Inside the WNBA's High Stakes Negotiations with Madame President Nneka Ogwumike

Summary

Podcast Summary: Welcome to the Party – "Inside the WNBA’s High Stakes Negotiations with Madame President Nneka Ogwumike"

Date: December 16, 2025
Host(s): Julie Foudy, Abby Wambach, Billie Jean King (regular)
Guest: Nneka Ogwumike (WNBA superstar, president of the WNBPA)

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Episode Overview

This episode goes behind the scenes of the WNBA’s intense collective bargaining agreement (CBA) negotiations with Nneka Ogwumike, star player and president of the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA). The conversation covers the high stakes and emotions around the CBA talks, the emergence of the groundbreaking “Project B” global women’s basketball league, and the evolving landscape of equity in women’s sports. The hosts also continue their signature blend of candid camaraderie, sports news, and pop culture fun.

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Key Topics & Insights

1. State of the WNBA CBA Negotiations

Starts at 31:21

• Background: The current CBA extension expires on Jan 9, 2026. There are now two new expansion teams (Portland and Toronto), and continued delays in the draft because of negotiations (27:12).
• Vibe Check:
  • Nneka rates the mood of negotiations as “six and a half” out of ten, noting:

    “This is my third time around doing it, and I can recognize patterns and differences. The six and a half isn't that we’re going to get it done in ‘three and a half vibes,’ it's that we're in new territory…[but] we’re more than halfway confident.” — Nneka Ogwumike (36:02)

• Key Challenges:
  • Navigating broken trust between league and players.
  • Representing all players, from stars to the last person on the bench.
  • Moving beyond just salary — covers vital logistics like moving costs, support for rentals, and relocation (43:24).
• Revenue Sharing:
  • Nneka compares the WNBA’s fixed percentage (currently just under 10%) to the NBA’s model, where players get around 50% of league revenue.

    “We’re looking to grow with the business… [NBA players] get a percentage based on how much the NBA makes. For us, our percentage doesn’t grow — it’s fixed.” — Nneka Ogwumike (44:28)

  • The players want a more equitable, scalable model tied to league growth.
• Work Stoppage Possible?
  • The risk is real if no deal is reached by the January deadline.

    "The goal is to get a good deal done with the reality that there could be work stoppage, but it would be a first time that we would see this in the WNBA.” — Nneka Ogwumike (47:13)

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2. Leadership, Trust, & Player Solidarity

Core conversation from 38:13–44:09

• Negotiations are complicated by emotional fallout and long-standing distrust of the league.
• Nneka underscores the unique challenge of keeping a diverse group of players united through change and stress:

  “Maybe the trust in the league won’t ever be 100%, but if you can trust in this process, that can rebuild something... What’s most important is trusting in the power of the collective.” — Nneka Ogwumike (41:51)

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3. Inside the Negotiation Process

49:01

• Negotiations are fast-paced and intense, with meetings mostly on Zoom multiple times per week and often called at short notice (“Is everyone available to hop on a call?”).
• The players have strong internal leadership and quick mobilization capacity.

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4. Project B: The New Global Women’s Basketball League

Begins at 27:52, discussed in depth at 56:08

• What is Project B?
  • Newly launched women’s league set to operate outside WNBA’s season; will run in Europe, Asia, and possibly Latin America starting November 2026.
  • Players get both high salaries (reports of $2M+) and equity!
  • Nneka was the first public signee (Nov 5, 2025). Other stars (Alyssa Thomas, Jonquel Jones, Jewel Lloyd, etc.) have joined since.
  • Does NOT overlap with WNBA, but does overlap with rival leagues Unrivaled (Nafisa Collier, Breanna Stewart) and Athletes Unlimited.
• Why Nneka Joined:

  “I loved my time overseas…and this is a perfect opportunity to rekindle that love of the global game. It’s also providing an opportunity to compete at the highest level…and I love the equity component.” — Nneka Ogwumike (56:08)

  • Her signing was deliberate, but she says her message is broader:

    “Continuing to be a part of that level of innovation around how players are valued is incredibly important. And that’s a message to anybody.” — Nneka Ogwumike (57:23)

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5. Personal Side of Nneka Ogwumike

Laboratory off-seasons, reading, family, learning Igbo

• “Off-season is my laboratory time — I fine-tune the details, experiment in the weight room, do more swimming and Pilates, and cook a lot more.” — Nneka Ogwumike (31:34)
• Learning more about her Nigerian heritage and teaching herself Igbo.

  “I’m teaching myself the language as well. I find more time being able to do that in off season too, which I love.” — Nneka Ogwumike (35:18)

• Has reportedly started every single WNBA game in her 13-year career — “I just try to make myself available to play, that’s all.” (58:17)

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Other Highlights

Women’s Sports Headlines Roundup (Winter Olympics, NCAA Volleyball, NWSL Drama)

• Celebrating Lindsey Vonn’s comeback (83rd World Cup win at 41), Team USA ice hockey sweep over Canada, and wild upsets in NCAA women's volleyball (05:22–11:14).
• NWSL introduces new high-impact player rule: allows select stars to get paid above the cap, inspired by Trinity Rodman’s contract drama (11:14–14:12).

  “If NWSL can interfere with the free agency rights of Trinity Rodman, they can do it to anyone. And we won’t stand by that.” — Megan Burke, NWSLPA (12:49)

Draft Party: Top Holiday Movies

15:28–18:31

• The hosts do a fun “holiday movie draft.” Favorites include The Sound of Music (Julie), Elf (Abby), and The Holiday (team favorite).

Memorable Quotes

• “You have to go through it to get to it.” — Nneka on CBA negotiations (40:39)
• “The process almost foreshadows how things can work in the future… I want badly for this league and this union to be better after these CBA negotiations.” — Nneka (40:44)
• “I love her solid confidence, but, like, not arrogant... I want to be friends with Nneka. Can we be friends?” — Abby (64:24)

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Notable Moments & Timestamps

| MM:SS | Segment | |---------|----------------------------------------------| | 31:21 | Nneka joins: inside her off-season & mindset | | 36:02 | Vibe check: CBA negotiations rated 6.5/10 | | 38:13 | Challenge of emotional trust in negotiations | | 44:28 | Revenue sharing breakdown | | 47:13 | Work stoppage risk discussed | | 49:01 | Inside the negotiation logistics | | 56:08 | Why Nneka joined Project B | | 57:23 | Equity in Project B & statement to WNBA |

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Tone & Takeaways

The tone was supportive, honest, and candid—with an undercurrent of optimism and high stakes. Nneka Ogwumike is painted as a calm, collaborative leader guiding her peers through historic change. The hosts openly admire her blend of humility and strength, and the show reinforces the power and impact of athletes organizing for their own futures.

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For Listeners New to the Episode

• You’ll hear what’s at risk (and what’s possible) for the WNBA’s next chapter—direct from the “Madame President” herself.
• Get a beginner-friendly breakdown of CBA concepts, revenue sharing, and why Project B matters.
• Understand the human side of business: solidarity, trust, balancing urgent deadlines with doing it right.
• Stay connected to the vibrant world of women’s sports and why its future just keeps getting brighter.

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End of Summary

Transcript

[Nneka Ogwumike]

The goal is to get a good deal done with the reality that there could be work stoppage, but it would be a first time that we would see this in the wnba.

