Gotham FC Transfer Tracker: All 2025 news and rumors

Welcome to the first-ever edition of the Hudson River Blue Transfer Tracker for all Gotham FC transfer news and rumors. This page will be updated regularly, so check back often.

• Midge Purce re-signs with Gotham

February 5, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Finally, some good news for the Gotham faithful: superstar midfielder Midge Purce will be with the Bats for at least another year.

Purce spent most of the 2024 season recovering from an ACL injury suffered at the start of the year. Read more about her re-signing here.

“I’m Back”: Midge Purce re-signs with Gotham FC for 2025

The 2023 NWSL Championship MVP returns to Gotham on a new one-year contract and hopes to bounce back from the torn ACL she suffered early in 2024.

Hudson River BlueTakashi Williams

• Crystal Dunn to PSG

January 31, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Les Parisiens finally announced the signing of Crystal Dunn this morning. The USWNT player agreed to a contract through 2027, announced by Paris Saint-German.

"I'm so happy to be able to start this new adventure. My family supports me and comes with me, it was important for me to find a club that trusts me as a player but that also accepts that I come with my family. I have a connection with France, and I already feel at home. And I hope to be able to give the best of myself with my new team," Dunn said in an interview with the club.

Although Dunn's time with Gotham only lasted for the duration of the 2024 season, the Long Island native leaves the NWSL for Europe for a second time in her career. The three-time NWSL champion now embarks on a new challenge in France, after winning a gold medal this past summer in the very same stadium she will now call home.

• Crystal Dunn to PSG?

January 30, 2025
Status: Rumor, Reputable Sources

Will former Gotham FC forward Crystal Dunn find herself playing in the French capita?

Dunn and Paris Saint-Germain are believed to have been undergoing contract negotiations as earlier reported by BBC Sports' Emma Sanders. It was later reported by the Guardian's Tom Garry that Dunn is set to have a medical with Paris Saint-Germain as well at some point today.

Dunn and the Bats mutually agreed to her departure earlier this week as reported here in the Gotham FC Transfer Tracker.

• Jenna Nighswonger signs with Arsenal

January 30, 2025
Status: Confirmed

The star USWNT fullback leaves Gotham FC after joining the team in 2023. She's just the latest high-profile departure for the Bats.

Read more here.

• UCLA's Sofia Cook signs with Gotham

January 29, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Former UCLA midfielder Sofia Cook signed a two-year contract with the Goths, the club announced in a statement Wednesday morning. The agreement contains a mutual option for 2027 as well.

“I am so excited to be starting my professional career with Gotham FC...It’s a team that plays a great style of soccer and one I believe I fit into. I am so grateful for the opportunity and can’t wait to take the field at Sports Illustrated Stadium,” Cook said in the statement.

The 2022 national champion leaves UCLA with a 12 goals, six assists stat line in a total of 56 match appearances, along with experience representing the U.S. women's youth national teams in the 2023 Concacaf U-20 Championship and the 2018 Concacaf U-15 Championship.

• Forward Crystal Dunn leaves Gotham

January 28, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Forward Crystal Dunn and Gotham FC have agreed to mutually part ways on Tuesday, according to journalist Jenna Tonelli.

"Crystal is an accomplished player who has achieved so much in her career...We wish her all the best in the next chapter of her career, and we thank her for her contributions to our club,” said general manager Yael Averbuch West in the club statement.

Dunn leaves the Bats after signing with the club in the 2023 offseason.

• Jenna Nighswonger to Arsenal for $100,000: Report

January 27, 2025
Status: Rumor, Reputable Source

Defender Jenna Nighswonger will be transferred to Arsenal for a $100,000 fee, according to a report from Meg Linehan of The Athletic.

Jenna Nighswonger is also heading to the WSL — Arsenal and Gotham are finalizing the move with a $100K transfer fee according to sources who have been briefed on the deal. @theathletic.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/609...

[image or embed]

— Meg Linehan (@meglinehan.com) January 27, 2025 at 5:03 PM

Gotham selected the Florida State alum with the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft. After making her professional debut a couple months later, Nighswonger went on to become the NWSL Rookie of the Year and appeared in every playoff match to help her team win the 2023 NWSL Championship.

Nighswonger made 58 appearances across all competitions in two seasons with Gotham. The 24-year-old left-back also made her breakthrough with the United States women's national team in 2024, earning a spot on the Olympic team that would win the gold medal. At Arsenal, she'll join USWNT teammate Emily Fox, and her six-figure transfer comes days after Chelsea made another USWNT defender, Naomi Girma, the first $1 million transfer in women's soccer history.

• Goalkeeper Michelle Betos retires

January 22, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Goalkeeper Michelle Betos announced her retirement from professional soccer on Wednesday.

