From Christen Press to Alexia Putellas, from Beth Mead to Vivianne Miedema, ACL injuries have ravaged women’s soccer ahead of the 2023 World Cup.

Yet even with injuries to Press and other stars, the U.S. women’s national team enters 2023 in stronger position than much of its World Cup competition thanks to the depth of its roster — and the recovery timelines for some of its injured players.

Miedema became the latest international star to tear a knee ligament. She went down with a left leg injury in Arsenal’s Champions League match against Lyon last Thursday, and she announced Monday that she had ruptured her ACL and would miss the World Cup.

Her injury comes as a blow to the Netherlands. The 2019 runners-up will face off against the USWNT in the group stage next summer, a task made more daunting with their all-time leading scorer on the bench.

💔🤕🩼

Gutted to share I’ve ruptured my ACL.

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PS. I can’t wait to boss around @bmeado9 this time, at least we’ve still got two decent ACL’s between us 🩼😅 pic.twitter.com/E52GAQP1GI

— Vivianne Miedema (@VivianneMiedema) December 19, 2022

She joins a long list of top players to suffer ACL injuries in 2022, among them:

• Beth Mead, who helped lead England to a European Championship this summer with her Golden Boot-winning run but will miss the World Cup after rupturing her ACL in November.
• France’s Marie-Antoinette Katoto, who tore her ACL during the Euros in July.
• Spain’s Alexia Putellas, who injured hers in training ahead of the summer tournament, and her teammate Jennifer Hermoso, who injured hers in June.

The USWNT has had several players sidelined with ACL injuries as well. Press’ injury came in an Angel City FC match in June, and Catarina Macario’s came in a Lyon match later that month. Tierna Davidson tore her ACL in March while training with the Chicago Red Stars.

Despite the injuries, the USWNT has maintained its world No. 1 ranking. The team lost three games in a row for the first time since 1993, which is cause for concern, but the key injuries to other national teams could boost the odds for the defending World Cup champions.

While the USWNT had to deal with an injury list that only seemed to grow throughout the year, younger players gained valuable experience ahead of next summer’s tournament in Australia and New Zealand.

Sophia Smith has stepped up in the absence of players like Macario and Press. Her minutes and production increased from 2021 to 2022, as she jumped from one goal in 329 minutes to a team-leading 11 in 1,192. Mallory Pugh and Alex Morgan also made triumphant returns after spending some time on the outside looking in.

All the while, players like Naomi Girma, Taylor Kornieck and Trinity Rodman earned valuable minutes and helped to showcase the future of the squad.

Plus, because the USWNT’s ACL injuries occurred in the first half of 2022, those players could return to the national team well ahead of the 2023 World Cup, which kicks off in July.

Davidson has returned to training with VfL Wolfsburg. Macario is expected to return in February, as is Press, who per her Instagram account appears to be making strides in her recovery.

Christen Press back putting in the work after tearing her ACL. pic.twitter.com/XC1D5CDheT

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) December 19, 2022

If Macario, Press and Davidson — or any number of other injured players — return to the USWNT in early 2023, they’ll find themselves competing for minutes with players who carved out roles in 2022.

And while the USWNT still has plenty of polishing left to do ahead of the World Cup, their increased depth could set the team up for a deep run.

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.