NEW YORK (December 20, 2022) –

The National Women’s Soccer League today announced the hiring of Lauren Lopez as Chief People and Culture Officer. In the newly formed role, Lopez will identify, develop and implement human resource strategies, initiatives and best practices across the league and club ecosystem. She will also be responsible for establishing the league’s organizational design, overseeing and enhancing player education, engagement and experience, and crafting and managing the league’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

NEW YORK (December 20, 2022) –

The National Women’s Soccer League today announced the hiring of Lauren Lopez as Chief People and Culture Officer. In the newly formed role, Lopez will identify, develop and implement human resource strategies, initiatives and best practices across the league and club ecosystem. She will also be responsible for establishing the league’s organizational design, overseeing and enhancing player education, engagement and experience, and crafting and managing the league’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Lopez, set to officially begin her duties with the league in January, joins the NWSL from The New York Times, where she served as the company’s first Senior Vice President of Talent Management. While at The Times, Lopez oversaw career and learning development, performance enablement and inclusion strategies. “It is imperative that the league has the tools in place to effectively support and guide its players, teams and staff,” said NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman. “Lauren’s wealth of experience, particularly with respect to culture building, diversity, equity and inclusion, will be extremely valuable to us as we continue our efforts to improve and strengthen the league moving forward.” “The hallmarks of a great organization are a quality talent base, a supportive organizational structure and a culture that employees, both current and prospective, are excited to be a part of,” said Lopez. “I am thrilled to take on this new role with the NWSL as the league embarks on a new chapter and look forward to creating a community and culture where all feel safe, supported and set up for success.” Prior to joining The New York Times, Lopez served in a variety of roles with the National Basketball Association, including most recently as Head of Talent and Engagement where she focused on planning and execution of several human resources initiatives including employee relations and experience, organizational design, year-end performance models and career path development. Lopez also served as Vice President of Talent Acquisition and Inclusion for Condé Nast, overseeing the talent strategy across the organization’s portfolio of brands, and held HR roles at NBCUniversal, S&P Global Market Intelligence and Bloomberg. Lopez earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology and completed Graduate Studies in Human Resource Management at Mercy College.