2024/25 Women's Squad Speculation, Confirmation and Mutual Termination

Niche Cache seems to think she will be back in the ALW??
But who knows the Olympics will be shop window, if she is picked and plays.

Most of Michaela Foster’s old Northern Rovers team, including coach Ben Bate, are now at AU so this makes sense as a keep-busy gig during the ALW offseason and leading into the Olympics https://t.co/YF9BGHatjZ

— The Niche Cache (@thenichecache) June 21, 2024

interesting, I wonder if she'll re-sign when the a-league kicks off again??

YoungHeartHM

Former?
As in she's not coming back former?

✍️ HUGE NEWS! @NZ_Football Fern and former @WgtnPhoenixFC star Michaela Foster has signed with Auckland United FC.

Welcome Michaela, we can't wait to see you out on the pitch in AUFC colours very soon!#AucklandUnitedFC 🤝#UnitedTogether ⚫️⚪https://t.co/45EHp4e7yB

— Auckland United F.C. (@Auckland_United) June 21, 2024

just assuming she is with them in the off-season for ALW - aren't all the players only ever signed to 1 year deals to allow this?  

coochiee

Niche Cache seems to think she will be back in the ALW??
But who knows the Olympics will be shop window, if she is picked and plays.

Most of Michaela Foster’s old Northern Rovers team, including coach Ben Bate, are now at AU so this makes sense as a keep-busy gig during the ALW offseason and leading into the Olympics https://t.co/YF9BGHatjZ

— The Niche Cache (@thenichecache) June 21, 2024

Niche Cache unaware whom she got engaged to which may also explain attraction of playing at AU

I'd guess she is looking to leave for overseas, post Olympics.

Maybe that new 2nd tier USA comp, like a few others. She went to college in the US. 
Or something like the English Championship (2nd tier), where a few Ferns have ended up. She's good enough for that level.

She's now 25, the ALW pays peanuts, and to be a regular starting Fern likely needs to go to a better quality league to continue her development.

Signing for an amateur outfit like Auckland United allows her to sign an overseas pro deal without a transfer fee??

The ALW off season is longer than the in season. You would hope the players play some competitive football in the off season. Good to see players turning out for local clubs, that's what we want to see at National league level, the best available plyers out there. I wouldn't be reading too much into availability. ALW still 4 or 5 odd months away from starting again.

Maybe but again the ALW wages are a pittance (which won't change while the media rights deal is so bad), and new higher paying overseas leagues are popping up like this one Stateside. Then as the Cortnee Vines, Kate Taylors, Grace Wisnewskis leave the ALW, plus the American visa players that come in are lower quality, the standard drops - so that it will get to the stage where it's seen you need to be playing elsewhere to be a Ferns regular. 

With Vine gone, apart from 35 yr old Michelle Heyman are there any Matildas playing in the ALW?

And at 25, Foster is at an age like a lot of Kiwis where going overseas is an attraction. I maybe wrong, guess we will find out post Olympics.

Playing elsewhere to be a Ferns regular. Sure, But not sure about this USL yet. If one of your goals is to make the Ferns squad and go to world cups etc. Then going to the USL could be a bit risky. If you end up in a middling or bottom of the league team that doesn't score much, even if your one of the better players in your team your exposure is going to be limited compared to playing for the Nix in the same scenario your exposure is much higher particularly to the public and related media hype.
Comparable to mens USL players don't get a look into the AW's. But A league players do...... Except if your first name is Storm......
Still more professional pathways for women has only gotto be a good thing. Stepping stones and all that.

There seems to be some confusion about the USL comps. Davidson &  Wizneski  have signed with USL Superleague clubs. Fully pro and the comp will rival NWSL, but played at diff time of the year - Aug to Dec.  The second-tier, semi-pro USL W league will continue as usual, but act as feeder to the Superleague.

This new USL Superleague will run Fall/Autumn-Summer (starting in August this year), with a winter break. Same as say the Danish league.

So different to the same calendar year NWSL which runs Summer-Fall/Autumn.

Probably not far to compare the USL Mens & USL Womens leagues. The USL Championship Men has 24 teams in total over 2 conferences. Another 12 teams in the Men USL League One.

This USL Womens Super League will only have 8 teams, and looking at the number of experienced ALW players they are signing, should be fairly strong if yes a level below the NWSL. But certainly it looks like it might be stronger than the ALW. I mean the USA has a much larger & deeper talent pool than Australia & NZ.

Google tells me there are 1.7M female players registered with US Soccer. I'm guessing it's big well resourced sport at many US Colleges and Universities.

https://impetusfootball.org/2024/06/20/the-uslsuper-league-is-an-immediate-challenge-for-the-a-league-women/

With a minimum wage reported to be more than double what it is in the A-League Women, the USL Super League is an opportunity for players that Australia needs to quickly catch up to.

There is about to be shift in Australian domestic football. The last month has seen Sarah Clark and Cannon Clough of Canberra United, Hannah Keane (Western United), Hailey Davidson (Wellington), Vicky Bruce (Western Sydney), Izzy Nino (Newcastle Jets) and Mia Corbin (Brisbane Roar) move to the USL Super League.

So far the majority of the players swept away to the newly launched competition have been Americans in our top Australian league, but the additions of Wellington’s Grace Wisnewski and former NPLW Vic striker Delaney Lindahl should signal some alarm bells in the A-League Women.

For Australians unfamiliar with the USL, it forms the second top tier professional women’s league under the control of US Soccer. It is a professional league, containing eight teams and although they do not have the profile and resources of an NWSL club, clubs are reported to have an estimated wage budget of $750,000 AUD as a minimum if the expectation is to be competitive. More recent estimates and transfer activity indicate that many clubs are preparing to pay more than that.

By comparison, the A-League women’s salary cap floor currently sits at $500,000. It is an impressive 20% increase on 2022/23, but crucially it has a cap of $600,000. Things are moving in a positive direction, just not quickly enough to keep pace with the competition.

The USL Super League is quickly being seen as a destination for experienced players in itself, not as a stepping stone to the NWSL. The absence of a draft system makes it particularly attractive as a point of difference from the existing, higher profile league.