NWSL news: Gotham signs Tierna Davidson with rumors for more signings, two Swedish internationals join the league

NWSL news: Free agent Tierna Davidson joins Gotham FC through 2026, a critical defensive signing for the club

The rumors continue to be true. Gotham FC has signed another free agent, this time USWNT defender Tierna Davidson. Davidson, who has spent all five of her years in the league with the Chicago Red Stars, was connected to Gotham just before the New Year. Today she inked a multi-year deal with the reigning NWSL champions, signing on until 2026.

Davidson was a first-round draft pick in 2019, which was the first year that the NWSL changed the rules to allow players to enter the draft before they graduated college. After only three years at Stanford, Davidson declared for the draft a year before graduation and went to the Red Stars. She’s been with them ever since, cementing a name for herself as one of the best centerbacks in the league. 

On the international stage, Davidson has been part of the senior United States Women’s National Team for six years, winning young female player of the year in 2018. She was the youngest member of the 2019 USWNT World Cup team and one of the youngest ever to start in a World Cup match at the time. She played only one game in the group stage, but she played the full 90 and got two assists in a 3-0 win over Chile. 

She missed out on last year’s World Cup squad after a rough year with the Red Stars who finished 11th in the league, and the fact that she was recovering from injury. Davidson tore her ACL back in March of 2022, but has been back for the entire 2023 season and has been called back into recent USWNT camps. 

On a morning appearance with CBS News, Davidson had the following to say about choosing Gotham in free agency. 

With an Ali Krieger sized gap in their backline, Gotham signing an experienced centerback is a stellar move for the club that already boasted signing Crystal Dunn this weekend. 

Gotham was once again connected to rumors concerning Rose Lavelle and Emily Sonnett, two of the league's most sought-after free agents. Meg Linihena of The Athletic reported today that the club is in continued close talks of signing the two OL Reign free agents. If they manage to do so, it’s hard to imagine them going anywhere but top of the table this season.