The National Women’s Soccer League, or NWSL, is reserved for the top 0.1% of women’s soccer players in the United States. And yet, in 2021, the league’s minimum salary for players was a meager $22,000, with 75% of players making $31,000 or less.

Those in the highest 25% were still hardly making a livable wage as the NWSL maximum salary was $52,500. The rare exceptions were players like Alex Morgan or Christen Press who had their salaries paid by the United States Soccer Federation as a result of subsidized contracts and additional income from endorsements.

Such low wages for the overwhelming majority of players meant that many had to work multiple jobs in addition to their professional careers to make ends meet. These wages increased significantly from the league’s inaugural season, in which wages ranged from $6,000 to $30,000. This slow growth in salaries prompted the NWSL Players Association, or NWSLPA, founded in 2017, to begin negotiations with the league to establish its first ever collective bargaining agreement, or CBA, in late 2020.

After nearly one and a half years of bargaining with the NWSL, the two finally came to an agreement Feb. 1. Last week’s announcement came on the eve of the NWSL’s 2022 preseason, as players prepared to strike in anticipation of an agreement not being reached. As the first CBA in NWSL history, this is a turning point that marks the beginning of livable wages and more for some of the world’s top women’s soccer players.

In effect until 2026, some key features of the CBA are as follows: minimum salary increases to $35,000, the introduction of a free agency period in 2023 and 2024 for select players, paid mental health leave and no more playing on fields where soccer is not traditionally played. These aspects alone allow players to focus on and take control of their professional careers, take care of their mental health and stay physically safe, as they will no longer face the possibility of having to play on baseball fields.

Now, only a week after its ratification, we are already seeing substantial changes in the league. 2021 NWSL Rookie of the Year, Trinity Rodman, signed a four-year contract extension with the Washington Spirit for a league-record $1.1 million. At 18, the youngest player to ever be drafted, the now-19-year-old Rodman has shined throughout her short tenure in the NWSL and helped guide the Spirit to its first-ever NWSL championship.

Lasting through 2024 with an option for 2025, Rodman is set to make an annual salary of $281,000. While substantially above the new maximum wage of $75,000, per the CBA, her salary will be supplemented by the Spirit’s allocation money, thus allowing her to be paid above the league maximum. Prior to Rodman’s contract extension, Christen Press became the highest-paid player in the league when she signed her contract with Angel City FC for three seasons in which she is set to make over $700,000.

The protections the CBA provides for NWSL players are unprecedented and come at a time where players are no longer accepting the bare minimum — as evidenced by the influx in players, like Mia Fishel, opting to play abroad rather than domestically. With the CBA now in place, players and fans of the league can’t help but to be hopeful for the future.