Megan Talks

Discussion in 'Portland Thorns FC' started by Cliveworshipper, Jan 14, 2013.

  1. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006
  2. aperfectring

    aperfectring Member+

    Jul 13, 2011
    Hillsboro, OR
    Club:
    Portland Timbers
    That is indeed a nugget I had not gleaned from that interview when I read it, and could potentially have some interesting consequences should any players decide to play overseas rather than for the teams they were allocated to.
     
  3. cpthomas

    cpthomas BigSoccer Supporter

    Portland Thorns
    United States
    Jan 10, 2008
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I wish we had a labor lawyer to explain the status of things. The USWNT players have a collective bargaining unit for purposes of negotiations with the USSF, at least I think they do. But, do they have or need a separate bargaining unit for purposes of negotiations with the NWSL? And would that unit include the other players? I'm guessing the answer is "yes," but I could be 100% wrong. If they need a separate bargaining unit, is it a separate negotiation for each player with each club at this point? Again, I'm guessing the answer is "yes."

    Anyone out there have a well-informed clue?

    One other thing: I get the impression from what Megan said that she had told the Thorns that she intended to go to Lyon for the first part of the season before the allocation and that they then decided not to put her high on their preference list because of that. It's just an impression, she did not exactly say that, but I can believe it if it's true. It says to me that the Thorns ownership and management are very serious about this first season, which i\I think they should be.
     
  4. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006
    I am not informed about the collective bargaining agreement status, other than to impart these nuggets...

    In the past, the uswnt contract a player signed was the pre-eminent contract. Any contract a player in residency had with a club was trumped by the USSF deal. FIFA would tell you they were on loan.

    It was by FIFA standards, as if a player were on loan from the USSF and could be recalled at will. If there was no league, players were obligated to enter residency camps.

    This is different from contracts a player like Messi had with Barcelona. In that case, the club only needs to release players to national teams during limited FIFA windows. Even then, they could withhold players for friendlies.

    The player contracts with the National team have expired, or if they haven't, the new deal hasn't been announced. Since the new league is a USSF ( and Canada and Mexico FA) deal, it would seem that if there is no USSF deal, there is no league for USA national team players unless they sign contracts that are independent of, and aren't subsidized, by the USSF.

    You can't allocate players you don't own. Simple as that.
     
  5. cpthomas

    cpthomas BigSoccer Supporter

    Portland Thorns
    United States
    Jan 10, 2008
    Portland, Oregon
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Umm, if there are lawyers involved, not!
     
  6. kernel_thai

    kernel_thai Member+

    Oct 24, 2012
    Club:
    Seattle Sounders
    It's interesting she said she'd only be playing in NWSL for two months. Is there a big international break during the summer?
     
  7. RUfan

    RUfan Member

    Dec 11, 2004
    NJ
    Club:
    Sky Blue FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The tweet from Wahl about players not yet signing a league contract was posted on the separate thread about Rapinoe playing in France, and some of us made comments.

    Now that I read the full story, I think that she either misspoke (meant US soccer) or in the conversation with her, Wahl got confused signing with US Soccer vs NWSL. My understanding is that the new CBA for the players will include the extra salary for playing in the league.

    "Interestingly, Rapinoe and her U.S. teammates have yet to sign contracts with the NWSL, but she said she "definitely" wants to play in the U.S. league this year."

    Or that as business people that they will not allow their (business) plans to be subject to whims of any one player (employee). What she said in essence to them is "I really do want to play in Portland, but I want to first spend the first 2/3 of the season in France and then come back to play. Please hold an open position or drop a player for me when I come back from an extended leave of absence."
    Portland, for all we know, may have then not put her name anywhere on their list.

    Then she adds "The salaries are good here, and the overall interest and commitment on a day-to-day level to have this team be fully professional is awesome," Rapinoe said. "I haven't played in any other European leagues before, but everything so far has been top-notch." Hey, she may want to do this again next year if it stays this great for the rest of the season.
     
  8. lolGOL

    lolGOL Member

    Aug 16, 2010
    Club:
    Vitoria Salvador
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    I wouldn't be surprised if you were correct about Portland knowing she wouldn't be here and therefore not selecting her for allocation. The USWNT was just in Portland and she did interviews for their media work, so I'm sure she chatted with the organization about her plans. Her quote does seem to indicate this possibility as well.

    As a Seattle fan her quotes do not make me happy, though I can totally understand her sentiment. I would never support the Timbers under any circumstances, and I'm sure that a Portlander feels the same way about Seattle. That said, I'd put money on her doing her 2 months in Seattle - still as a great player, but not quite acclimated to the team - then forcing a trade to Portland. If she does well in France she'll have an easy fallback option. Lyon's other recent signing, Ohno, is reported to have gotten around US$120K per year there, and I'm sure Rapinoe's contract is comparable. I'd love to do a Morgan for Pinoe trade, but there's no way that Portland would even consider it given the situation. So in the end, she may as well not even been allocated to Seattle. It's another blank spot, same as WNY got.

    It's interesting that Wahl's article raises the possibility of players playing in both US and European (presumably French and German) leagues. Given the short length of the NWSL season it seems reasonable, though players would likely have to miss preseason training and early season games for both continents. The situation would be very similar to the WNBA/overseas divide amongst American women basketball players. I wonder if this possibility is actually being considered by any of the players.
     
  9. Cliveworshipper

    Cliveworshipper Member+

    Dec 3, 2006

    Ok, that's not fair!

    FIFA does say you can't force a player to play without a contract. Megan's move to Lyon looks like a CYA on her part.
     
  10. kernel_thai

    kernel_thai Member+

    Oct 24, 2012
    Club:
    Seattle Sounders
    Here's an ESPN W story with Morgan based on her part in the media conference call on allocation day. It doesnt sound like anything is signed according to her.

    http://espn.go.com/espnw/commentary...-leadership-role-national-women-soccer-league
     

Share This Page