Gotham FC rookies get first taste of NWSL with hand-picked club

Gotham FC midfielder Sofia Cook was in a similar position last fall that Connecticut star guard Paige Bueckers finds herself in.Cook had another year of NCAA eligibility remaining.But after weighing her options, the former UCLA soccer star felt like she was in a good position to take her talents to the next level.It helps, too, that unlike Bueckers — who’s projected to be drafted No.1 overall in the WNBA draft by the Dallas Wings — Cook had a say in where she’d start her professional career.So, after the Bruins’ season came to an end in the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Cook called up her agent and met with several teams.Ultimately, though, Cook found that Gotham FC was the place she wanted to start her professional career.

And by the end of January, she signed a two-year deal with the club.“It was definitely for me the style of the play about the team,” Cook said Wednesday.“I play my best when I fit the style of play, so watching Gotham, I definitely wanted to play here.

And then it just worked out.”A new collective bargaining agreement, adopted last August, made the NWSL the first North American professional sports league to eliminate its college draft.The change gives more power back to players to ensure they have a say in their future.For Gotham defender Lilly Reale, being a part of the first rookie class to forgo a draft is not something lost on her.“It’s very special,” Reale said.

“When you’re going into the draft, it kind of is just up to odds a little bit.So having teammates who have done or gone into the draft in the past, it can be really exciting but it can also be a little bit overwhelming because there isn’t that autonomy there.“Obviously, it’s a privilege to be in this league no matter where you go.

but I think it is really special when you have a little bit more control over your future.”Reale, who played four seasons at UCLA, trained with Gotham and Angel City FC last summer, which gave her a peek i...