NWSL Partners with American Heart Association for League-Wide CPR Training Initiative

The National Women's Soccer League and Angel City FC defender Savy King are partnering with the American Heart Association on a league-wide initiative to provide all NWSL teams with Hands-Only cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automatic external defibrillator education. This commitment will make the NWSL the first American professional sports league to have all of its players, coaches and staff from all teams trained in this lifesaving skill. The initiative aims to empower players, staff and coaches with the knowledge and confidence to act in a cardiac emergency.

The Hands-Only CPR trainings will be conducted during the 2026 preseason, with certified instructors guiding participants through the chain of survival two-step technique recommended by the American Heart Association: calling 911 and pushing hard and fast in the center of the chest. Nancy Brown, chief executive officer of the American Heart Association, emphasized the critical importance of immediate response during cardiac emergencies. When someone has a sudden cardiac arrest, immediate CPR can mean the difference between life and death. At the American Heart Association our work is focused on improving bystander CPR rates for everyone, everywhere, Brown said.

Over half of the individuals who experience a sudden cardiac arrest outside hospitals don't receive immediate CPR, leading to a 90% fatality rate, according to the American Heart Association. Learning Hands-Only CPR takes just 90 seconds and can double or triple survival chances. NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman stated, We're proud to be the first professional sports league to implement CPR training at this scale by training both those on the field and on the sidelines. This initiative reflects our commitment to player safety, community impact and leadership in health education.

As part of the initiative, the NWSL is also launching a new player ambassador program, featuring one representative from each team who will serve as a CPR awareness advocate both on and off the field. The program will be led by Savy King, whose passion for health education and community engagement makes her a natural leader for this effort. King explained her motivation, saying, What happened on the pitch inspired me to launch my foundation, Savy King of Hearts, to raise awareness about heart health and CPR education. I'm so proud to team up with the NWSL and the American Heart Association to make sure every player, fan and family member knows how to respond in a crisis.

The American Heart Association is the global leader in CPR, publishing the official guidelines for CPR and, for more than 60 years, creating resuscitation science, education and training. The organization's Nation of Lifesavers initiative represents its commitment to CPR education and supports its goal to double survival rates of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest by 2030. The American Heart Association and NWSL have already been collaborating since 2023 as part of the Smart Heart Sports Coalition, which advocates for evidence-based public policies to prevent fatal outcomes from cardiac arrest among high school students.

According to the American Heart Association, more than 23,000 children under the age of 18 experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital annually, and about 40% of those occur among student-athletes. Cardiac arrest is a leading cause of death for student-athletes nationwide. With nearly 3 out of 4 cardiac arrests outside of the hospital occurring in homes, knowing how to perform CPR is critically important. The player ambassador program will include social media campaigns and public service announcements throughout the 2026 season, amplifying the message that anyone can be a hero with just two hands. Additional resources and training materials are available at https://www.heart.org/HandsOnlyCPR.