The North Carolina Courage have agreed to trade United States midfielder Jaedyn Shaw to NJ/NY Gotham FC for $1.25 million, which would be an intra-league record for an NWSL trade, multiple sources confirmed to ESPN.
A $1.25 million fee is more than double the intra-league record that was just set in August, when the Kansas City Current paid $600,000 to the Utah Royals for USWNT forward Ally Sentnor. It would also rank among some of the most expensive global transfers to date globally.
The fee would be paid over multiple installments and entirely in NWSL intra-league transfer funds, a league source confirmed.
Gotham, who were seeking to add a player with creativity to their squad, plans to sign Shaw through the 2029 NWSL season.
The NWSL’s secondary transfer window closed on Aug. 25 for incoming international transfers, but intra-league trades can still be made up until the league-wide roster freeze on Oct. 9.
Shaw’s exit from the Courage would see her time with the team end after less than one full season.
The 20-year-old was traded from San Diego Wave FC to North Carolina in January, a move she requested citing a desire for a change of scenery at the time. As part of the deal, the Courage sent $300,000 in allocation money, an international spot for the 2025 and 2026 NWSL seasons, and $150,000 in intraleague transfer fees to San Diego.
During her time in San Diego, Shaw won the NWSL Shield and NWSL Challenge Cup, and was named to the NWSL Best XI in 2023.
Shaw is set to join a Gotham team that is in sixth place with seven games remaining as the NWSL enters the final stretch ahead of the postseason.
North Carolina is in 11th place, but only four points out of eighth place and the final playoff spot. The Courage fired Sean Nahas as head coach in early August. Shaw, who said in April she was struggling to meet high expectations since joining the Courage, has started 10 NWSL games this season and has three goals and one assist.
She has eight career goals in 26 appearances for the senior USWNT and won the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player in the Americans’ first-place finish at the Women’s Gold Cup in 2024.
