Alex Morgan to join Tottenham in highest profile Women's Super League transfer in history
US women’s national team forward Alex Morgan is reportedly set to join Tottenham until the end of the year in what could be the most high-profile transfer in Women’s Super League history.
The Orlando Pride forward is set to become the fifth World Cup winner from the US team to join the English league, according to the Athletic. Earlier in the summer, Sam Mewis and Rose Lavelle joined Manchester City, before Christen Press and Tobin Heath joined Manchester United this week.
The Covid-19 pandemic has heavily disrupted America’s National Women’s Soccer League but has provided an opportunity for England’s WSL, which is now the destination of choice for elite American players in search of meaningful minutes. The NWSL Fall Series is a smaller competition that provides fewer matches for some of the world’s best talent in the year before the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics - a marquee competition in women’s football.
Orlando Pride defenders Shelina Zadorsky and Alanna Kennedy joined Spurs in August. Pride are coached by the former Birmingham City manager Marc Skinner, who worked under Spurs’ head of women’s football, Heather Cowen, during his time at the Midlands club.
Morgan, who is co-captain of the US team alongside Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe, gave birth to a daughter - named Charlie Elena - with her footballer husband Servando Carrasco in May. She last played for Orlando in August 2019 but the pandemic has given her additional time to regain her fitness ahead of the US Olympic selection.
Morgan was accused of “disrespecting” England when she made a tea-sipping gesture after putting the US 2-1 ahead in their World Cup semi-final last year.
From an English perspective, the influx of huge names into the league - non-US arrivals include the three-times Champions League winner Lucy Bronze and the 2018 Ballon D’or runner-up Pernille Harder - provides a huge growth opportunity, with television rights having been sold in territories across the globe including to the United States, Italy and Germany. US viewers are now able to watch a minimum of 50 matches that have the potential to reach 85 million homes.