[Julie Foudy]

Where do you guys all meet? Do you meet online? Do you meet in person? Like, I'm starting to go into my, like, panic mode because it's getting to January 9th. I'm like, are you meeting tomorrow?

[Abby Wambach]

We will be strong.

[Julie Foudy]

NECA 2028.

[Abby Wambach]

I freaking love that woman. Can we be friends? NECA Attention. The party is about to commence.

[Julie Foudy]

Welcome to the party. What's up, party people? I'm Julie Foudy.

[Abby Wambach]

And I am Abby Wambach. Abs was. I'm just feeling a little excited. We're getting close to the holidays. I love the last couple weeks of December because there's less work, there's more family, there's more coziness. It's getting a little colder here in Southern California, so it feels cozy.

[Julie Foudy]

I know. I had to put my sweatshirt on. I was like, I'm freezing. I love that. I'm freezing.

[Abby Wambach]

So good.

[Julie Foudy]

So hot. I know. The kids are home. Everyone's home.

[Abby Wambach]

Jules, how was your weekend?

[Julie Foudy]

It was good. Izzy's home. So she. She got home, and she was like, why are there no decorations up? It's like, I've been busy, okay.

[Abby Wambach]

Dropping the ball.

[Julie Foudy]

So we. We spent our weekend doing some decorations, which was really fun, and putting lights up, because I don't. I won't hire that out. I refuse to.

[Abby Wambach]

Are you kidding me?

[Julie Foudy]

No, I. I.

[Abby Wambach]

Are you, like, on a ladder, like, stapling the lights up into your house?

[Julie Foudy]

I hang them on my little hooks and. Or my. My nails. And this is the thing.

[Abby Wambach]

I.

[Julie Foudy]

Well, and I. I only got through part of it because I ran out of time yesterday, but I get them up. You know, you test the lights beforehand because they're all kind of connected.

[Abby Wambach]

Sure.

[Julie Foudy]

But, like, one and they. And they were fine. And then I get them up, and I turn them on, and the whole strand, like, half the strand is off. I was like. So then I spent another hour trying to, like, put new fuses in, find which one. You're, like, flicking everyone. How many people have done this? But I refuse, Abby, to get the professionals because it drives me nuts because they're so perfect. Mine are all janky and crooked, and I love that.

[Abby Wambach]

I like that about you.

[Julie Foudy]

Perfect.

[Abby Wambach]

I like that about you.

[Julie Foudy]

Izzy and Declan are like, why don't we just hire people for this? I was like, we are not. You wash your own car. You put up your own lights. You hire people, don't you?

[Abby Wambach]

Oh my God. You make them wash their own car too? I love this. You're like, so hardcore.

[Julie Foudy]

Uhhuh. Wait, do you hire people to put up your lights?

[Abby Wambach]

Of course we do. Are you kidding me? I value my time. I value my time. And also I will say this. We hire people to do the outside, and Glennon does the inside. She is the elfiest elf that ever elf and came home with two point set as yesterday. Just like, oh, and. And it is.

[Julie Foudy]

And she starts in like, when?

[Abby Wambach]

October, the day after Thanksgiving. But here's the thing. My family is constantly like, one year. This is true. This is a true story. During COVID our family was feeling pretty down. And so we were like, you know what? It was in the middle of June. We were like, we're going to have Christmas in the middle of June. So we brought out all of our decorations, we decorated the whole house. We did the whole thing. We got the kids a coup of presents each. We had like, we went through the exact. Because they were like, we need some. Some. We need to. We need something.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Something.

[Abby Wambach]

It was amazing.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, my gosh, I've never heard that story. That's so good.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, it was fun.

[Julie Foudy]

That's so good. I might just try that in the middle of June when I'm thinking the same thing.

[Abby Wambach]

Well, ever since then, I have to like, I have to be like, no, like, we cannot do that. We want to make sure that the Christmas time is special.

[Julie Foudy]

Right, Right.

[Abby Wambach]

They're like, I think that I'm. They think that I'm the scrooge or something.

[Julie Foudy]

I'm very excited because we have Neca Iguamike on the pod, WNBA star, president of the players association and their union. And obviously a lot to get to with CBA and this new global league called Project B. But first, let's get this party started with the highlights and headlights. You'll want to celebrate this week in women's sports. Our party starter is brought to you by Ally the bank that is your Ally. First up over the weekend, Abs. This was huge.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

What is it, Lindsay?

[Julie Foudy]

Let's talk Winter Olympics for a little bit, shall we? Lindsey Vaughn, who, by the way, is 41 years old, she retired in 2019. So she had been retired about five years when in 2024 she said, guess what? I'm going to come back and try and compete in the Milano Cortina Olympic Games in 2026. So. And crazy enough, Cortina is the venue where Vaughn has recorded the most World cup victories. Actually 12 total.

[Abby Wambach]

Nice.

[Julie Foudy]

And it's commonly known as Vaughn's living room fun fact.

[Abby Wambach]

That's hilarious.

[Julie Foudy]

I know. And she's racing with titanium implants in her right knee, but that doesn't bother her because she's in her living room. Living room. And on Friday, she won the World cup downhill for her 83rd World cup win. And it was her first World cup win since returning from that retirement. How cool is that?

[Abby Wambach]

Unbelievable.

[Julie Foudy]

And she won it in almost 1 second, 0.98 seconds, which is an enormous margin in downhill skiing.

[Abby Wambach]

Did you watch her on the. Did you watch her on the podium just break down? And all of us, all of us ex athletes felt like all of that emotion. So, like so, so real. So real.

[Julie Foudy]

Right? And after being retired for five years at 41 and doing this. Okay, then Saturday in the downhill, the next day she got the silver, which is amazing as well. A lot of people were wondering, could she go back for back and 2 for 2? And it looked like she actually might. And then the repeat. How dare you. The repeat was spoiled by Germany's rising star, Emma Eicher, who ultimately took. Took the gold in that one. But Lindsay got silver. And so. Let's go, Lindsey Vaughn. We are cheering you on. You got this.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay? And then, Jules, we want to. We want to turn to our women's ice hockey, the rivalry series. I. I feel kind of surprised by this, but Team USA beat Canada 4 to 1 over the weekend for a clean four game sweep of women's ice hockey rivalry series. Jules. The Americans outscored Canada, Canada 24 to 7 across the four games. With Hillary Knight and Abby Murphy leading all the scoring with five goals a piece. And after losing the 2022 Olympic final to Canada, U.S. looked determined to get that gold back. I mean, jewels, can you believe that? It's a big deal that they have. They've won by such big margins. Do you think? Yeah, I don't know. I feel nervous. It makes me feel nervous.

[Julie Foudy]

Well, the word I was reading, and we're gonna talk to Kendall Coyne. Leading into this Olympics, the Captain of the U.S. women's Ice Hockey team. So we're gonna get the scuttle on this, but that the first two games, it was a four game series. As you just said, the US Swept first two games wasn't Canada's A team, but the last two games was supposed to be their A team and they still crushed. So I, I'm hopeful. And as we know, like Canada has given heartbreak after heartbreak. The Canadian ice hockey team has won five Olympic Gold medals of the seven out there that, that, that they've had in women's ice hockey, the US Won the other two. So this is a huge rivalry and hopefully that means gold for the gals.

