"Turnover is normal in this league, so we do not take continuity for granted." Washington Spirit president of soccer operations Haley Carter said that — and she means it. In a league where worst-to-first stories are practically tradition, the Spirit are entering their third consecutive season as a top-two side. That doesn't happen by accident.
With 12 games left in the NWSL's 14th regular season, Washington sit just behind a resurgent Gotham side who leapfrogged them into first place this past Sunday. Gotham, who are one of three teams to beat the Spirit this season, are the latest plot twist in a league that produces them weekly. But the Spirit's position isn't fragile — it's been earned through deliberate construction.
Building a squad, not just a roster
The framework Carter and her staff have put together is genuinely interesting. Sofia Cantore became the first Italian in NWSL history last June. Eighteen-year-old Claudia Martínez — the league's first Paraguayan — has three goals in her rookie campaign. Sandy MacIver stepped into the goalkeeper spot with Aubrey Kingsbury on maternity leave and promptly set a new team record of four consecutive clean sheets, posting the fourth-best save percentage in the league. These aren't panic signings. They're considered ones.
Six Spirit players are currently away at the Women's Africa Cup of Nations representing Nigeria, Algeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon and Burkina Faso. Washington have managed without them. That's the depth Carter is talking about.
The club's owner Michele Kang — currently entangled in a $400m lawsuit with John Textor, so not exactly a quiet off-season — runs a three-club network spanning Washington, OL Lyonnnes and London City Lionesses. Carter says collaboration across medical, performance and technical departments is "more structured than people might assume," with shared software platforms for talent identification and athlete wellness. Whether that multi-club infrastructure is a genuine competitive edge or expensive ambition still being tested is a fair question. The results so far suggest it's working.
The Rodman factor — and what surrounds her
None of this operates without Trinity Rodman. Thirteen goal contributions in 18 games. She presses backlines, creates space, takes on defenders, and links effectively with Cantore and Colombian midfielder Leicy Santos. Her influence isn't cosmetic — it's structural.
Keeping her was significant enough that the NWSL built a rule around it. The "Rodman Rule" — officially the high-impact player policy — allows clubs to spend $1 million outside the standard salary cap for players meeting certain criteria. That's the league acknowledging one player's market value was distorting competitive balance and responding by enshrining an exception. For anyone tracking Washington's outright odds, that contract security matters. She's not leaving mid-season, and she's in form.
The North Carolina Courage finished top of the NWSL table for three straight seasons between 2017 and 2019, winning the Championship twice. That's the benchmark for sustained dominance in this league. Washington haven't lifted the trophy yet in this run — that's still the gap. They've been consistently good. Now they need to be good in October.
