Northern Super League offers U Sports women's soccer players a new lease on careers
Post-university options are no longer limited to retirement or heading overseas
In February, Sophia Ferreira began an eye-opening experience.
For four months, the defender from the reigning U Sports champion UBC Thunderbirds played professionally in Portugal's Liga BPI with the club Vilaverdense FC in the city of Vila Verde.
"European soccer is just different than here," said Ferreira, who hails from Coquitlam, B.C., but has played nationally for Portugal.
"Girls just have set their life goal to doing it. I think here it can become a hobby and you can even go to university if it's still a hobby. But after that, it turns into your life — that's how a lot of the girls in Europe see it.
"So it's like they're literally committing everything to playing pro soccer, and I think I want to bring that here because I think more people could go if they really committed to it."
Bridging gap between U Sports, pro soccer
In April, the Northern Super League — a professional league founded by ex-national team star Diana Matheson — will begin play in six cities across Canada, including Vancouver.
The NSL is the first league of its kind in Canada, a step up from League1 British Columbia, the pro-am outfit established in 2021 where many of Ferreira's UBC teammates spend their off-season.
Ferreira, 21, said she hopes the NSL can further bridge the gap from U Sports to professional soccer.
"I think the NSL is putting a light on U Sports a little bit because we are the university league in Canada that will hopefully build to the NSL just like the NCAA Division I teams are the level below the NWSL [in the U.S.]," she said.
Both Ferreira and Thunderbirds captain Nisa Reehal said the optimism and excitement surrounding the NSL has permeated their locker room.
No longer are their post-university options limited to retirement or heading overseas.
"When I was in grade 10, there was really nowhere that I knew of that it was possible to go pro as a woman. So it's really cool that now girls growing up, they have the opportunity to see that we have a professional league coming to Canada and that that's a journey for them that they can go on," Reehal said.
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Reehal, now in her sixth and final year of U Sports eligibility at 23 years old, said she first stepped onto a soccer pitch at the age of five.
But it took until the New Westminster, B.C., native's second year of high school to understand that soccer could take her to university — let alone having it potentially become a career.
"I didn't know many people in my community that played soccer professionally, especially on the women's side, wherever it would be in the world," she said.
Ferreira, meanwhile, recalled just a single teammate in her first year at UBC who spoke openly about moving onto professional soccer — goalkeeper Emily Moore played two seasons in England following her university stint, including one at West Ham.
New mindset
Outside of Moore, Ferreira said no one even mentioned the possibility three years ago. Now, things are different.
"Rookies come in and they're like, that's what I want to do. Or even like second, third years, you hear them changing their vision of playing soccer to I want to play professionally now that there's an option to be here in Canada," Ferreira said.
"And I think the NSL allows their hidden dreams in their head to become reality, which allows them to speak about it more out loud."
The mere existence of the NSL may have already increased the level of play in U Sports as it becomes more showcase than final destination.
However, the NSL's commitment to U Sports remains unclear. Rosters will consist of up to 25 players, with a maximum of seven internationals. The league is looking at a salary cap of $1.6 million per club.
In a statement provided to CBC Sports, Matheson said "roster structures and player quotas" will be finalized in the coming weeks, but that U Sports players are able to sign with any NSL clubs.
"We are fortunate to have a strong working relationship with U Sports and are thrilled to offer the Northern Super League as a pathway for university athletes to further their soccer careers while playing on home soil. One of the impacts we want the creation of this league to have is that more Canadian women choose to stay in Canada, and choose Canadian universities for their education," she said.
Ferreira and Reehal said the NSL's presence around U Sports has been limited to Matheson hosting a banquet at last year's national at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. Ferreira added that she's sent her resumé to agents, who've passed it along to coaches, but she hasn't spoken directly with anyone from the league.
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CEBL model could unearth Canadian talent
One possible model to ensure U Sports players receive an opportunity in the NSL may come from the Canadian Elite Basketball League, the men's league which has instituted a U Sports draft and mandated one current university player per team.
Moreover, it would be an opportunity for the NSL to unearth Canadian talent that maybe chose to play closer at home instead of in the NCAA and has thus been overlooked.
For now, Ferreira and Reehal are focused on a championship defence. UBC is currently the top-ranked team nationally after opening the season with a five-game winning streak.
And as the details get worked through for a league that has not yet begun play or introduced any coaches or players, U Sports athletes can move forward with the knowledge that something will be there for them once their university careers are done.
"In the beginning [the NSL] was in the back of my mind. I had no clue what it would turn into," Ferreira said. "But now it's literally at the front of my mind. I'm always thinking about it and how I can get there."
