Jessica Berman, commissioner of the National Women’s Soccer League, speaks during a panel on women’s skilled soccer at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas on Feb. 10, 2024.
Omar Vega | Getty Images Sport | Getty Images
At 16 years old, Jessica Berman was one of those rare teenagers who knew exactly what she desired to do in life: lead knowledgeable sports league.
Nearly 30 years later, the Recent York City native has not only achieved her dream — becoming the commissioner of the National Women’s Soccer League in 2022 — but she’s helping to pave the way for a recent generation of women in sports.
“Our league is at this extremely pivotal and transformative moment,” Berman told CNBC. “This can be a movement where the world is recognizing the value of women and the value of investing in women and girls.”
Berman, who was named to CNBC’s inaugural Changemakers list, began her profession as a labor and employment lawyer at the Proskauer Rose law firm following internships at the National Hockey League and in college sports. She helped to barter the end of the 2004-2005 NHL lockout with a recent 10-year collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players.
She spent the next 13 years rising in the NHL ranks, holding positions starting from vice chairman of community development to deputy counsel for the league, working alongside Commissioner Gary Bettman.
In 2019, Berman became the first female deputy commissioner of a men’s skilled sports league, joining the National Lacrosse League. Lower than three years later, she was tapped to run the NWSL and tasked with turning around a company in crisis.
Taking the field
Berman took the helm at the women’s soccer league after allegations were made of emotional abuse and sexual misconduct across several teams.
Just months after Berman was named commissioner, findings were released from a yearlong independent investigation, led by former U.S. deputy attorney general Sally Yates, which found systemic abuse in the NWSL. The league had didn’t put into place basic measures for player safety, the report said, and had fostered a “culture of abuse, silence and fear of retaliation.”
Berman issued an apology and committed to creating changes to create a secure and positive environment for players, staff and fans and to rebuild trust in the league.
Over the course of 2023, Berman worked to rework the culture of the league and to supersize its business at a time when women’s sports are seeing unprecedented growth.
Berman helped to enhance players’ contracts with the league’s first-ever collective bargaining agreement, which included advancements for compensation and dealing conditions. She also brought the first-ever million-dollar prize pool to U.S. women’s soccer.
She cleaned up the league’s personnel, issuing lifetime bans on 4 former coaches over their roles in the misconduct detailed in the Yates report and fining the Chicago Red Stars and Portland Thorns teams $1.5 million and $1 million, respectively.
She’s also lured big-name investors, selling them on her recent vision for skilled women’s soccer.
Hollywood A-lister Natalie Portman and all-star athletes Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, Patrick Mahomes, Eli Manning, Kevin Durant and Carli Lloyd are just a few of the names with equity stakes in NWSL teams.
Sofia Huerta #11 of Seattle Reign takes on Delanie Sheehan #17 of NJ/NY Gotham FC during the second half of the 2023 National Women’s Soccer League Championship at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, Nov. 11, 2023.
Ben Nichols | ISI Photos | Getty Images
Today, Berman said, business is booming and the league has never been stronger or more financially sound.
NWSL in November announced a landmark media rights take care of 4 major streaming and cable partners, value $240 million over 4 years, or 40 times the size of the previous deal. The agreement greatly increases the league’s reach and distribution to recent audiences.
“That is the starting of our future,” Berman said at the time. “These partnerships fundamentally change the game for our league and the players who take the pitch each week.”
On Monday, the NWSL announced an expansion of its partnership with Amazon, naming the company as its exclusive retail sponsor. As part of that deal, the e-commerce giant and streamer will feature an NWSL merchandise shop, and the league will migrate its digital archives of historical behind-the-scenes footage and interviews to Amazon Web Services cloud storage.
Amazon Prime will stream 27 matches this season, which kicks off Friday.
And fans have been packing the stands: The league announced record-breaking attendance for the 2023 season, with greater than 1.49 million fans attending an NWSL match, a 32% increase from the previous yr.
Under Berman, the league has expanded to 14 teams from 12, with a further two teams scheduled to take the field in 2026.
Just a number of years ago, NWSL teams were valued at about $2 million on average; today, the average team is value $66 million, in accordance with Sportico. Leading the pack is Los Angeles’ Angel City FC, now valued at $180 million, making it one of the most beneficial women’s teams in the world, Sportico said.
The basics
Berman said the thing that makes her most proud is the validation she’s gotten from the individuals who have been working for a long time to alter the narrative about women’s sports.
“Seeing how current and recently retired players have really embraced what we’re constructing — those are the individuals who carry the authenticity of this game — has really fueled my energy and excitement about what we’re constructing in the future,” Berman said.
Berman also acknowledges the “army of people” who’ve helped scale the league’s impact.
“There’s quite a bit of female empowerment that I feel on a day by day basis being surrounded by such incredible leaders and athletes who’ve worked tirelessly to get so far,” she said.
She’s also particularly proud of giving her two young boys a front-row seat to history.
“They’ve needed to make quite a bit of sacrifices along the way of my profession,” said Berman, who incessantly travels as part of her job. Berman said her boys have develop into personally invested in the league after getting an up-close view of their mom’s work — each the successes and the challenges.
“It makes the whole thing feel so far more meaningful because I can actually see the profit of what I do on a day by day basis for work impacting them positively of their lives,” she said.
Berman credits her success to exertions, ambition and being her “authentic self.” She said while growing up, her psychologist mother instilled in her a way of self-awareness that is been key in her profession.
And despite the demands of leading knowledgeable sports league, Berman said she makes sure to prioritize taking care of herself — whether through time with family members or her three dogs, or through exercise resembling running or yoga — which she said makes her a greater commissioner.
“It gives me the energy to supply to every part else that I’m doing in my life,” Berman said.