors and inclusion on media lists such as the Guardian’s Top 100 or marketability rankings — to qualify. The NWSLPA contested the mechanism, filing a grievance that argued the classification violated federal labor law and the existing collective bargaining agreement. About 100 players met the published criteria at the time it was introduced; that list included Trinity Rodman and Sophia Wilson but would have excluded Sam Kerr and Catarina Macario.
As part of the settlement announced Friday, the league has eliminated the published eligibility criteria. Beginning 1 January 2027, clubs will be able to designate any player as a High Impact Player provided that the player’s salary is at least 12% of the base salary cap, and the league may set a limit on the number of HIP players per club.
The parties resolved six grievances in total, one of which concerned the Washington Spirit’s rejected contract proposal for Trinity Rodman, and another involving the league’s footwear policy. “This settlement is certainly evidence of the NWSLPA’s strength and commitment to enforcing the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement,” NWSLPA director Meghann Burke told ESPN, which first reported the settlement. NWSL executive vice-president Bill Ordower said in a statement: “Disagreements are a natural part of any mature labor relationship, particularly in a league that is growing and evolving as quickly as ours. What matters is how you work through them. This agreement gives the players, clubs and league greater clarity and certainty moving forward, while protecting the integrity and competitive balance that is fundamental to the NWSL.”
The HIP rule had become informally known as the “Rodman Rule” after its introduction coincided with Trinity Rodman’s protracted contract situation. In November, before the HIP rule existed, the Washington Spirit attempted to re-sign Rodman to a deal that would have averaged more than $1m annually, but NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman blocked the offer on the grounds it violated league rules because of its backloaded structure. The NWSLPA filed a grievance calling the refusal a “flagrant violation” of player free agency rights; weeks later the league introduced the HIP rule. Rodman later re-signed with the Spirit in January on a record deal worth more than $2m annually, and the union grievance over the initial contract refusal remained open after that signing.
The settlement leaves the league with the ability to reject contracts for salary cap circumvention, but requires the NWSL to notify the union of any such decision and provide an explanation within 72 hours. The agreement also obliges the league to provide salary cap and revenue updates to clubs during the year. While teams have not been required to disclose when a signing used the HIP mechanism, several players who would have been eligible under the old criteria — including Denver’s Lindsey Heaps, Orlando’s Barbra Banda and Gotham’s Rose Lavelle — have been signed or re-signed since the rule’s introduction.
The settlement also amends the footwear policy: after warnings and fines were issued this season to some players for wearing cleats from non-official sponsor brands, the league will honour pre-existing endorsement deals for most players and withdraw previous fines.
The immediate confirmed effects are the removal of the prior HIP eligibility list and the new eligibility condition that a HIP’s salary must equal at least 12% of the base salary cap beginning 1 January 2027; the league may still cap the number of HIP designations per club and must follow the notification and explanation requirements if it rejects contracts for suspected cap circumvention.