NWSL federation players


The National Women's Soccer League federation players are players whose NWSL contracts are paid for by their respective national federations. They were previously known as allocated players from 2013 to 2016 and as subsidized players in 2017; the current name came into effect in 2018. While many still refer to them colloquially as allocated players, this outdated terminology should be avoided to prevent confusion with players paid using the NWSL's "allocation money", introduced before the 2020 NWSL season.
The federation players originally came from the United States Soccer Federation, the Canadian Soccer Association, and the Mexican Football Federation, and they were distributed to the eight founding teams of the NWSL through a player allocation process. The initial list of players to be allocated was announced on January 9, 2013, with the allocation results for the 55 national team players announced two days later. The FMF ceased allocating players to the NWSL in 2016 and started its own league in 2017, Liga MX Femenil.

2013

Allocation process

For the initial allocation, each of the eight teams submitted which players they desired, ranking all players in each national team pool, and all the eligible players submitted which four teams they wanted to play for, as well as one team they didn't. The results were then matched by a third party.
The initial player allocation was held on January 9, 2013, with each team's allocation announced on January 11. The USSF initially chose to fund 23 player salaries, while CSA and FMF both funded 16 players. Each team, except for the Western New York Flash, received three U.S., two Canadian, and two Mexican internationals; the Flash received two U.S. internationals.

Allocation results

Italic designates players who did not participate in the season
Heather Mitts retired before the season started, Amy LePeilbet was out with injury all summer, and Amy Rodriguez took the season off due to pregnancy.
In the month leading up to opening day, the FMF withdrew funding for several of its players, removing them from the NWSL:
On March 1, Chicago sent Winters and a fourth-round 2014 draft pick to Seattle in exchange for a first-round 2014 draft pick and a return of one of Seattle's allocated players to Chicago after the season was complete. It was later revealed that Seattle would not send an allocated player to Chicago, with Winters losing her allocation status and Chicago getting a new allocated player.
On July 1, Kansas City traded Renae Cuellar and their third-round pick to Seattle in exchange for Teresa Noyola, right to Nikki Krzysik, and a second-round draft pick. Cuellar had been a league-leading scorer until she had an injury and was unable to return to KC's starting lineup even after fully recovering.
On July 30, Chicago and Boston swapped Adriana Leon and Carmelina Moscato.
Kristie Mewis of FC Kansas City gained allocated status during the 2013 season.

Offseason changes

All three federations re-evaluated their allocations during the 2013-2014 offseason. Teams made trades with their allocated players often before the allocations were announced, though. There were four offseason trades before new allocations were officially announced, all involving the Seattle Reign. On September 10, Carmelina Moscato was sent from Boston to Seattle in exchange for Kaylyn Kyle. On October 25, Washington gave the rights to Alina Garciamendez to Seattle in exchange for Renae Cuellar. Third-round 2014 draft picks were also traded. Third, Seattle sent Amy Rodriguez to FCKC in exchange for Kristie Mewis. Finally, on November 18, Seattle gave away Mewis, Michelle Betos, and their first two 2015 draft picks to the Boston Breakers in exchange for Sydney Leroux.

2014

The new allocation list was revealed on January 3. Despite the addition of the expansion side Houston Dash, Canada did not increase their allocation to 18 players; Mexico decreased their allocation from 16 to 8, similarly not accounting for the ninth team, and unlike Canada or the United States did not as a rule keep returning allocated players on their existing teams. The United States increased their allocation from 23 to 26 players. The Houston Dash were only allocated one US player but was allowed to take two more in the 2014 NWSL Expansion Draft.

Allocation results

Highlight designates difference from previous allocation
† designates newly allocated player for 2014
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season
The Houston Dash were very quick to get into the trading arena, sending Melissa Tancredi to Chicago in exchange for Erin McLeod on January 7. They then selected Meghan Klingenberg, Lauren Sesselmann, & Arianna Romero in the expansion draft.
After the expansion draft, the trade limitation of allocated-for-same-country-allocated was lifted. Players that were 'unevenly' traded once this restriction was lifted include Amy LePeilbet, Karina LeBlanc, and Veronica Perez.
When rosters were revealed on April 7, Crystal Dunn and Alyssa Naeher had received allocation status.

Offseason changes

Some allocated players were traded between teams before the new 2015 allocations were announced. The Western New York Flash dealt Carli Lloyd to the Houston Dash in exchange for Whitney Engen. The Boston Breakers also traded Heather O'Reilly to FC Kansas City in exchange for unallocated rookies Morgan Marlborough and Kassey Kallman. Sophie Schmidt announced in January she would not play for Sky Blue FC nor the NWSL in order to focus on the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.

2015

Official allocation results for all three federations were announced on January 14, 2015, reducing the total number of allocated players to 42. Allocated players will play the first 3-4 NWSL games of the 2015 season before missing 7-8 games due to the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup.

