LOS ANGELES — National Women’s Soccer League commissioner Jessica Berman told ESPN that she expects the league to play games during next year’s FIFA Men’s World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the United States.
“I do not expect us to shut down for the full period of the Men’s World Cup,” Berman said.
Berman said the details of the NWSL’s plans for next summer are yet to be determined.
“We’re figuring it out,” Berman told ESPN. “We should have clarity in the next couple months about what we’re going to do.
“Everything’s on the table right now. I don’t have an answer to the ‘what.’ We’ll do something. What it is, where it is, how it happens, is still in the works.”
MLS, which will lose rostered players to their national teams for the tournament, will break for the 2026 World Cup.
The 2026 Men’s World Cup will take place from June 11 to July 19 next year, the longest World Cup yet due to expansion to 48 teams for the first time. It falls right in the middle of the typical NWSL season.
While the competition will be co-hosted by Canada and Mexico, 11 of the 16 host cities for the tournament are in the United States. Only one of those venues, Seattle’s Lumen Field, is currently used by an NWSL team, although there will be seven NWSL teams in 2026 World Cup host…
