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00:00Are there any games that we should be tuning in and really, really, uh, analyzing this
00:05weekend?
00:06I mean, yeah, I'm tuning in tonight to ACFC going up against Portland Thorns.
00:11I'm really excited to see, you know, these power dynamics and decided to see who is going
00:16to leave their mark again.
00:18I'm also excited to see Washington spirit versus Kansas city.
00:21It is a classic.
00:22I mean, both teams have this really strong, um, fan base and I'm excited to see how those
00:28dynamics play out in this game.
00:31It's going to be very exciting, especially because I know that Kansas city will be hungry
00:35to get some points.
00:36They are one of the most historical teams in the league and they didn't start their
00:41season in the right foot.
00:42I am sure that they will try to make a statement on this high stake games that you will be
00:47able to see this weekend.
00:48Now Camilla, I know that beyond what happens on the field, this league is making waves
00:55is ripples have been affecting every age group because recently we've seen an influx
01:01of club players.
01:02Yes.
01:03Teenagers that decide to forego their traditional path, including soccer, to go straight to
01:08the league.
01:09Talk to me about this phenomenon of literally kids going to work for the professional soccer
01:15teams.
01:16Yeah.
01:17I mean, it's groundbreaking this weekend.
01:19We actually saw McKenna with him, a 14 year old girl starting her professional career
01:25off with Gotham FC.
01:26I mean, I think it's incredible.
01:27I think that it's giving so much power, like putting the power back into the hands of the
01:32players.
01:33In 2024 alone, we saw 13 young girls completely skipping the, you know, traditional college
01:39route and they went directly from club to the NWSL and I think it's great.
01:44Yeah.
01:45And is there any pushback about these new paths that kids might take is keeping college
01:49altogether?
01:50Yeah, there definitely is some controversy around these young players just going directly
01:55into the professional league.
01:56We have a traditionally strong program, such as the one at FSU.
02:00The head coach, you know, has expressed his opinion on it, maybe not being in the player's
02:06best interest to skip the college, you know, experience, but with everything there is controversy
02:13and yeah, I'm just excited to see how it plays out.
02:15That is true, Camila.
02:16The landscape in youth sports has been changing increasingly fast.
02:20The introduction of NIL money contracts for high school and college students, like in
02:25the rest of the world, kids might be choosing to become professionals at the sport at a
02:29way younger age instead of taking a traditional student athlete route.
02:34Camila, thank you for your insight.
02:36This has been amazing to learn of how this league is not only growing on the field, but
02:41also, you know, changing the paradigm for youth athletes.