The NWSL Players Association has communicated its disagreement with the league’s proposed High Impact Player (HIP) mechanism for the 2026 season. The rule, which the league’s board of governors voted to approve last week, would allow teams to pay stars who meet certain criteria above the salary cap. They raised concerns about the speed at which the NWSL created the proposal and the lack of clarity in how it would be used. The PA — which is required to weigh in on salary cap matters — has proposed instead raising the salary cap by $1 million beginning in 2026, the same amount of money that the league is proposing each team could spend through the HIP rule.
