Forward Trinity Rodman agrees to new 3-year deal with the Washington Spirit of the NWSL

The speculation over Rodman's future with the Spirit spurred criticism of the NWSL salary cap and whether it hampered the league from attracting and maintaining top players.

The 23-yera-old Rodman became a free agent at the end of last season after five years with the Spirit. One of the biggest stars in the NWSL, keeping her in the league was considered vitally important as other U.S. national team stars, including Naomi Girma and Alyssa Thompson, opted to play in Europe.

Rodman, who won a gold medal with the United States at the Paris Olympics, had been drawing interest from European teams that don’t have a salary cap.

“I can't think of the Washington Spirit without her,” Spirit owner Michele Kang said. “And I hope she can't think about her career without the Washington Spirit. So this is really monumental and it was really important, not only for the Spirit, especially for our fans who expect to see her. They come to Audi Field and that's where Rowdy Audi clearly came out.”

Rodman said she always wanted to stay with the Spirit

“Making my decision, the one question I was asked was: ‘Do you feel like you’re finished with the Spirit? Can you say that and feel confident leaving?’” she said. “I didn’t even need half a second, and I was like, ’No, I’m not. I don’t feel ready to make a different decision. That’s just, again, getting drafted here and developing and maturing and learning – and failing – at the Spirit, in D.C., it’s become so much of my legacy and my story. But on top of that, I still feel like there’s so much more I have to give and so much more that I want to do.”

The Spirit and Rodman had previously struck a multi-year deal that both parties maintained was in compliance with the salary cap, but it was rejected by the league because it went against the spirit of the rules.

The National Women's Soccer League Players Association filed a grievance claiming that the NWSL's rejection of the contract violated Rodman's free agency rights and violated the collective bargaining agreement.

To address the salary cap issue, the NWSL in late December adopted a “High Impact Player” mechanism that allowed teams to spend up to $1 million over the cap to sign players that meet certain criteria. Those included metrics like national team minutes, inclusion among the 30 candidates for the Ballon d’Or or player rankings by outlets like the Guardian or ESPN.

The NWSLPA filed a grievance over the rule, claiming it violated the collective bargaining agreement and federal labor law because player compensation must be negotiated. The NWSLPA maintains the league had no authority to “unilaterally create a new pay structure.”

Spirit President of Soccer Operations Haley Carter said the High Impact Player rule figured into the contract Rodman ultimately agreed to. Carter also said the grievances would not alter Rodman's deal.

The financial terms of Rodman's contract were not disclosed, but the Spirit called it “one of the most significant deals in NWSL history.”

The NWSL’s salary cap is $3.5 million for each team for the 2026 season, although it will increase each year until it hits $5.1 million in 2030.

Rodman is currently with the national team in their annual January training camp in Carson, California. The team plays a match there against Paraguay on Saturday and then plays Chile on Tuesday in Santa Barbara.

Rodman has 47 appearances and 11 goals with the national team, more than any other player on the latest roster. She played in one U.S. match last year, a 2-0 victory over Brazil in April, because of injuries.

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