[10] Also in September, former Sky Blue FC player Nadia Nadim accused management of forging her signature on a contract extension so they could trade her to the Thorns in early 2016.

[17] Wilkinson and the Portland Timbers front office faced further accusations of misconduct in the face of abuse reports in February 2022, when Major League Soccer suspended Timbers player Andy Polo pending an investigation into allegations of domestic violence made by Polo's ex-partner.

An MLS investigation in March 2022 claimed the Timbers did not pressure Polo's ex-partner nor intentionally conceal the incident or their involvement.

However, in the temporary restraining order, Immergut noted that the NWSL might not meet the legal standard for a single-entity organization, being instead a collection of independent teams competing for talent, and that the age rule therefore would violate section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act.

[24] On May 29, 2021, the league delayed, and then denied, the Thorns's discovery claim to the right to sign Moultrie to an NWSL standard player agreement.

[27] On June 18, 2021, Immergut granted Moultrie a preliminary injunction allowing her to sign an NWSL contract, which the league stated that it would appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on the grounds that the league was negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with the NWSL Players Association that would codify an age rule negotiated with players.

[28] On June 30, 2021, Moultrie officially signed a three-year professional contract with the NWSL to play for Portland Thorns FC.

The settlement also allowed any age rule eventually agreed upon in the league's collective bargaining agreement with the Players Association to make Moultrie ineligible again.

[31] Moultrie debuted for the Thorns as a professional on August 19, 2021, against the Houston Dash during the 2021 Women's International Champions Cup exhibition tournament.

Shaw started the season training with the Washington Spirit, who had attempted to sign her directly, but were denied by the league's discovery process.

[42] NWSL commissioner Lisa Baird wrote a letter to Oregon governor Kate Brown requesting an exemption from a ban on fan attendance due to the "extreme risk" designation for COVID-19 in Multnomah County at the time.

[42] However, Brown then downgraded the county's status four days before the match on May 4, 2021, to "high risk", allowing the Thorns to make up to 15 percent of the venue's capacity available.

The Thorns finished first in the league to win the NWSL Shield and hosted the third-seeded Chicago Red Stars in the playoff semi-finals.