The Orlando Pride signed star forward Barbra Banda to a new contract that will keep one of the world’s most dynamic goal-scorers with the team through 2029, the club announced Monday.
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Banda, 26, has been one of the NWSL’s best players since she joined the Pride before the 2024 season. She helped Orlando to the NWSL Championship and the NWSL Shield (for the league’s best record) in 2024, scoring 13 goals and adding six assists, as the Pride claimed a rare double — just the third time that’s been accomplished in the league’s history.
She added four postseason goals and scored the game-winning goal in the NWSL Championship Final, earning championship MVP honors.
She scored eight goals in a 2025 limited by injuries, though she did net the first hat trick in team history, and has 16 goals this season, setting a club record for most goals in a season.
While Orlando did not disclose any details, ESPN and The Athletic reported and confirmed that the team used the NWSL’s new High Impact Player rule to re-sign Banda. The rule allows teams to exceed the salary cap for elite players.
The NWSL enacted the HIP rule last December as a way to pay star players like Trinity Rodman, whose contract saga last winter prompted the timing of the rule. The HIP rule allows teams to spend up to $1 million extra outside of the salary cap ($3.7 million in 2026) on players who meet certain criteria.
“I am very happy to continue my journey with Pride,” Banda said in a statement released by the team. “I want to thank my teammates, coaches, staff and the fans for believing in me and supporting me every day. Orlando has become a special place for me, and I am excited to keep fighting for this club and win more trophies together.”
On the international stage, Banda captained Zambia at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, finishing as her nation’s leading scorer with five goals and one assist in three matches. She also recently received her third consecutive Ballon d’Or Feminin nomination. The award goes to the world’s best player as voted on by global soccer journalists.
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Banda was on a four-year contract that was set to expire after the 2027 campaign. The club acquired her for a $740,000 transfer fee from Shanghai Shengli FC in the Chinese Women’s Super League. In four seasons there, she scored 41 goals in 52 appearances.
“Barbra is a cornerstone of everything we are building at the Pride,” Caitlin Carducci, the Pride’s vice president of soccer operations and general manager, said in a statement. “She is one of the most dynamic players in world football, and her impact on our club has been extraordinary from the moment she arrived in Orlando.”
Carducci confirmed to ESPN that Banda’s contract is the first in club history that averages “well over seven figures per year.”
Banda has accounted for more than half of the club’s 31 goals this season as the Pride sit 11th in the NWSL standings with a 9-12-3 record. The Pride are seven points below the playoff line with six matches remaining in the regular season.
The team’s overall struggles led to the firing of coach Seb Hines on Aug. 31. Hines had been with the Pride for four years, which included the championship season and a semifinal appearance last year.
The team will continue to build around Banda.
“Barbra is a transformational player whose impact extends far beyond the goals she scores on the field,” Orlando Pride owner and chairman Mark Wilf said in the team’s news release. “She represents the ambition, excellence and winning culture we’ve built and want to sustain long-term.”