Q&A - Kickstarter

The new pro women's soccer league debuts this month, and Jade Kovacevic is Toronto's not-so-secret weapon. Her plan for building the fan base? Dazzle them on the field and off.

- COURTNEY SHEA

Let's start with a bit of Northern Super League 101. What is it? And more importantly, how will it succeed where so many women's leagues have failed?

The NSL is the first pro women's soccer league in Canada, and the appetite for it isn't new. We've just never had the infrastructure necessary to build viable careers for players. Most Canadian women have been forced to play in the US or in Europe-that's what I did in 2019.

At the time, there were rumours of a new national pro league. I wanted to be ready when it materialized.

Why now for the NSL?

We're riding a wave, with huge crowds showing up to PWHL and WNBA games and greater investment in soccer from celebrities like Natalie Portman and Magic Johnson. Why didn't it happen earlier? People used to say that there was no business case for our game, but all those naysayers are getting left behind. What stopped us was that we didn't have the resources.

Do you expect big crowds?

I attended the Battle on Bay Street in January, a sold-out women's hockey game at Scotiabank Arena between Toronto and New York, and it was surreal.