As the year ends, 2024 has seen tremendous growth in women’s sports with record-breaking viewership, records by athletes, team deals and sponsorships.
Yazmeen Ryan was traded to the Houston Dash by the NJ/NY on Dec. 27. The midfielder was let go by the Gotham FC in a historic NWSL move, making it the most expensive intra-trade at $400,000 in allocation fee. This move was actualized on Dec. 27 following the NWSL Transfer Window, which opened on Dec. 13 and a transaction moratorium, which started on the 20th and ended on the 27th.
Yazmeen Ryan’s Run in the NWSL
The Portland Thorns FC drafted the midfielder sixth overall in the 2021 NWSL Draft. In her first year with the Thorns, she appeared 11 times on the field. In her second year, she played 22 games, missing only two. She completed the season with two goals and five assists. She started and played 90 minutes in the finals game against Kansas City in 2022, which the Portland Thorns won 2:0.
Ryan was traded to the NJ/NY Gotham FC in 2023. In her first year with Gotham, she played 24 games and appeared in the final game against the OL Reign, where Gotham won its first championship with a 2:1 score. For the 2024 NWSL season, Yazmeen appeared in all the games played by Gotham; she registered five goals and six assists. NJ/NY finished the 2024 season in third place after losing to the Washington Spirit in the semi-finals.
College Career
Yazmeen played for Texas Christian University, where she received several academic and sports honors that highlighted her excellence on and off the field. These honors included being a 2021 Mac Hermann Trophy Award Semifinalist, 2021 United Soccer Coaches first-team All-American, 2021 United Soccer Coaches first-team All-Midwest Region, 2017 Big 12 All-Freshman Team and an invitation to the 2018 USA Soccer U18 National Team Training Camp.
Transfer Window in the NWSL
Clubs have taken advantage of the open transfer window to boost their squads for the 2025 season. They are expected to finalize trades by Jan. 14, 2025, before the new CBA takes effect.
Some of the trades that have taken place are:
Alex Loera has signed with Utah Royals from Bay FC.
OL Reign has signed Lynn Williams and Cassie Miller from Gotham.
Gotham has added Jaelin Howell from OL Reign.
Kansas City has received Rocky Rodriguez from Angel City FC.
Bay FC has acquired Penelope Hocking from the Chicago Red Stars.
