When NCAA All-American striker Diana Ordóñez debuted in the NWSL in 2022, there was little more that she could ask from her rookie season with the North Carolina Courage. Within her first professional year, Ordonez immediately became a star for the Courage, broke the league’s scoring record for a rookie, and also earned a call-up for Mexico‘s national team.
The only problem: She had no say in going to North Carolina.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the experiences that I had there, the coaches that I had, the teammates,” the now-Houston Dash forward told ESPN about her first club. “[But] I didn’t get to choose to go there, they picked me.
“Still, an unbelievable experience, but at the end of the day my desire was to be closer to home. My family is from Dallas, so Houston would be the best place for me and my life.”
Following changes made by last year’s new collective bargaining agreement in the NWSL, Ordoñez’s predicament is now a thing of the past.
Thanks to changes in the CBA, the U.S. women’s top flight is the first major league in the United States to eliminate a college or entry draft, thereby giving college players the freedom to negotiate and choose their first professional team.
“I see it as a great thing for the NWSL,” said Ordoñez. “This way, people can kind of shop…