[Abby Wambach]

For the US Gals. Let's go. We'll be watching that in, in a couple months. Really can't wait. On to the ncaa, NCAA Women's Volleyball Final Four is set finally. And this you guys, Glennon and I watched this weekend, we watched Nebraska played Texas A M and Texas A and M took the first set. And so Nebraska was like they were down.

[Julie Foudy]

Which never happens by the way. Nebraska lost one set in all of Big Ten play.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, my producer Asia texted me and she said Nebraska's down. And so when we turned it on, they were down 2 to 1. And so then because Glennon knows that we had the Nebraska coach on and so we were rooting for Nebraska and so Texas A and M was just like they were crushing, they were killing. And then in the late in the fourth, in the fourth set, Nebraska comes back and then ties it. Ties the game two to two. And so then we go on and then. And by the way Pete, folks, this is at a sold out arena in Nebraska. At Nebraska's home, Texas shocks the volleyball world and beats the number one overall seed, Nebraska ending the cornhole.

[Julie Foudy]

Texas A and M to be clear, because the Texas.

[Abby Wambach]

Oh, sorry, yeah, yeah. Texas A and M ending the Cornhuskers 33 and O season by beating them in Lincoln with a 3 to 2 win. The wind sends the Aggies to the final Four and, and this is the first time in program history they've made it to the final Four. And then in the other side of the of the tournament, Texas, also a number one seed, gets toppled just hours after the Aggies pulled off the upset of the year. This is like it's just incredible how the parody of women's volleyball that's happening and the popularity watching these games and how fun many people are at these women volleyball games. I'm just like so excited. So the number one team, Texas was ousted on its home court as four as the four time NCAA champion Texas fell to Wisconsin three to one right.

[Julie Foudy]

Now even take five sets.

[Abby Wambach]

They got them four. Yeah, exactly. The national semifinals are Thursday in Kansas City. Texas A and M will meet number one seed pit. That's going to be at 6:30pm Eastern on ESPN. Neither team has won a national championship, though Pitt would be making its fifth consecutive appearance in the final four. And in the second semifinal, the number one seed Kentucky faces number three seed Wisconsin. And that'll be at 9:00pm Eastern on ESPN. I'm, I'm gonna, I. Women's volleyball. You have my heart like, let' go, let's go. I'm going to watch these games.

[Julie Foudy]

I, I really wish we could, we could go watch that in Kansas City. It's just such a hard time of the year for, for everyone. But that would be so fun. Okay. Also, we wanted to give you a quick update on the latest with the Trinity Rodman NWSL issues going on. Big news happened on Thursday of last week with the NWSL board convening to vote in actually this new high impact player rule. And this rule essentially allows for teams to pay selected stars and the criteria is still to be determined. But they, they talk about these star players so that they can pay them above the salary cap, I. E. Trinity Ramen. So let me just quickly rewind. In early December, the Spirit made an offer. The Washington Spirit made an offer to Trinity Rodman averaging over 1 million doll million annually with higher pay. Kind of backloaded into the deal with this four year deal. It would have made her the highest paid player in NWSL history. Obviously they're trying to keep her the Washington Spirit here in the United States. Well, Commissioner Jessica Berman rejected it on December 4. She vetoed it, citing it violated the salary cap and threatened league parody. The NWSL pa The players association filed a grievance on Rodman's behalf after that asserting that that vetoed contract does not violate any standing league rul. And Megan Burke, the executive director said if NWSL can interfere with the free agency rights of Trinity Rodman, they can do it to anyone. And we won't stand by that. The league has until December 17th to actually respond to that grievance. But in the meantime, the NWSL board convened on that Thursday, December 11th to vote in that new high impact player rule. So that would allow Washington Spirit to pay more to Trinity Rodman. But we are now in a holding pattern as the NWSL PA and the players are reviewing that new hip rule. Meanwhile, there is no response to the grievance filed originally by the nwslpa.

[Abby Wambach]

Quick, I got a quick question. How did they determine select star players above the salary cap? How do they determine that?

[Julie Foudy]

Current national team caps, not old ones. So recent national team caps, not just US national team, of course finalists on the Ballon d' or list, which is the top player female FIFA player of the year award list as well. So they fall into those type of categories and commercially as well. And, and that is still A little vague, but that is what people are reporting out right now.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Cool.

[Julie Foudy]

But of course, they need the players to give their feedback on that before they can move forward with that so that we will obviously be talking about more. We'll try and get Megan Burke, executive director of the players association on the podcast soon as well. As soon as any of the. Of that break.

[Abby Wambach]

I want that. I want her on this week when that breaks. Let's try to get her on Jewels for sure.

[Julie Foudy]

That is your party starter. And thanks to Ally for sponsoring the segment. As we know, Ally is more than a bank. And their do it right approach helps customers unlock their economic potential and guides their efforts as a leading sponsor in women's sports. Just like us, Ally believes that when women in sports win, we all have a reason to party. Ally Bank Member, FDIC.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay, Jules, it is time for something brand new on welcome to the party. Welcome to the draft party presented by Shipt. Now, since this is our first ever draft party, here's the idea. Each episode, okay, we will take a theme, break it into categories, and then draft our top picks. Just like a fantasy draft, but for the chaos and joys of basically everyday life. And we'll take. We'll each take turns choosing our starting lineups of favorites, hot takes, memorable moments, and whatever else fits. And because we're in the middle of the holiday season, we're kicking things off with a holiday draft. Okay. So we're gonna do movie specific holiday draft.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Okay.

[Abby Wambach]

And we're gonna just. We're gonna get into it and I just want to say a huge thanks to our friends and shipped from groceries to decor gifts and everything in between. Shipped saves you time with same day delivery for your favorite local and national stores like Albertsons Michaels, Tarjay or Target and petsmart. Basically holiday magic delivered. Now, Jules, we are going to. You kind of understand the rules. We're going to do this draft party and we're going to kick off round one. We're each building our top three holiday movies.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, three.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay. Okay. Yeah. Top three holiday movies, whatever deserves a spot on your team. Can you give me your first draft into your fantasy holiday movie draft?

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah, easy.

[Abby Wambach]

What is it?

[Julie Foudy]

And the Sound of Music. The sound of alive with the sound of music La da da da.

[Abby Wambach]

Hey, Jules. Yes?

[Julie Foudy]

I don't even know if it's a holiday movie, but I don't care because that's what I watched during the holidays. And I know every song. So good. I love Julie Handruns.

[Abby Wambach]

That's so sweet. Do you watch Christmas Movies. Do you watch movies? Because this is not usually a top pick candidate for people for a first round draft pick.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah, we watch the normal ones, which will be on my list. But I, I love this. And, and they have obviously their Christmas festivities and Sound of Music. It's so good. How can you not. How do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you catch a car?

[Abby Wambach]

Okay, we gotta keep going. My first, My first fantasy pick is of course, and I think a lot of people will agree. Elf. Like, come on.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, that's my second one. That's my second. Yes, yes.

[Abby Wambach]

Elf is the way to go. Let's go. Our family, the amount of quotes that we call back during the year to that movie is the best.

[Julie Foudy]

Mm, agreed.

[Abby Wambach]

Do you want to go with your second?

[Julie Foudy]

Agreed that if mine was elf too. What's your second?

