Orlando Pride signs Barbra Banda for near-record $740,000 transfer fee as Zambian forward agrees to $2million, four-year deal to become one of the highest-paid players in NWSL history

The Orlando Pride have signed Zambia international Barbra Banda for a transfer fee of $740,000, the second highest in the history of women’s soccer and in the history of the National Women’s Soccer League.

Banda joins Orlando Pride from the Chinese Super League and has a contract worth around $2 million over the next four years.

At around $500,000 a year, Banda will be one of the highest-paid players in the NWSL.

The record for the highest transfer fee paid by a female player still belongs to her Zambian teammate Racheal Kundananji, who joined NWSL expansion team Bay FC in a transfer fee of $787,600.

Banda is considered one of the most promising forwards in women’s football.

His star performances began at the Tokyo Olympics, where he scored hat-tricks in consecutive group matches.

Banda was the first woman in Olympic history to achieve that feat, or to score two hat tricks in the same Olympic tournament.

Banda is the leading African goalscorer in Olympic history.

Banda was also part of the Zambian squad to compete in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

The women’s transfer market is booming around the world, with this year’s January window setting a record with $2.1 million in fees paid by female players, a 165 per cent increase on the same window in 2023.