SI went with the header, "Jessica Berman Is SI’s 2024 Innovator of the Year." Berman joined the NWSL as commissioner "in a moment of crisis." The league was "roiled by a series of abuse scandals" and it "had only just started to negotiate" its first CBA with its players’ association. Berman had a long career in professional sports, but she "had never worked in soccer." It was "daunting to consider taking on a situation where trust was that broken." And the league’s place in the sports landscape was "tenuous." There were "major questions" about what the league would do without the support of U.S. Soccer, which had managed the league prior to Berman's arrival. It "needed to grow in order to survive." The NWSL "did that over the last two years," and the moves it "pulled off to keep building momentum this season" have made Berman Sports Illustrated’s 2024 Innovator of the Year.
Also:
- Latest Arizona report reignites talk of NHL expansion.
- Billie Jean King: Tennis stars need to learn the business -- not just play.
- No need to complain. The College Football Playoff is coming out perfectly.
- First 12-team College Football Playoff reminds fans to be careful what they wish for.
- Earth to ESPNBA: Spotlighting Cavs and Thunder is the future solution to your outdated problem.
- Nike told a judge it had turned over every ‘Starfish’ workplace complaint. Then it found 15 more.
- Who will win the NBA's post-LeBron/Steph audition? (Hint: It's over. It's Wemby.)