"When I left college and began chasing this childhood dream, the one thing I knew would be required, and I knew I could control, is that I was going to give everything I had to this,” said Betos in the club statement. “Walking away 15 years later, I can honestly say I did that and so much more."

Betos joined the Bats just before the 2022 season and was named captain for the 2024 campaign. The Queens native was also apart of the 2023 NWSL championship winning squad.

• Goalkeeper Abby Smith to Houston Dash

January 17, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Goalkeeper Abby Smith has been traded to the Houston Dash for $20,000 in intra-league transfer funds, reported by journalist Jenna Tonelli and simultaneously announced by Gotham FC.

"I would like to extend my gratitude to my teammates and the fans at Gotham FC...Raising a trophy with y’all goes down as one of the highlights, and I feel so blessed to be able to bring that experience into this new chapter of my career!" said Smith in the club statement.

Smith was a part of the 2023 NWSL championship-winning team and started in goal for fifteen matches that same campaign before being sidelined with a season-ending injury. The former Texas Longhorn produced four clean sheets during that stretch as well.

• Midge Purce and goalkeeper Abby Smith on their way out?

January 10, 2025
Status: Rumor

Midge Purce was a missing component from last year's success on the field with an early ACL injury sidelining her for the majority of the 2024 season. But with her being a free agent in Gotham's busy offseason so far, Amanda Westlake of All for XI questions whether the signing of Brazilian forward Gabi Portilho will relieve Purce of her duties at Sports Illustrated Stadium.

While journalist Jenna Tonelli today posted that Purce and the club are in talks, Westlake wrote "There has been no update on whether or not [Purce] is currently in negotiations with Gotham or other clubs."

Purce joined Gotham in 2020 and finished second in the NWSL Golden Boot race in her very first season, leading the club with nine goals. She went on to be named a part of the NWSL Best XI and a finalist for the NWSL MVP award.

With the announced signing of Ryan Campbell (see below), Westlake points to the likelihood that Abby Smith will be placed elsewhere now that the club are carrying to four goalkeepers.

• Gotham sign standout collegiate goalkeeper Ryan Campbell to one-year contract

January 10, 2025
Status: Confirmed

The collegiate signings just keep coming in for the Goths this off-season. Former UCLA and Stanford goalkeeper Ryan Campbell signed a contract for the 2025 season, announced earlier today.

Campbell has closed the door on an illustrious collegiate career. In her final collegiate season with the Bruins, Campbell led the nation with 16 clean sheets, the second-most in program history. When she was at Stanford the prior year, the Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Year led her conference in goals-against average and save percentage. She had 11 clean sheets that season.

• Gotham sign Khyah Harper

January 8, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Gotham are continuing to bring in collegiate talent this offseason with the signing of former University of Minnesota forward Khyah Harper for the 2025 season.

Harper is coming off an extremely impressive collegiate season, scoring 17 goals, including back-to-back hat tricks. Her goal scoring ability led to Harper being named the Big Ten Forward of the Year and a MAC Herman Trophy semifinalist as well.

• UCLA Bruin Lilly Reale signs with Gotham until 2027

January 3, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Former UCLA defender Lilly Reale signed a contract through to 2027, per a club statement. Reale won three consecutive conference Defensive Player of the Year awards, and was named the Honda Sport Award for best collegiate women's soccer player in her sophomore season.

Reale represented the United States at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup with two appearances and being most recently called up for the USWNT Futures camp, announced less than a week from her signing.

• McCall Zerboni departs Gotham

January 2, 2025
Status: Confirmed

Midfielder Mccall Zerboni left Gotham in pursuit of "other opportunities" per club statement.

Zerboni became the first player to reach 10,000 career minutes in the NWSL, along with being the oldest player to receive their first cap for the USWNT, a couple of months shy of turning 31.

• Gotham acquire goalkeeper Shelby Hogan from Portland Thorns

December 31, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Gotham acquired goalkeeper Shelby Hogan and $40,000 in allocation money from Portland Thorns in exchange for $10,000 in intra-league transfer funds and a 2025 international roster spot, per club statement.

Hogan spent five seasons with the Thorns, and concluded the 2024 season with 70 saves and nine clean sheets (second-best in the league).

• Forward Jéssica Silva signs short-term extension

December 31, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Portuguese international Jéssica Silva signed an extension with the Bats that will have her dawning the Gotham FC crest through till June 30, 2025, per club statement.

• Brazil international Gabi Portilho signs with Gotham

December 30, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Brazilian forward Gabi Portilho signed a deal with Gotham through to 2026 including an option for 2027, per club statement. The former Corinthians player will be taking up an international player spot for the upcoming 2025 season.

Portilho boasts some impressive accolades prior to her arrival in the NWSL. The 2024 Ballon d’Or Féminin nominee was named in the The Best FIFA Women’s 11 along with securing a total of 11 titles during her past five seasons in São Paolo including five consecutive Campeonato Brasileiro Femenino A1 titles.

