National Women’s Soccer League Commissioner Jessica Berman said reproductive rights will be considered when the league looks at locations for possible expansion teams.
The league, which currently has 12 teams, is looking to add two more in 2024.
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month removed constitutional protections for abortion, which is likely to lead to abortion bans in roughly half the states. There are concerns some states could also move to limit some birth control options and procedures like in-vitro fertilization.
“It’s one of the things that we’re actually currently analyzing, which is looking even at our current markets to see where we have some differentiation between our values and what we stand behind relative to where we have teams located, and what are the solutions we can put in place that we feel comfortable we can commit to and execute on,” she said. “Certainly in the context of expansion that would be part of the analysis.”
The NWSL’s board of governors met this week to look at the state of the league and discuss changes. Among the items discussed was the intention to expand the league to 14 teams.
The league has teams in Texas, where abortion is effectively banned, and in Kentucky, where a ban has been challenged in court. It also has a team in Florida, which has banned abortions after 15 weeks.