“If you’re good enough, you’re old enough” — that’s the motto Olivia Moultrie likes to live by. And little did she know, it would define her pursuit of something unprecedented in American women’s domestic soccer: challenging the NWSL‘s rule that prevented players under 18 from signing club contracts.
For someone who kickstarted her career at just 15 — giving up college eligibility to sign a Nike deal, yet left without a team to play for due to FIFA and NWSL age restrictions — it was the only option she had. Fast forward to today, as the rule finally shifts, turns out this radical movement once left Christen Press ‘concerned’ than proud of Moultrie’s bold leap.
Why, you ask? Well, today you may come across this growing American women’s league having introduced CBA, a players association, and many other safety protocols. However, back in the day, the league was actually going through a lot, with the league’s culture not deemed fit. So when Press got to know a teenager was about to challenge NWSL to just come and play, it struck a chord within the USWNT veteran.
“The first thing I thought when I heard about you was, ‘Oh my gosh, she cannot come to this.’ Not because you weren’t good enough but because I was actually concerned for your well-being,” began Press while interviewing Moultrie alongside Tobin Heath on the RE—INC podcast.
(This is a developing story…)
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