Washington Spirit's new soccer exec says club need to get 'creative' with Trinity Rodman contract

In the nation's capital, Washington, D.C, is a city full of political maneuvering and power plays, and a new type of high-stakes negotiation between NWSL and the Washington Spirit needs a top-level executive to handle the details. 

The Washington Spirit recently hired Haley Carter as the club's new president of soccer operations, and it's a move that comes with buzz as the club works towards a contract solution with free agent winger Trinity Rodman. Carter's appointment was finalized before Rodman's free agency reached the point of a grievance filed on her behalf by the NWSL Players Association. 

Now, the Spirit and Carter are back to work after a previous contract option, which would've made Rodman the highest-paid soccer player in women's pro soccer, was vetoed by NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman. In an introductory press conference on Tuesday, the new club president of soccer operations told the media that there were "no updates" on Rodman and that they're "having conversations every day." 

Cater's role with the Spirit isn't just some front-office promotion; it's a signal of ambition. The former NWSL goalkeeper, retired United States Marine Corps officer, and licensed attorney, made her return to the league as an executive in 2023 when she was hired as general manager and vice president of operations for the Orlando Pride. Carter helped build the 2024 roster that went on to win the league double in 2024. 

Now, her new role came with plenty of responsibility and an urgent mission by the Spirit for negotiations to keep Rodman a member of the club.

"We're going to need mechanisms right that allow NWSL clubs to compete for, not only players from overseas, but our own players, and being able to retain them," Carter told the media. "We are going to have to start getting creative, I believe, because it's bigger than just one team. It's bigger than just one player. It's about the league's ability to keep its best players in this league as we continue to grow."

Per the NWSLPA grievance, reviewed by CBS Sports, the Spirit and Rodman had initially agreed to a contract on or around Nov. 30, but the deal was vetoed by the commissioner for allegedly violating the "spirit of the league rules." Now the league has 14 days to respond to the grievance filing that the NWSLPA says Berman and the league violated several CBA rules regarding free agency. Carter wants to see the "American league" evolve to meet the moment in a "global sport."

"We have to be cognizant of what's happening in the global market. The evidence kind of speaks for itself. We have multiple examples of athletes, U.S. women's national team players, who are going overseas to compete, and they have their reasons for doing that, and I'm wholly supportive of athletes doing what they think they need to do, and that's in the best interest of their development. I totally get it," Carter said.

The former Orlando Pride executive uses an example with former Pride starting midfielder Adriana. The Brazilian international signed a hefty deal to play in Saudi Arabia's league, and Carter's maneuvering is not to get in the way of players seeking those opportunities, but cites the experience as a league learning. 

"It matters that we have the ability to compensate players. And I think that now there's enough writing on the wall, there's enough evidence, there's enough tangible information that's available that reflects what's happening in the market and the impact that it's having. And to be fair, we're not, we're not necessarily competing with other leagues, I think, outside of Women's Super League [England],  is certainly like the number one threat to the NWSL in terms of players. But we are really competing with a handful of clubs that are very, very serious about talent acquisition, and those are the clubs that we need to be able to compete with, collectively as a league," Carter told the media on working with cap issues.

Still, the new Spirit president of operations remains "cautiously optimistic" at the attention and resources being spent on the negotiations, and that the club and the league are ultimately on the same page when it comes to retaining Rodman's talents in NWSL. She's hopeful that a solution will be reached for all parties involved.

"We owe it to ourselves to make sure that we're coming up with the solution that serves to compensate the athletes but also ensures that the league is in a good space and that's really where the innovation has to happen, right? Like, that's where we have to strike a balance. We have to walk through some pretty nuanced conversations," Carter stated. 

She also joked that she's no stranger to being critical of the league when it's warranted. But she credits the league office working with the board of governors on the urgency of negotiating a deal while working through various mechanisms and proposals. 

"I think everybody who knows me knows that I'm very much on the train to pay the players, but I also, you know, am, again, pragmatic enough to recognize that we need to make sure that we're getting the revenue generating channels aligned and open and ready to go, so that, you know, as we're increasing spend, we're also increasing spend in the things that are going to generate us that revenue and get us that return on investment. So, it's got to be, it has to be a really holistic solution."

As the league, club, player, and player agents are at the center of a contract impasse, Carter's presence alongside a negotiation team that includes general manager Nathan Minion could not only solve the puzzle of Rodman's future but reshape the league entirely.