Allocation results

Highlight designates difference from previous allocation
† designates newly allocated player for 2015
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season
announced on March 18 she would not play for Western New York nor the NWSL in order to focus on the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. On March 30 Western New York traded Wambach, Amber Brooks, and their 2016 first round draft pick to Seattle for Sydney Leroux and Amanda Frisbie.

Offseason changes

After the Women's World Cup, many allocated players announced or discussed their plans to retire from national and club football. Shannon Boxx did not finished the season NWSL season with her club; Lauren Holiday and Karina LeBlanc did. Abby Wambach, who passed on the entire 2015 season, officially announced her retirement the day the USWNT visited the White House as part of their 2015 World Cup victory celebrations.
During the offseason, several trades took place to move allocated players, with Chicago and WNY swapping Whitney Engen and Adriana Leon for Chicago to further trade with Boston, swapping Engen for Alyssa Naeher. WNY also sent Sydney Leroux to Kansas City after it was announced that Amy Rodriguez would miss the 2016 season to have her second child.
In addition, several allocated players swapped teams as part of the expansion of the Orlando Pride into the league. Portland sent Alex Morgan and Kaylyn Kyle to Orlando as part of a trade that included them receiving Meghan Klingenberg from Orlando after Orlando selected Klingenberg in the 2015 NWSL Expansion Draft.

2016

Before the 2016 season, the Mexican Football Federation announced that it would no longer allocate players to the NWSL, citing a lack of playing time. None of Mexico's allocated players had played during the 2015 NWSL season.
Primary allocation results for United States players were announced on January 13, 2016 with 24 allocated players. Two days later, during the 2016 NWSL College Draft, NWSL also announced a new allocation process. Canada's allocation list was released with 11 players on February 8, 2016, all of whom were allocated under the old process.

Primary allocation results

Highlight designates difference from previous allocation
† designates newly allocated player for 2016
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season
Emily Sonnett was also declared as an allocated player but would be subject to the 2016 NWSL College Draft, where she was selected by Portland Thorns FC with the first overall pick.

Unattached allocation order and results

Full details for the new process, officially termed Player Distribution, were revealed in late March a day before nine previously allocated players were to have their rights dispersed to other teams. This new process, while first implemented for the 2016 Dispersal Draft, was rumored to have been finalized in time for Mallory Pugh to potential turn professional for the Portland Thorns.
In an effort to create a "equitable mechanism" of distributing players, federations can declare player currently unattached to NWSL clubs to be allocation-eligible, at which point the NWSL have the opportunity to roster said player on a rolling basis. Players that have lost their allocation and are not picked up by their previous team are also eligible for distribution. The distribution ranking order is determined by the previous season's finishing order with expansion teams being granted the final spots in the order. This order can only be changed by trades or when a team decides to accept a new player.
For the 2016 season, the new distribution process proceeded as follows:
Final
Ranking		Used
Ranking		Previous
Ranking		Original
Ranking		ClubDate Allocation UsedPlayerPrevious ClubRef
-1-1Boston Breakers15 January 2016trade
1-4-Portland Thorns
2--2Sky Blue FC
3--3Western New York Flash
-4-4Portland Thorns15 January 2016trade
4-1-Boston Breakers
5--5Houston Dash
6--6Washington Spirit
7--7Chicago Red Stars
-8-8Seattle Reign31 March 2016Arianna RomeroWashington Spirit
ÍBV
8--9FC Kansas City
9--10Orlando Pride
-108-Seattle Reign31 March 2016Veronica PerezWashington Spirit
Canberra United
KIF Örebro DFF
10-10-Seattle Reign

Offseason changes

NWSL switched from referring to "allocated players" to referring to "subsidized players" this season, as a result of the new subsidization process and evidenced when Canada announced its list of subsidized players on January 25, 2017. The list of 22 United States subsidized players was announced on April 6, 2017, the day after a new USWNT Collective Bargaining Agreement was announced.

Previously-attached subsidized players

Highlight designates difference from previous list
† designates newly subsidized player whose rights were already held or acquired through the 2017 NWSL College Draft
‡ designates player new to NWSL added through unattached distribution order process
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season
For the 2017 season, the new distribution process proceeded as follows:
Current
Ranking		Used/Traded
Ranking		Previous
Ranking		Original
Ranking		ClubDate Selection UsedPlayerPrevious ClubRef
-1-1Boston Breakers17 November 2016trade to Spirit
-12-Washington Spirit13 May 2017Mallory PughUCLA
-2-2Orlando Pride1 November 2016trade to Spirit
-29-Washington Spirit17 November 2016trade to Breakers
1-1-Boston Breakers
2--3Houston Dash
3--4Sky Blue FC
4--5FC Kansas City
5--6Seattle Reign FC
6--7Chicago Red Stars
7--8Portland Thorns FC
-9-9Washington Spirit1 November 2016trade to Pride
8-2-Orlando Pride
9--10North Carolina Courage
1012-Washington Spirit