[Abby Wambach]

Oh, elf. Okay. Okay. My second will be.

[Julie Foudy]

I love myself some Will Ferrell actually.

[Abby Wambach]

Have you ever seen it?

[Julie Foudy]

Yes, I forgot about that one. That would have been in my top one.

[Abby Wambach]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, that's so good. That's my favorite. That's my favorite. It's so cozy. It's so cute. Okay, I'm blanking on the name of this.

[Abby Wambach]

Oh, the holiday. Yes, the holiday. Yeah, yeah. Cameron Diaz, Kate was Wednesday.

[Julie Foudy]

That was a good. I was just watching that the other day. I was like, oh, this is so good. Okay, so that's, that's, that was gonna be a mine.

[Abby Wambach]

That's gonna be mine. But I'm, I'm gonna, I'm gonna now because you've chosen it. I'm going to go Four Christmases with Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon. Have you ever seen this one?

[Julie Foudy]

I haven't seen that in years, but I love those two.

[Abby Wambach]

It's so good. Yeah, it's so good. Okay, that's the wrap up for our very first draft party, folks. Presented by Shipt. And don't forget, this is just the beginning. We'll be drafting all sorts of things over the next few episodes. So for the best moments of the year, to the habits we're taking into 2026. I have a lot to talk about. The habits. And a huge thank you to Ship for helping us kick off this new series in the middle of the busiest time of the year. Save even more during the holidays with Ship's exclusive savings event. Season of savings happening now until December 28th. Shop tons of deals, including member exclusive savings all season long. Terms apply. Download the app or order [e-mail] that's S-H-IPT.com this episode of welcome to the Party is brought to you by Ally Financial. We love that Ally is more than just a bank. They've got this do it right approach that shows up everywhere.

[Julie Foudy]

That's right, because Ally actually helps customers unlock their economic potential, all while powering the growth of athletes, fandom and leagues across women's sports. And as we know, it's been anchored by a historic commitment to increasing visibility by, get this. Spending equally on men's and women's sports media. Ally truly does it right. And they've had official partnerships across the nwsl, wnba, usga, unrivaled and. Drumroll, please. Beyond that. Now that includes this podcast too. So welcome to the party.

[Abby Wambach]

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[Julie Foudy]

And here's what we truly love. The same way as Abby was talking about that Ally puts customers first in banking, they put women first in sports, and they are literally making history with equal spending on men's and women's sports media. And that's why they're the perfect partner for welcome to the Party. Visibility, equity, empowerment, it all connects party people.

[Abby Wambach]

Whether you're here for the show or looking for a bank that truly has your back, Ally's got you covered. Ally the bank. That's your Ally. Ally bank member fdic. Jules. All right, team, everybody gotta gather in because I still, I still say team everywhere I go. I actually say to my family, Glennon's like, are we, are we serious here? I'm like, yes, bring it in. Come on.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Okay.

[Abby Wambach]

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[Julie Foudy]

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[Abby Wambach]

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[Julie Foudy]

Abby, as we know, the holidays can be chaotic throughout. I just got my decorations up and it's like mid mid December. Izzy always wants him up by like October. I'm like, settle down Izzy. Anyways, how many times have you agreed to host the family? Which we do. And then you look around and you're like wait a second, wait, my nephew and niece are coming too. We don't have enough beds. We got to figure out beds. And so you then you have to order, you know, more things. Well, Wayfair is your place to get all of that. Yes, they have furniture but you can definitely. So you can get that fold up cot from them as well. Or they have beddings and linens to decor from every single room. I just actually got a whole outdoor furniture set from them which is amazing. Yeah. Because we I love to push people outside because I love being outside and it's, and then it doesn't mess up the house. So I was like if I make it really nice outside where they can sit then we push them outside more and we can even eat outside. So but what I find amazing is that you can get so many things in one place at Wayfair and the stuff shows up fast, the delivery is easy and their customer service is actually amazing. Their follow up that they tell you where you when it's coming, where, where you could track it. All those things I was so impressed it with. So my house is holiday ready and now so am I. I don't know about you but that makes me feel good. So get last minute hosting essentials, gifts for all your loved ones and decor to celebrate the holidays. For way less head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. That's Wayfair. W-A Y-F-A-I-R.com Wayfair Every style, every home, every party. I can't wait till they add that into their logo. So thrilled that we get NECA on the pod, because in NECA we trust with all things.

[Abby Wambach]

It's true.

[Julie Foudy]

We have been trying to get Nika on the pod full disclosure for a while to discuss all the CBA stuff. And we're extra thrilled because we can also talk about the new venture, Project B, this new global league. And for those of you listeners and party people who are not aware of any or all of this, then fear not, I'm gonna do a, a little table setting before we get NECA on, on both fronts so quickly. The collective bargaining agreement, which we will refer to as the CBA, those negotiations are ongoing with the WNBPA, that's the players association, the WNBA players association, and of course the league, the WNBA. The current CBA extension is set to expire on January 9th of 2026. And so negotiations are ongoing, of course, for this new longer term deal and this second extension, by the way. And that's important because you may recall the original CBA deadline we've talked about was Halloween, right? In 2025. Right. That was extended 30 days with the first extension to December 1st. Now the second extension is another 40 days. It will expire on January 9th into the new year. But the clock is ticking and time is running out. For example, that expansion draft has already been delayed for the incoming two expansion teams, Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo. So they have things on the clock they need to get done before the season happens that are getting delayed, which becomes a problem, Jules, for every extension.

[Abby Wambach]

And I want to ask this to neca, but for all of these extensions, are they, they're, they're still in constant communication with the players and they're still trying to work it out. And, and are, is there more information around? Like, are we further along on the process?

[Julie Foudy]

We're gonna find out. I can't wait to get her on.

[Abby Wambach]

We're close. I know.

[Julie Foudy]

And the other thing happening in NECA's world is this new global league called.

[Abby Wambach]

Project B. Oh, I'm so interested in this. This is so cool.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah, I am too. And NECA signed with them on November 5th. She became the first player to publicly sign with this new league. And it's set to begin in November 2026. So next year, end of next year, runs through April 2027. So a lot of people were wondering if this would conflict with the wnba. No, it doesn't. It's primarily going to be in Europe and Asia. It will not cross over with WNBA because it's in their off season. It will cross over with Unrivaled, which is Nafisa Collier's and Brianna Stewart's new venture, and with Athletes Unlimited, which also runs in February as well. So Project Be quickly is the plan is they're going to host seven two week tournaments that happen in cities in Europe and Asia and even possibly Latin America. So seven two week tournaments you're traveling to. They will offer players an undisclosed salary plus an equity stake in the league, which is huge. And the reported compensation, Abby, includes annual salaries exceeding $2 million.

[Abby Wambach]

Whoa.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah. Some other players who have committed to Project B since NECA signed on November 5th include Alyssa Thomas, huge name candidate for MVP with WNBA last year. Jonquill Jones, Jewel Lloyd, Sophie Cunningham and Kelsey Mitchell. So some huge names.

[Abby Wambach]

Yep.