Portilho's resume is just as impressive while playing in yellow. She won an Olympic silver medal over the summer with Orlando Pride forward Marta, and was a part of the 2022 Copa América Feminina winning squad.

• Yazmeen Ryan to Houston Dash in record-breaking trade

December 27, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Two-time NWSL champion Yazmeen Ryan was traded to the Houston Dash in exchange for a league-record $400,000 in allocation money, along with a 2025 international spot, per club statement. The Bats also agreed to transfer $80,000 in intra-league transfer funds.

After starting in 22 matches for the Goths in 2024, Ryan was the one who initiated the move. According to the Athletic, Ryan and her camp had requested a trade to leave the Bats and the organization "worked tirelessly to honor her request." She will now join former Gotham teammate Delanie Sheehan, who signed with the club in early December.

Yazmeen Ryan is ultracompetitive, dangerous — and all sunshine and smiles

The 25-year-old Gotham FC midfielder says she’s looking to find her spark. But is she already catching fire?

Hudson River BlueJenna Tonelli

• Gotham sign 19-year-old Ghanaian international Stella Nyamekye

December 24, 2024
Status: Confirmed

The Goths secured the transfer of midfielder Stella Nyamekye from Ghana Women’s Premier League club Dreamz Ladies FC, with a three-year contract including a mutual option for 2028, per club statement.

She captained the Ghana U-20 women's national team last year at the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup and made her senior national team debut a year prior.

• University of Pittsburgh's Sarah Schupansky signs with Gotham

December 23, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Forward Sarah Schupansky signed a deal through to 2026 with Gotham, along with an option for 2027, per club statement.

Schupansky leaves the University of Pittsburgh's women's soccer program after leading the NCAA in assists this past season, and becoming the first player in program history to be named All-ACC First Team the season prior. The Pittsburgh native concluded her collegiate career with 75 goal contributions in 82 matches played.

• Lynn Williams and goalkeeper Cassie Miller traded to Seattle Reign

December 20, 2024
Status: Confirmed

USWNT member Lynn Williams and goalkeeper Cassie Miller were sent to Seattle Reign for midfielder Jaelin Howell, in addition to allocation money and an international roster spot, per club statement.

While the Bats pick up a battle-tested midfielder in Howell, they lose a pivotal component to their success from the past two seasons. Williams leaves the Bats with fifteen goal contributions in 28 matches started and 38 appearances. She broke the NWSL all-time record for goals scored across all competitions in May of last year, in addition to scoring the opening goal in the 2023 NWSL title-clenching match.

• Mandy Freeman stays!

December 19, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Gotham and Mandy Freeman agreed to a two-year contract extension, per club statement. The agreement makes Freeman the longest-tenured player in club history with her ninth season on the horizon in 2025. She was drafted by the Bats in the 2017 NWSL draft with the 10th overall pick.

“Thank you to the fans and the club for supporting the team this past season...I’m looking forward to being a part of the continued growth of Gotham. Go bats!” Freeman said per club statement.

• Defender Sam Hiatt to Portland Thorns FC

December 6, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Sam Hiatt chose to part ways with Gotham FC and try her luck in free agency, according to the club. On same day of her decision, Hiatt agreed to a two-year contract with Portland Thorns, plus an option for 2027 per club statement. The decision to depart came after only one season with the Bats.

• Midfielder Maitane Lopéz to Chicago Red Stars

December 4, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Maitane Lopéz, like Sheehan, decided to become a free agent and depart the club. Having been apart of the 2023 NWSL championship squad, the Spanish international expressed much gratitude for her past two seasons with Gotham.

"Playing for Gotham FC over the last two years has been an unforgettable journey, winning a Championship in my first year at the NWSL was amazing! I’m so grateful for the experiences and the great moments I had here. To my teammates, the staff, and the fans, thank you for your support and for making me feel at home every step of the way," Lopéz said per club statement.

A day later, the Chicago Red Stars and Lopéz agreed to a two-year contract, which will conclude at the end of the 2026 season.

• Midfielder Delanie Sheehan to Houston Dash

December 4, 2024
Status: Confirmed

Gotham's first move in the off-season came with a bang. Midfielder Delanie Sheehan, who led the club in minutes played across all competitions last season, left Gotham for Houston Dash.

Immediately after Gotham FC released Sheehan, Houston Dash signed the former Bruin to a contract through 2026 with a mutual option for the 2027 season. The signing proved to be the first free agency contract inked this offseason in the league.

Sheehan was drafted by the club in 2021 and won the NWSL championship with Gotham in 2023. Sheehan represented the Bats in 64 regular season appearances, qualifying for the NWSL Playoffs three of the four seasons she spent with the club.