2018

Federation players

Federation players for the 2018 NWSL season were announced on February 15, 2018. There are 34 players from the United States and Canada total, including six new players, on the federation player list.
Chicago Red StarsHouston DashNorth Carolina CourageOrlando PridePortland Thorns FCSeattle Reign FCSky Blue FCUtah Royals FCWashington Spirit
Julie ErtzJane Campbell †Abby Dahlkemper †Ashlyn HarrisTobin HeathAllie LongCarli LloydKelley O'HaraRose Lavelle
Alyssa NaeherChristen Press *Crystal Dunn †Alex MorganLindsey HoranMegan RapinoeAmy RodriguezMallory Pugh
Casey ShortSamantha MewisEmily SonnettBecky SauerbrunnTaylor Smith †
Lynn Williams
Nichelle PrinceAllysha ChapmanShelina ZadorskyChristine SinclairJanine BeckieDiana MathesonRebecca Quinn †
Sabrina D'AngeloAdriana Leon* †Desiree Scott
Kailen Sheridan

Highlight designates difference from previous list
† designates new federation player whose rights were already held or acquired
‡ designates player new to NWSL added through unattached distribution order process
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season
Christen Press was traded from the Chicago Red Stars to the Houston Dash during the 2018 NWSL College Draft and was subsequently allocated to the Dash, but did not report to the team. She instead signed a short-term contract with Kopparbergs/Göteborg FC and played part of the 2018 Damallsvenskan season in Sweden.
On June 18, the Utah Royals acquired Press's rights from Houston in a three-team trade, and she joined the team later that month, before the scheduled end of her contract with Göteborg.
On May 9, the Houston Dash acquired Allysha Chapman from the North Carolina Courage.
On June 12, Adriana Leon was traded from Sky Blue FC to Seattle Reign FC.
On August 9, Janine Beckie signed a one-year deal with Manchester City of the FA Women's Super League.

Offseason changes

Four American players — Jane Campbell, Amy Rodriguez, Taylor Smith, and Lynn Williams — were no longer federation players after the 2018 NWSL season.
Several Canadian players left the NWSL during the offseason. Sabrina D'Angelo signed for Swedish club Vittsjö GIK, Adriana Leon for English club West Ham United, and Rebecca Quinn for French club Paris FC.
After leaving the NWSL in 2017, Canadian goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé returned to the league prior to the 2019 season and was allocated to the North Carolina Courage. Canada had previously allocated Labbé to the Washington Spirit.

2019

Federation players

A list of 22 United States federation players for the NWSL season was published first published on March 4, 2019. The NWSL officially confirmed the USWNT list, along with nine Canadian federation players, on April 5, 2019.
Chicago Red StarsHouston DashNorth Carolina CourageOrlando PridePortland Thorns FCReign FCSky Blue FCUtah Royals FCWashington Spirit
Morgan Brian †Abby DahlkemperAshlyn HarrisAdrianna Franch †Allie LongCarli LloydKelley O'HaraRose Lavelle
Julie ErtzCrystal DunnAlex MorganTobin HeathMegan RapinoeChristen PressMallory Pugh
Alyssa NaeherSamantha MewisLindsey HoranBecky Sauerbrunn
Casey ShortMcCall Zerboni †Emily Sonnett
Allysha ChapmanStephanie Labbé †Shelina ZadorskyChristine SinclairKailen SheridanDiana Matheson
Nichelle PrinceDesiree Scott
Sophie Schmidt †

Highlight designates difference from previous list
† designates new federation player whose rights were already held or acquired
‡ designates player new to NWSL added through unattached distribution order process
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season

Federation players

The list of 23 American and 9 Canadian federation players for the 2020 NWSL season was released on February 20, 2020; McCall Zerboni was the only player removed from the previous season. Tierna Davidson was added to the list for the first time and Ali Krieger was restored after last being on the list in 2017; Mallory Pugh and Emily Sonnett had been traded to new teams before the list was announced.
Chicago Red StarsHouston DashNorth Carolina CourageOrlando PridePortland Thorns FCReign FCSky Blue FCUtah Royals FCWashington Spirit
Morgan BrianAbby DahlkemperAshlyn HarrisAdrianna FranchAllie LongCarli LloydKelley O'HaraRose Lavelle
Tierna Davidson †Crystal DunnAli Krieger †Tobin HeathMegan RapinoeMallory PughChristen Press
Julie ErtzSamantha MewisAlex MorganLindsey HoranBecky Sauerbrunn *
Alyssa NaeherEmily Sonnett
Casey Short
Allysha ChapmanStephanie LabbéShelina ZadorskyChristine SinclairKailen SheridanDiana Matheson
Nichelle PrinceDesiree Scott
Sophie Schmidt

Highlight designates difference from previous list
† designates new federation player whose rights were already held or acquired
‡ designates player new to NWSL added through unattached distribution order process
Italic designates a player that did not participate in the season
On March 3, 2020, Utah Royals FC traded defender Becky Sauerbrunn to Portland Thorns FC.