[Julie Foudy]

Can't wait to get to all of that. So without further ado, let's get to the parties. Part of our party. As we know, Neca Guamike is not just an all time great on the court. She's one of the most influential voices in women's basketball right now. She's a WNBA MVP, WNBA champion, a 10 time All Star and one of the most consistent players the WNBA has ever seen. She is dominated by for 13 seasons, y', all, and started every single game. I need to check with her to make sure that is actually true because that blows my mind. Um, and this conversation is happening at a defining moment in league history. NECA also just happens to be the president of the WNBA Players association. And as we know, she's helping guide the league through one of the most important times in its history. As we said off the top, the current CBA is set to expire on January 9, 2026. So big, big conversations happening right now that we will get into. And then there's Project B. NECA was the first player announced as part of Project B, the new global league offering something women athletes rarely see. Not just compensation, but equity. A move that opens the door to bigger conversations about opportunity, ownership, and what the future of women's sports could look like. So today we're talking to NECA the superstar, NECA the union president, NECA the leader navigating change, and of course, NECA the Stanford Cardinal. So from one card to another, I'm especially fired up for this one. NECA goomike. Welcome to the parte.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Welcome.

[Abby Wambach]

Thanks for coming on.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

That's as party as I'm going to get.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, I hear you.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

The conversation will be more party. So I'm excited.

[Julie Foudy]

How are you? How are you holding up?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I'm well, you know, I'm. I feel really good. You know, off season is kind of like my laboratory time, so I fine tune the details, and I have fun doing a lot of the things you don't get to do in season. You know, every. Every part of the year calls for a different type of focus. So I've been full off season mode right now.

[Julie Foudy]

Wait, tell me what that. Give some examples. So of that laboratory. What it looks like. Is that. How is that the right way to say it?

[Abby Wambach]

Laboratory.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

That's how Dexter Laboratory.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah. Oh, that's right. I love that show.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Yes. Great show. So, I mean, for me, it's really kind of like doing a lot of stuff in the strength room, in the weight room, conditioning. I have the pleasure of being, I guess, like having a SNC coach and Susan King and another Stanford gal. So every year it's fun because that's strength and conditioning.

[Julie Foudy]

Snc. Yes.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Yeah. Sorry, my bad. Yeah, Strength and conditioning. But every year is fun because as you get older, you kind of want to switch things up and, you know, you want to change your daily vitamins. So I've been on the track, which is fun. I've been doing more swimming. I do cool workouts, but I'm actually swimming more now, which I enjoy.

[Abby Wambach]

That's amazing.

[Julie Foudy]

It's easier on your. On your joints.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Oh, my gosh.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

And I think it's also kind of a nice way to figure out what you like doing. So when you're done playing, you're like, oh, I can keep doing this, you know, so, you know, I'm just testing things out a little bit. I do a lot. I'm like. I'm, like, into Pilates. Heavy, heavy, heavy. So I do, like, a lot of Pilates, too.

[Julie Foudy]

Pilates are hard.

[Abby Wambach]

So hard for me. Ouch.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I can hear it.

[Julie Foudy]

I, like, rub my stomach when I.

[Abby Wambach]

Go, oh, my gosh.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It's. It hurts so good.

[Abby Wambach]

Oh.

[Julie Foudy]

And it's like the littlest of movements, and you're like, oh, my gosh. Why does this hurt so much?

[Abby Wambach]

It's so hard.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It is.

[Abby Wambach]

Maybe you might feel differently in your retirement, but you guys went to Stanford. I think Stanford people are different.

[Julie Foudy]

We are different.

[Abby Wambach]

Like, when I finished playing sports, I was like, I am done suffering. And you guys are like, actually, I'm going to just go do ouchies. The most suffering thing called Pilates.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Amazing.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It's. It's. It's just a thing. I guess maybe it is the Stanford.

[Abby Wambach]

In Me, when I was an athlete, I always worked on my weaknesses the most during the off season, and just. You just nailed, like, hammered the strengths during season. And it's true that you need to have, like, this. This freedom to do other things so that when you get back into season, you can lock in what other than, like, sport. Like, what are. What's something else that you participate in that you don't get to do during the season, during the off season, like, what's, like, your go to thing?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I love this question. So something that I do normally do is cook, but I cook way more in the off season. I'm reading more. I'm trying to read at least, like, one or two books a month, which to some might be like, you know, that that's nothing. But for me, I think it's major. Three, but it is, yeah, huge.

[Abby Wambach]

I fall asleep when I read. So if I can get through a book in three months, I'm like, good job, Abby. Right?

[Julie Foudy]

Same. Same.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Doing that. And I'm also trying to. So my parents, a lot of people know, are Nigerian and we're Igbo, so I'm teaching myself the language as well. So I find more time being able to do that in off season two, which I love.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, teach us a word.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I mean, you can say hello, which means can do.

[Julie Foudy]

You can just say, how do I do that?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Hello.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, that's awesome. Okay, we want to do a vibe check. I have so many. I have so many CBA questions that we'll get to, but first one is, like, vibe check. In terms of. On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being not so great, 10 being vibe is great. How we feeling at this moment with the CBA negotiations?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I mean, I think that this is like NECA answering. As someone who has been through two previous negotiations, not necessarily. Perhaps like a younger player. So for me, I would say vibe check. I would give it like a. Give it like a six and a half.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay. Okay.

[Julie Foudy]

Okay. I was like, oh, God, I thought.

[Abby Wambach]

It was going to be lower. I mean, I can.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I'll take a six. Like, the elaboration of it would probably make a little bit more sense. Only because I'm. I. This is my third time around doing it, and I. I can. I can kind of recognize patterns, and I can recognize differences. I understand where we're entering new territory. And the six and a half isn't necessarily like, oh, the vibe is that we're going to get things done. And three and a half vibes later, like, no, that's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that we're in new territory. We've been prepared to be here, and I feel more than halfway confident of where we're at, comparatively speaking, in the situation that we're in. So, like, in a week or two, it could be like seven, and, you know, it can be like four. You know it.

[Abby Wambach]

Right.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It's. It's quite subjective. It's kind of. It's a little bit more of like, perhaps a vibe forecast than a vibe check, maybe.

[Julie Foudy]

How would you compare this moment to those other inflection points?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

The impact that we're witnessing internally.

[Julie Foudy]

Is.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Is major. I think it's going to be something that a lot of current and for sure, future players perhaps reference moving forward. You know, I think how we're communicating, how we're engaging, how we're understanding the business with whatever information that we do have. And also being women who obviously, I think are more adept to understanding business simply because we've always had to have a fallback plan, so we couldn't just enter the world without knowing what was going on.

[Julie Foudy]

Yes.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Group of women here today in this eruption of women's sports. To me, I feel really good about where we're at. You know, it's. I really do think that we're in such an important time, even if it's.

[Abby Wambach]

Not perfect, because it's a collective bargaining agreement. You're. You're bargaining with all the other WNBA players. So you all have to have this sense of trust with each other. And I'm curious, because trust has kind of clearly been strained in terms of the relationship between you all and the league. How hard is it for you personally to negotiate when there's been some sort of emotional fallout and broken trust in those rooms?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Yeah, I'll say that that is probably the biggest challenge because we do our best to remain in lockstep together as, you know, a players association. But still, it doesn't mean that everyone's experience is the same.

