The recent slew of NWSL players being called up to the USWNT "marks an important shift" for U.S. Soccer, which "appears poised to rely more and more on the fledgling NWSL to generate players as the league continues to grow," according to Jamie Goldberg of the Portland OREGONIAN. Houston Dash F Kealia Ohai and Western New York Flash F Lynn Williams are two of 10 players who "earned their first call-ups up to the USWNT after impressing in the NWSL this season." The USWNT previously has "mostly been comprised of players that have excelled in the U.S. youth national team system or been scouted out of college by necessity as top-tier, professional women's soccer leagues have struggled to keep afloat" in the U.S. While the USWNT has "certainly been successful under these circumstances" the "absence of a stable professional league has often meant that late-bloomers, like Williams and Ohai, have been overlooked." However, after four seasons, the NWSL is on "relatively stable footing and could become an important pipeline to the national team as the USWNT gears up for its next World Cup and Olympic cycle." USWNT coach Jill Ellis: "Without a professional league, a national team is at a disadvantage. That's why you see now, the teams in the top-tier -- Japan, England, France, Germany -- they all have professional leagues." Ellis has "made a concerted effort this fall to call in a new group of players and has clearly rewarded the top performers in the NWSL." Not every NWSL call-up "will stick in the national team environment," as just five of the 10 NWSL players called up during October and November "earned caps." However, as the league "continues to grow, it could become a critical pipeline to the USWNT and prompt a change in the composition of the player pool" heading into the '19 FIFA Women's World Cup (Portland OREGONIAN, 11/29).
