• Loading stock data...
Saturday, July 19, 2025

Nika Mühl Finally Set to Play in WNBA After Immigration Red Tape Kept Her Out

  • She has missed four Seattle Storm games waiting for her work visa approval.
  • If the former UConn point guard plays Wednesday, she’ll once again face Caitlin Clark.
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Seattle Storm guard Nika Mühl, who is Croatian, spent the last four years playing basketball in the United States at UConn. But when her sport became an actual paying job instead of the gray area pseudo-employment of college sports, she ran into a surprising legal issue. Despite the fact that the WNBA draft was more than a month ago, Mühl was still not able to get a work visa until this week. The visa delay meant she missed the Storm’s first four regular-season games.

She’s finally set to debut as early as Wednesday night, the women’s basketball publication The Next reported, after finally getting her P-1 athlete visa approved.

Should Mühl play Wednesday, her first assignment will be the same as her last one: Caitlin Clark. Not two months ago, the former Hawkeye and Husky faced off in the Final Four, with Clark’s team winning by two points. Mühl’s lockdown defense helped solidify her as the No. 14 pick in the draft in April.

Mühl played in one of the Storm’s two preseason games. She was kept out of the first one because her pending visa status forbade her from leaving the country for the WNBA Canada game. In the second game, the rookie scored six points, grabbed three rebounds, dished two assists, and had two turnovers in 20 minutes.

Getting a P-1 visa can take up to three to six months, so the league likely tried to expedite the process. It’s yet another symptom of the quick turnaround time between the end of the women’s college basketball season and the start of WNBA play, which has kept players sidelined with injuries and out of their college graduation ceremonies.

But athletes in other sports have also encountered challenges obtaining P-1 visas. Getting cut or signed by a team has forced athletes to quickly return to their home country, although one sports immigration attorney sued the federal government to set a precedent tying athletes’ status to an agency instead of a team. International athletes have also faced different rules in the name, image, and likeness era, because student visas don’t allow for making money within the U.S. Stars like Mühl, Zach Edey, and Kamilla Cardoso have all sat on the sidelines as their teammates raked in thousands of dollars in deals.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

USC Trojans guard JuJu Watkins (12) takes to the court on Jan. 22, 2025, ahead a game against the Purdue Boilermakers.

Unrivaled Makes NIL Splash During WNBA All-Star Weekend

The 3-on-3 women’s basketball league signed 14 college players to NIL deals.
Jul 13, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announces the pick for the Athletics pick during the MLB Draft at The Coca-Cola Roxy.

Manfred Says MLB Had Wrong Approach to Creators Like Jomboy

“You gotta go where people are going,” the commissioner said.
(NCL_OSU_11_SUGAR_LAURON 04JAN11) Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Terrelle Pryor (2) slips around the Arkansas Razorbacks defense during first half of the Sugar Bowl at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, January 4, 2011.

Terrelle Pryor’s Case for NIL Backpay Dismissed in Court

Pryor played seven years in the NFL after leaving OSU amid a scandal.

Featured Today

Ryan Field Construction
exclusive

First Look Inside Northwestern’s $862 Million New Ryan Field

Five big things FOS learned on our exclusive stadium tour.
Jul 21, 2024; Ayrshire, SCT; Xander Schauffele celebrates with Claret Jug after winning the Open Championship golf tournament at Royal Troon.
July 17, 2025

The Boozy History and Traditions of The Open’s Claret Jug

The Open awards the world’s most famous wine decanter.
2025 PDC World Darts Championship Final - Luke Littler vs Michael Van Gerwen
July 16, 2025

A Teen Darts Prodigy Is Becoming Bigger Than the Game Itself

Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler is cashing in on his devastatingly accurate shot.
May 31, 2025; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Sydney McLaughin-Levrone (USA) reacts before the women's 100m hurdles during the Grand Slam Track Philadelphia at Franklin Field
exclusive
July 13, 2025

Track’s New Money Is Running Into Old Problems

The sport’s big-money era has hit some speed bumps in 2025.
Bradley Beal
exclusive
July 17, 2025

‘Brad Doesn’t Like Change’: Beal Agent Says He Wants Long-Term Clippers Deal

Beal agreed to a contract buyout with the Suns on Wednesday.
July 17, 2025

T.J. Watt Becomes NFL’s Highest-Paid Non-QB

Watt’s new Steelers contract comes with $108 million fully guaranteed.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Dealmaker Jeffrey Kaplan maps the evolution of sports as an asset class
Oct 13, 2024; Chicago, IL, USA; Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya poses for a photo with the time clock after finishing first in the women’s race, setting a new world record at 2:09:56 during the Chicago Marathon at Grant Park.
July 17, 2025

Kenyan Whose Record Shocked Running World Suspended for Drugs

Her drug test showed levels 190 times above the allowed amount.
Collins
July 17, 2025

NFL Second-Round Impasse May End As Niners Give Pick $9M Guaranteed

The contract isn’t fully guaranteed like the earlier second-rounder deals.
Caitlin Clark
July 17, 2025

Caitlin Clark Out for WNBA All-Star Game, 3-Point Contest With Injury

Clark and Satou Sabally will miss the game with injuries.
Apr 8, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal (3) reacts during the first half against the Golden State Warriors at Footprint Center.
July 16, 2025

Bradley Beal Agrees to Suns Buyout, Will Join Clippers

Beal is the latest star player to leave Phoenix behind Kevin Durant.