[Abby Wambach]

Right.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

You know, so there could be a collective distrust. There could be varying experiences with what that trust is. But at the end of the day, like you said, everyone is a partner in this, specifically the players. So you have to hear everybody out. And I think. No, I know we do that great as a pledge association with our union, staff, advisors, and council. But I think a part of the negotiation is also trying to figure out how this still developing relationship between the players and the league can evolve. So it's almost like two things are kind of growing or changing, shall I say at once, you're trying to get the CBA done, but then the CBA is also revealing the nature of a relationship that has been fractured for so long. But I'm. I'm. I'm a hopeful person. You know, I like to believe that things will work out, but I also believe that you have to get through it. You have to go through it to get to it. The process also almost foreshadows what can happen in the future, how things can work in the future, how things unfold. And I want. I want badly for this league and this union to be better for whatever comes out of these CBA negotiations.

[Abby Wambach]

Beautiful.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah. Yeah, I. I think that's. That's one of the hardest parts of all of this. Having also lived through a lot of CBA negotiations, ABs and I with US Soccer, because similar to. It seems, and tell me if I'm wrong, neca, but similar to our situation was there was no trust with U.S. soccer because we felt like they never. We were always an afterthought. They had never wanted to move on anything unless you just shook them to the point of they had to move. And so you're also fighting that undercurrent because you're trying to keep all the players on board. Right. And listen to them, but you're also having to fight against that current of. Well, there's already a built in lack of trust. And that was the hardest thing, I think, when you look at you in a leadership position, is getting the players to eventually trust that this is going to be something that the wnba, the league is putting its best foot forward as well.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I would definitely agree. I would definitely agree. I think that that's. That's. I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if that's the experience for many, if not all, women who are in ring, you know, and I don't know, I think, you know, you kind of sparked something when you said, you know, trusting the process. Maybe, maybe the trust in the league won't ever be 100%, but if you can trust in this process, perhaps that can help rebuild something, you know, and for us, what's most important is trusting in the power of the collective. For us, I think that is something we can lean more heavily on than the trust of who's across the table. And I really do feel that we're at a point where players not only get it, but they want to act upon their understanding, and we're doing that as best as we can as we try and have everyone's value being reflected.

[Abby Wambach]

This new agreement, you're not just thinking about yourself. Right. Like you are thinking about, in a lot of ways, the, the.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

The.

[Abby Wambach]

The last player on the last roster in the WNBA to make sure that they are also taken care of. And this isn't just about salaries. Right. This is beyond that. And the rev share, like, what are the quieter but more critical issues in this cba? Things that matter deeply to the players but don't. Maybe always get the same kind of attention that you guys are seeking.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

You have players that are texting me every day asking about how are we going to be able to rent cars and how are we going to be able to transfer our belongings from home to home? Are they going to cover these fees? Are there going to be a Realtor available to help me? There's just so many different logistics that we for a long time haven't had to think about. And that's one very tiny example. But it really factors into what it means to be a pro athlete. If I'm worrying about where I need to live, I'm not in the gym, you know, and I'm getting signed to play. And so doing whatever it takes for us to be able to perform at a high level means having the resources necessary to be able to do that.

[Julie Foudy]

Can you explain the revenue share component of it for. For people who may not understand how, for example, NBA is structured and comparatively how you all want the rev share to be structured with wnba? Because I know this is a huge sticking issue.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

So, I mean, men's leagues, and we'll compare the NBA, you know, they have a percent revenue share based off of whatever revenue they generate. Of course, there are certain expenses that are excluded at a certain point in time, but the way that they're paid is also reflected in how the revenue is grown. So every year their share can be a certain percentage based on how much the NBA makes. That's like. To me, I feel like that is a very Cliff Notes way of explaining it.

[Abby Wambach]

Thank you. Yes.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

So ultimately they have that percentage that works for them and is also a fair percentage, which is closer to 50%.

[Julie Foudy]

That the players get.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

That the players get from the revenue that the NBA makes. Yes. So for us, we're looking to have a model very similar to that. We're not necessarily saying give us exactly what they have because we also understand that the business needs to grow, but we are looking for a similar fair revenue split to where you can't tell us that every year this is how much you're going to get, which is currently our system. We have a Fixed revenue, fixed percentage that stays the same over time, and the percentage of that does not grow. So we're looking to grow with the business.

[Abby Wambach]

That's right. Because it should correlate. It should correlate. If the business rises, that percentage that goes to the players who are. The business should get paid that. Sorry, keep going.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

No, that's exactly right. That's exactly right. So that's really what we're negotiating for. And we are currently sitting somewhere. Comparatively, the men are near 50. We're closer to 10, so we're looking for a percentage that is much further away from 10. But in negotiations, we also understand the business is still growing, but we do want to ensure that we get a fair share of the revenue, especially prior to things taking off the top that is now distributed to us.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay, so the January 9th extension has delayed the expansion draft. Right. What is the risk of this not getting done in time? And I'm just going to add this in. Is there a real possibility of an actual work stoppage? Either a strike or a lockout that might. That's never happened before. What are the chances of those two things?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

So, I mean, we wanted to extend, to give ourselves an adequate amount of time for us to be able to get a good deal done. Players don't want to feel rushed. Our PA staff and council and advisors do not want to feel rushed. You want to make sure that what the players are understanding and asking for as the negotiations evolve is something that is being brought to the table in the proposal. And so we felt that allowing for enough time for us to get that done can get us closer to a deal, albeit it's later than what we expected. But I think it's a process that can hopefully nurture the relationship and the negotiations in a way that a good deal can get done. Now, in any CBA negotiation, I believe, and in my experience, I think there's always a possibility of work stoppage because the agreement has ended, you know, and so as you progress through negotiations, you try to be prepared for anything. We are not lost on the fact that this is taking longer than expected, but the goal is to get a good deal done. And so with the reality that there could be work stoppage, the players understand we are moving forward in good faith to ensure that that's not something that we're striving for. But if it does happen, it's not surprising in the history of sports, but it would be a first time that we would see this in the wnba.

[Julie Foudy]

Where do you guys all meet? Do you meet online do you meet in person?

[Abby Wambach]

How much?

[Julie Foudy]

I'm starting to go into my like panic mode because it's getting to January 9th. I'm like, are you meeting tomorrow?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

We, I mean, I like, can you meet today? That's actually kind of how our meetings are. So we have scheduled. So they have scheduled, of course, negotiating meetings and any player specifically on the CBA committee is, if they're in town, they can go if they want. We've had a couple players go in on their own. We've had meetings where our EC and CBA committee were there. But generally I would say when it comes to like the player reps, the CBA committee and the executive committee, we're meeting via Zoom. I would say anywhere between like two and three times a week. And it's not necessarily pre scheduled. It's kind of like what you just said. Like, is everyone available to hop on a call? And so we have, we have phenomenal leadership. Everyone is almost always available to hop on the call. There'll be times when we say, hey, all players hop on this call.

