On Friday, the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) announced it had hired former FIFPro director of global policy Sarah Gregorius as its new sporting senior director.
Gregorius will be responsible for “advancing player relations and development, optimizing performance standards and centralizing best practices and minimum standards”, per the league’s announcement. She will work under chief sporting director Tatjana Haenni, whom she has known for years and interacted with in her role at FIFPro, the global footballers’ union.
The hiring is a strong signal from NWSL about its commitment to player standards.
In addition to its advocacy, FIFPro has a watchdog-like status in relation to the game’s various leagues and governing bodies. Gregorius’ work in particular over the past five years has addressed everything from mental health to maternity protections to schedule overload. The league approaching her about taking on a player welfare and development role is an invitation to be seriously critiqued from within.
“I’ve asked them why (they wanted to hire me) many times,” Gregorius said on a call with The Athletic. “Because I’m also curious to understand, given not just my work at FIFPro, but also my background as a player — and not exactly a quiet player. Even…
