'We talked to a lot of teams': Lexi Missimo on why she joined Dallas Trinity
A top NCAA player shunning the NWSL, Mexico, England, and other top leagues around the world is something we have not yet truly seen.

A portion of the women's soccer world was shocked this week to learn that top prospect Lexi Missimo from the University of Texas had signed with Dallas Trinity of the USL Super League.
Someone who was not surprised, though? Lexi Missimo.
"Honestly, I kind of just knew it was going to be Dallas," Missimo told Squad Depth about the process of looking for a first professional club to sign with.
NEWS: Lexi Missimo has signed with Dallas Trinity of the USL-Super League on a 2.5 year deal. The USYNT and Texas Longhorn star was one of the top prospects, had 116 goal involvements in 4 years in the #NCAA. A headline signing for both league and club. www.squaddepth.com/lexi-missimo...
— Theo Lloyd-Hughes (@theolloydhughes.bsky.social) 2025-01-29T20:01:23.482Z
For Missimo to shun the NWSL, Mexico, England and other top leagues around the world is something we have not yet truly seen.
Missimo has been in a unique position when compared to many past players graduating from NCAA college soccer in the United States. She has had total free agency to enter U.S. soccer leagues and was able to select her destination.
The USL-SL was founded in 2021, and kicked off its inaugural season in August 2024. The league opted not to use a draft entry system. In July 2024, the NWSL inked a new collective bargaining agreement, which removed their existing college draft system.
Of course, with a player of Missimo's ability, teams from the NWSL and all over the world, including the English Women's Super League, inquired about signing the 22-year-old. But Dallas kept rising to the top.
"We talked to a lot of teams, and my family and I and my inner circle were just talking about what would be best for me. That kind of just drilled down to Dallas," said Missimo.
Dallas, meet your new star⭐We’re thrilled to announce the signing of Lexi Missimo — our hometown talent with a legendary track record:
— Dallas Trinity FC (@dallastrinityfc) January 29, 2025
From @TexasSoccer to the international stage with @USYNT, Lexi’s resume speaks for itself:
🏆2x All-American
🏆2x MAC Hermann Trophy… pic.twitter.com/9eWpmufHHs
So, what exactly was it about Trinity that made the opportunity too good to turn down?
Well, a big part of the answer is, it boiled down to being a trailblazer and representing her community.
"Why I chose Dallas? It's mainly to build the game in Dallas. I feel like Dallas should have a pro women's team. And, now that Dallas Trinity is here, it's just a blessing to get the opportunity to be on the team. It was just a no-brainer for me to take it," Missimo explained.
"At the end of the day, I kind of like being that person. I think, ultimately, I'm just trying to grow the game for women's sports. Yes, it's pressure, but I just think It's a great opportunity, and I'm excited for it."
Missimo grew up in Southlake, Texas, 28 miles northwest of where Trinity plays their home matches at the city's historic Cotton Bowl stadium.
The USL-SL is unproven and a risk For Missimo in many ways. But Trinity in isolation appear serious. Dallas currently sits second after half a season, and appear to be one of the best-funded clubs in the nascent league.
"I'm not quite sure we can get this done"
While the conversations to work on the deal started after she left the University of Texas in December 2024, general manager Chris Petrucelli says that from the moment he joined the club, in March 2024, ownership was already talking about Missimo being the face of the team.
"They brought Lexi's name up as somebody that, you know, they would love to try to build the club around. I think my first thought was: 'Man, I'd love to have her, but I'm not quite sure we can get this done,'" Petrucelli told Squad Depth.
Trinity is owned and founded by the Neil family. Trip Neil and his brother Charlie have been leading the charge for the new USL-SL and were heavily involved in making the signing of Missimo happen.
Petrucelli would not disclose any information on the salary, but called both the deal and Trinity's ability to sign Missimo "significant' for the USL-SL.
"It [the contract] is certainly significant, and it's a significant signing. I mean, her list of accolades is so long, I think it's safe to say she's the most decorated player [in the USL-SL]," said Petrucelli.
"Once the college season ended, there were a number of phone calls. She came through and visited, and she met our coaching staff and a number of people in the club. There were a lot of conversations with her agent to try to work this thing out. The whole club was invested."
Elite professional environment
A huge component of the Neil family's ambition is financial. Not only in terms of meeting Missimo with the right terms for her contract, that runs through the 2026-27 USL-SL season, but also in terms of investing in a professional environment that can nurture a player of Missimo's talent level.
Sam Meza, who plays for the Seattle Reign in the NWSL but was loaned to Trinity when she needed minutes as a rookie in 2024, couldn't speak highly enough of the training environment in Dallas.
"I wasn't sure what to expect. And sometimes the unknown is a little scary. But everyone in the organization is superb," Meza told Squad Depth.
"It was really pleasant experience. The girls, the squad that they put together, that group, it is very special. I hold that team near and dear to my heart."
Can Missimo blaze a trail for the USWNT in a new league?
On the pitch, Missimo is laser-focused on breaking into the U.S. women's national team pool. Petrucelli knew that would have to factor into their pitch to secure Missimo's signature.
Petrucelli has known Missimo since she was 11 years old, having previously coached at Texas (1999-2011) and SMU (2012-2022), and been a U.S. Soccer talent identification scout in the region. He was also head coach of the Chicago Red Stars in the NWSL for two seasons from 2022-23.
"She [Missimo] wants to play on a national team. She wants opportunities to do that. And part of this was us, us convincing her that she could do that here," he said.
"There were a lot of conversations where we very clearly said to her, 'if you're a good player, people are going to find you and people are going to see you,'" Petrucelli explained when asked whether playing in the USL-SL could affect her USWNT aspirations.
"She is a wonderful player, but there are parts of her game that you know need to continue to improve. And I think I was pretty honest with her about sort of what those things were. And I think she liked that."
Missimo joins Dallas fresh from a U.S. women's national team training camp with head coach Emma Hayes. It was a reunion of sorts. Missimo trained with Chelsea two summers ago, when Hayes was still head coach of the serial WSL Champions.
From that camp, one of Missimo's main takeaways was you have to be playing in order to be selected for the national team.
"She [Hayes] just wants to see a lot of people get a lot of minutes and play their best self and develop as a player. I think that's her main goal, and it just showed throughout the whole camp," said Missimo.
Like Missimo, Brooklyn FC goalkeeper Neeku Purcell was also invited to the January 'futures' camp. But should Missimo earn a call up to the senior USWNT while at Dallas, she would be the first player in the USL-SL to do so.
"I feel pretty confident that US Soccer will be very open minded about this, because they're trying to win games. They have all the incentive to take the best players, and if Lexi is one of the best players, it shouldn't matter what league she plays in," Petrucelli said.
Before closing out our interview, I ask Missimo to describe herself on and off the pitch. She said as a player she loves to play through balls, and that she thinks of herself as "funny" and "caring."
When asking Petrucelli the same question, he believed that Missimo was one the smoothest soccer players he has ever seen. "The technical piece is as good as anybody," he added. On Missimo the person, he said she likes to laugh and was easy to talk to.
There's ultimately going to be many factors when a player makes a move in their career. But when stepping back and thinking about Missimo's surprising choice to go with Trinity, the answer really comes back to being at home. Close to family, people you know and have trusted your whole life.
"[My dad] is thrilled that he can see me live, playing my first professional contract in Dallas. My family, my inner circle, they're so passionate about how I completed my dream," Missimo beamed.
The Dallas star returns. Texas keeps calling.
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