[Abby Wambach]

So Glennon is terrible at keeping track of her contacts. Every time I open the drawer, I'll see one lonely lens and think, yes, future Glennon. Is she going to be able to handle this spoiler? Probably not. I don't know. That's why I finally switched us to 1-800-contacts and honestly, I wish I had done it years ago. They've made the whole process unbelievably easy. The exact contacts my doctors prescribes delivered right to our door fast free shipping on every order. And if something's off, they have free returns, free exchanges and even free torn lens replacements. It's like that. They've thought of every annoying thing about wearing contacts and essentially fixed it. And the big one for me. They're the only major retailer that lets you renew your contact lens prescription online with their express exam that so you don't have to go to the doctor. It takes less than 10 minutes and you get a doctor issued prescription you can use to buy your contacts. You can renew an expired prescription if you see clearly with your current lenses for someone like Lennon or you strong prescription, easily annoyed by errands. 1-800-contacts has genuinely made our lives easier. Getting contacts doesn't have to be a hassle. Let 1, 800 contacts get you the contact lenses you need right now. Order online at 1-800-contacts.com or download the free 1-800-contacts app today.

[Julie Foudy]

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[Abby Wambach]

So annoying.

[Julie Foudy]

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[Abby Wambach]

Okay, let's be honest. Most bras were designed by people who have never worn one. Okay? It was founded by women who were done settling for just good enough.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay. These bras, jewels, actually solve real fit problems. Extra lift, no spillage, no digging, just comfort that lasts all day. And they're made with high quality materials and even thermoregulating fabrics. So, Jules, you know us, we're getting towards that menopause.

[Julie Foudy]

I just want to say, I. Yeah, I am. The ability to stay cool. Yes, thank you.

[Abby Wambach]

Stay cool. And. And did you know that they have 60 plus sizes from double A to H, including the half cup sizes? Because, you know, our. Our boobs are just not the same size. You usually have one that's bigger than the other. It's like, so weird. But that's just the way it is.

[Julie Foudy]

Lopsided.

[Abby Wambach]

But they invented this for us in betweeners, right? So, seriously, half cups? How has nobody thought of this before?

[Julie Foudy]

I don't know.

[Abby Wambach]

Kind of unfair that it's taken this long. Thank you, Third Love, for thinking of all of our boob sizes. Okay, so mine, the ones that I'm reaching for without even thinking they are that good. And if you can see me out in the wild, I am a hundred percent wearing one. And you can't see it because it's under my clothes. So I'm just going to tell you about it here instead. I promise I'm wearing them. Stop settling for average bras. Get solutions made for your body. Get $15 off your first [e-mail] with code podcast15. That is podcast15.

[Julie Foudy]

Thank you for not flashing us.

[Abby Wambach]

I could literally listen to you talk about this for hours. We don't have that much time. I do want to switch gears and we wish you guys all the best and we're going to keep covering it on, on this show, how things kind of unfold with the CBA negotiations with the WNBA and you all. But, you know, we're kind of player, pro player over here and we want you guys to get more than you, more than you're even bargaining for. But I want to. We also want to just congratulate you on being named the first player of the new Global League, Project B. And. And want to talk about it because it's kind of revolutionary and want to know, like, what intrigued you about this new league, what we've heard that you're going to be getting compensated more, you're getting equity. Like, tell us why you chose to go and be a part of Project.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

B. I am someone who has always kind of been aware of the world. My parents are Nigerian. I've traveled since I was young. I really did love my time playing overseas as a professional women, as basketball player. I had to stop playing overseas, not by choice, but because of the pandemic. And I just felt like this was a perfect opportunity to be able to kind of rekindle that love of the global infatuation of the game. But then also it's providing me an opportunity to continue to compete at the highest level. That's always been so incredibly important to me. I love the aspect of getting the best players in the world. I'm excited. This is. I never thought that I would be playing this long, but here we are, folks.

[Julie Foudy]

That's a good sign. That's a good sign. I loved it because when I saw much higher compensation equity, to me, your signing felt very intentional as it's the Middle of CBA negotiations on top of it.

[Abby Wambach]

And.

[Julie Foudy]

And whether it was or not, I loved it. What message do you want this to send to wnba?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Oh, I mean, I'm not really sure if I thought about sending any type of message to anyone outside. Outside the fact that I'm with Project B and I'm someone who loves playing basketball at the highest level. I do love the equity component. You know, I think that that message. That message has already been quite well established in unrivaled. And so I feel like continuing to be a part of that level of innovation around how players are valued is incredibly important. And that's a message to anybody.

[Julie Foudy]

How in the heck have you started every single. Is that true? That stat.

[Abby Wambach]

Every single game for 13 years, is that true?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

My first time hearing that. I mean, I guess it's true.

[Julie Foudy]

Did we just make that up or is that true?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It might be. I mean, I just. I just tried to make myself available to play, that's all.

[Julie Foudy]

Wait a second. You don't know if you've started every game of your career?

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I don't.

[Abby Wambach]

I actually know. I actually know that I didn't start a few at the beginning, and I. And I didn't start a few at the end, but I started all of them in the middle.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

But not all of them neca, but enough.

[Julie Foudy]

That is amazing. I mean, just the cons, even if it's close to every single game, the consistency of that.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Come on. Thanks. I mean, how did you. I just try to. I try to make myself available to play. I don't know.

[Julie Foudy]

Whether I have to limp with one leg. Through it all.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It's happened. It's happened. I know.

[Abby Wambach]

You should have done it, too. It's happened.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah. We've all done it. Okay, our. Our final question before we let you go. When are you starting your campaign for president? As in POTUS president. Right. Because you already are. Madam President with a union. Right. 2028 feels doable. We need it doable in NECA, we trust. Let's go. Let's go.

[Abby Wambach]

You guys, seriously.

[Julie Foudy]

What's your official statement? What is your official statement, Echo? Okay.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

It's one thing for me to come in as president of the Players association because no one wanted that job.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Now, comparatively speaking, I feel like too many people want the job we're talking about now and. Right. We need to make sure that the right people in place. I mean, I've been asked that by my family members, more so for, like, local. For local seats, but I don't know. I just feel like Actually, interestingly, this. I don't know, this might be my subway take, but interestingly enough, I find that there's certain parameters that come with entering that space that I don't have to worry about as a public figure right now. And I know that there's different ways to contribute and to make things better and to affects change. But I have found, especially in the growing atmosphere of women's sports, how incredibly impactful, like me saying one thing can be.

[Abby Wambach]

That's right.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I didn't have to run to do anything. You know what I'm saying? And so I know that that's a great, great, great privilege and something that can be abused. So it would be interesting to know how that would. Could maybe. Maybe not change if you kind of take that into another space that has these guardrails or some. For some and for others. But, you know.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah. I love that you're gonna make a bigger, bigger difference in the sports world, too. So I. I can't. Politics are. Is so icky to me, so stay in the sport.

[Julie Foudy]

No, I am not giving. No, I'm not giving up on this. I am not. We need the good people to move over to. Politics is the problem. Right. No one wants to go because it's icky. But if you bring the good people over, maybe it's less icky.

[Abby Wambach]

Maybe.

[Julie Foudy]

But here's what I think.

[Abby Wambach]

Here's what I think. I think women's sports is one of the most political things that we participate in. We are making people look at women, do powerful things. And slowly but surely, I think generationally, it will make the younger generation of conservatives see women differently. I truly believe that that's. I absolutely believe that's happening. So.

[Julie Foudy]

Absolutely.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I love that.

[Julie Foudy]

I agree. I just think this is my personal thing.

[Abby Wambach]

She's still fighting for you. Neca.

[Julie Foudy]

The transition. Because the. The next. The. The first female. I wish I could say the next female president of the United States. The first female president of the United States, I think, will be a female athlete. I just saying. I. I will.

