Olympics-Soccer-Big Paris presence gives NWSL reason to celebrate

By Amy Tennery

PARIS (Reuters) - The United States' soccer gold capped an Olympics worth celebrating for the National Women's Soccer League, as a hunt for global talent pays dividends on and off the pitch.

A record 57 NWSL players were called up for the Games - about a fifth of the total in Paris - up from 38 in Tokyo and Rio, the most of any professional league.

It was the kind of number Commissioner Jessica Berman hoped to see, two years after the league built new strategies around bringing in international talent.

"It goes without saying that the success of the U.S. women's national team creates tremendous tailwinds and momentum for our league," Berman told Reuters.

"It is also true that I think the last five years or so, it's been made clear that there's talent everywhere in the world and that the world has caught up (with the U.S.)."

The league increased international roster spots for teams from five to seven this year, and the two regular-season leading scorers - Malawian Temwa Chawinga and Zambian Barbra Banda - joined NWSL sides Kansas City Current and Orlando Pride.

That has led to fresh competition amid an upswing in viewership and attendance, as the league hopes to capitalise on the soccer mania that will hit the U.S. when it co-hosts the men's World Cup in two years' time.

The league was averaging crowds of more than 11,000 before the Olympic break, the highest of any women's soccer league, as Angel City FC finalised new ownership for $250 million, making it the world's most valuable professional women's sports team.

"We've broken every record and surpassed, I think, everyone's expectations for what this league can be," Berman said. "The most exciting part is that we feel like we're just getting started."

LEAGUE'S FATE

For much of the league's existence, its fate was intertwined with the U.S. national team in the public's eyes and on the financial ledger.

U.S. Soccer provided significant subsidies and the U.S. team's fourth World Cup victory in 2019 helped propel the league to a breakthrough year.

But Berman had a whole other reality to navigate when she took the reins two years ago, as the arrangement with U.S. Soccer had ended months before and the league was engulfed in a widespread sexual abuse scandal.

An inquiry found the NWSL and U.S. Soccer failed to put in "basic measures" to safeguard players, as some of the sport's biggest names questioned whether the league was even worth saving.

Meeting with the players during the hiring process, Berman asked them a blunt question: "Is there a world where you could trust the league again?" The answer, to her relief, was yes.

"The thing I'm most proud of is the way that the players have joined me, us, our team of leaders, our owners to trust that it would be different this time," said Berman.

(Reporting by Amy Tennery in Paris; Editing by Ken Ferris)