[Abby Wambach]

She will have played out, do whatever you need.

[Julie Foudy]

So.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Julie Foudy]

And I put you on my short list, so I'm here for you.

[Abby Wambach]

Well, Maurice Healy, Maura Healey is the governor of Massachusetts, and she played basketball at Harvard with my sister. And I'm gonna. I'm. I'm. I think that she's gonna have a run in her in the next 10 years.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Okay.

[Abby Wambach]

I'm calling it.

[Julie Foudy]

Okay.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Call it.

[Julie Foudy]

I like it.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Julie Foudy]

Called it.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

So do I. I like that, too.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah. We wish you Nothing but the best. Thank you for all you're doing in this space, all you. So many different areas that just are, I think, inspiring so many women around the world, not just here in the United States. So thanks for what you do.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Thank you, too. And also I want to say thank you, too, for keeping people grounded in this evolving world of sports, especially for women, because, you know, there's a lot of newness, but people still got to do their homework. People still got to read a little bit, you know, research a little bit. So I appreciate that. And, you know, I. I always say those things, hoping people don't say, well, she's an old hag. No, like, we gotta. You know, we gotta stay grounded. You know, we. We didn't just come out of here from nowhere. There's a lot of people's backs that we're standing on. So I appreciate you, too, both in what you did on the field and what you're doing now. So thank you.

[Abby Wambach]

Well, we love you and keep crushing it. We do this one thing here at welcome to the Party is we do a little party pose for our socials. So just do whatever kind of pose that you want.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Okay.

[Julie Foudy]

On three. Oh, is that yours? Okay. One, two, three.

[Abby Wambach]

That was my Neca pose. That was like a.

[Julie Foudy]

That was me. Like, we will be strong. NECA 2028. Put that. Make this poster amazing.

[Abby Wambach]

I freaking love that woman. Like, her solid. Her solid confidence, but, like, not arrogant and humble, but, like, also, like, not. Don't gives me like a. I got this energy. Like, you're not gonna mess with me. Like, the. The.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

The.

[Abby Wambach]

The paradox of this woman and the way that she approaches things, and I don't know. I want to be friends with Neca. I want to be friends with her. Can we be friends? Neca.

[Julie Foudy]

She is rad. She is so rad.

[Abby Wambach]

She's awesome.

[Julie Foudy]

And the commitment it takes to keep an entire league together of players, to your point in the interview, of, like, you're fighting for the largest moment in the history of this league and what that entails in terms of the star players. But you can't forget the last player on the last place team and what that means to them, too. And I think she balances that really well.

[Abby Wambach]

But also, Jules, you remember this. Not every player sees things the same way. They're coming at it from different perspectives. So you think. I mean, how many times did this happen? You're having the conversation with the lawyer, and the lawyer had the conversation with U.S. soccer, and then that conversation gets back to you, and then you then with the lawyer, talk about it with the team, and you're thinking, oh, I think we're going to be able to do this. I think this is going to be okay. And you talk about the team and there's that one player who says, well, what about this? And it's like, oh, you're right. Now we gotta go all the way back and go through the entire process. It's just like this really, like, long and arduous process. It's just incredible knowing it's somebody like Neca who's not going to get beaten down or tired with the process because it's like the process. Enjoying the process as much as you possibly can through it is, I think, probably a thing that I never learned. I was like, let's get this over with.

[Julie Foudy]

I loved her answer as well when I said, how do you balance the urgency of getting a deal done with getting it right? And so good you remember, her answer was communication. And she's right. Like to your point, like, you have all these. You have all these people that need to be informed. And if you are not communicating effectively, then all of it breaks down quickly. And she's right. It is. A lot of it is also just. Just trusting in who your leadership is and that they're gonna have the best of intentions for all involved.

[Abby Wambach]

That's right.

[Julie Foudy]

Which is something with Carla too. By your side over back. You know, our captain forever was easy because she was just so salt of the earth that everyone trusted and loved.

[Abby Wambach]

That's right.

[Julie Foudy]

What we were doing so brings back a lot of memories.

[Abby Wambach]

But I'm really love that conversation. I think she's wonderful. I want her to come back on. She should be a co host. I want her to be a co host.

[Julie Foudy]

Sorry, Jules, you're out. Peace out.

[Abby Wambach]

Let's bring her on. Let's test her out. Come on. The party people will love her. Take my spot. I don't even care. Julie and Neca can just do this together. I love her that much.

[Julie Foudy]

All right, party people, don't forget to subscribe to the welcome to the party YouTube channel and click that little bell icon so you know when you get those updates.

[Abby Wambach]

And if you take a second or a minute, we would appreciate what.

[Julie Foudy]

I'm going. While you're saying it, I'm going.

[Abby Wambach]

Where are you going?

[Julie Foudy]

Apple podcast. What do we have? Oh, yeah, we're gonna be close.

[Abby Wambach]

Check it, check it. Just take a second. And we would appreciate it to either rate, leave a comment and if you want to comment, if you would prefer neca to take my place or Julie's place. We would understand. There would be no hard feelings.

[Julie Foudy]

We were fine. You just can't ever replace Kinger.

[Abby Wambach]

Exactly.

[Julie Foudy]

Subscribe standing spot.

[Abby Wambach]

So when you leave your comments or rate, you can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or wherever you get your podcast. And also be sure to follow us on Tick Tock and Instagram at. Welcome to the party show where Julie, Billy and I will bring the party straight to your. Yeah, y', all.

[Julie Foudy]

We're at. Drum roll, please.

[Abby Wambach]

We are at.

[Julie Foudy]

We've been trying to get over a thousand by Christmas.

[Abby Wambach]

We're not even.

[Julie Foudy]

I thought we could do it by. Thanks.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

We're.

[Julie Foudy]

We're 8:56.

[Abby Wambach]

Yep.

[Julie Foudy]

Okay. And we're at 4.9 out of 5 stars. And so I was like, wait, what happened? We were all five stars. Okay. So I went back and there's a one star in there, right? And it says best podcast. Love the podcast. Would love if you could interview Michelle Kang.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

And they gave.

[Julie Foudy]

That was it. But Best podcast, Love the podcast. They gave us one star.

[Abby Wambach]

I'll take this 4.9.

[Julie Foudy]

I think they forgot to. To punch their stars in.

[Abby Wambach]

Well, no, I think that they didn't know what was happening. I think we just have a person who doesn't know tech. We'll take the 4.9.

[Julie Foudy]

That's okay. That's okay. So please. People are writing all these great comments. We look at all of them. Let's get over a thousand by Christmas. If you go in, that's only 150 people, y'. All. We can get there.

[Abby Wambach]

We can get there again. Jules, USA on three.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, let us know what you think about NECA for 2028.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

I don't know.

[Abby Wambach]

I think for the president of POTUS.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah, POTUS 2028.

[Nneka Ogwumike]

Okay.

[Julie Foudy]

I think party people will be on board. Do it count as it.

[Abby Wambach]

USA on three. One, two, three. Welcome to the Party is an independent production brought to you by Treat Media. Treat Media makes art for humans who want to stay human. Silver Tribe is our production partner and you can also watch our full conversations on the welcome to the party YouTube channel and follow us at welcome to the Party show on Instagram and TikTok.

[Julie Foudy]

Party people, the party is officially over.