The U.S. women’s national team announced its 24-player roster Thursday for its January friendlies against 2023 World Cup co-host New Zealand.

Lynn Williams returns for the first time since February 2022. The 29-year-old forward tore her hamstring in the NWSL preseason, which sidelined her for the rest of the year, though she did train with the Kansas City Current ahead of the NWSL championship match.

Emily Sonnett also makes her comeback. The 29-year-old defender injured her foot during the USWNT’s Concacaf W Championship title run in July.

Midge Purce did not make the cut for the last two USWNT camps in October and November due to what coach Vlatko Andonovski called a “dip in form.” But the 27-year-old will make the trip to New Zealand, perhaps helped by the absence of fellow forwards Megan Rapinoe (ankle) and Sophia Smith (foot), who will miss the camp with nagging injuries.

Teenage sensation Alyssa Thompson is the odd player out. She earned her first senior call-up in October and remained on the roster for the November friendlies against Germany, but she will not join the squad this month.

The USWNT will travel to New Zealand for a six-day training camp, then will play two matches against the Football Ferns, both set to air on HBO Max.

The first will kick off at 10 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Jan. 17, at Sky Stadium in Wellington, and the second at 10 p.m. ET on Friday, Jan. 20, at Eden Park in Auckland. These venues will play host to the USWNT’s three group-stage matches at the World Cup.

“To get to bring the team to New Zealand in January and play in our World Cup venues has so many benefits so we are going to make sure we maximize our time together,” Andonovski said in a statement.

The USWNT holds the No. 1 spot in the FIFA world rankings, even after dropping three straight matches against England, Spain and Germany late in 2022. New Zealand is ranked No. 24, while their World Cup co-host Australia is ranked No. 12.

The Ferns have a 1-1-17 all-time record against the USWNT, with their one win coming in 1987. The most recent meeting between the teams came last February at the SheBelieves Cup in California, which ended in a 5-0 win for the home team.

Ready for 2023! 👊

Roster Details » https://t.co/K3ZlvlC6n0 pic.twitter.com/HWPsj8b7ul

— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) January 5, 2023

USWNT January Roster

Goalkeepers

• Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars)
• Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage)
• A.D. Franch (Kansas City Current)

Defenders

• Alana Cook (OL Reign)
• Crystal Dunn (Portland Thorns FC)
• Emily Fox (Racing Louisville FC)
• Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave FC)
• Sofia Huerta (OL Reign)
• Hailie Mace (Kansas City Current)
• Becky Sauerbrunn (Portland Thorns FC)
• Emily Sonnett (Washington Spirit)

Midfielders

• Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns FC)
• Lindsey Horan (Olympique Lyonnais)
• Taylor Kornieck (San Diego Wave FC)
• Rose Lavelle (OL Reign)
• Kristie Mewis (NJ/NY Gotham FC)
• Ashley Sanchez (Washington Spirit)
• Andi Sullivan (Washington Spirit)

Forwards

• Ashley Hatch (Washington Spirit)
• Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave)
• Midge Purce (NJ/NY Gotham FC)
• Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit)
• Mallory Pugh Swanson (Chicago Red Stars)
• Lynn Williams (Kansas City Current)

The Naomi Osaka comeback tour at the 2025 US Open has ended, as the two-time New York Grand Slam champion and world No. 24 star ceded her Thursday semifinal to No. 9 Amanda Anisimova, who battled back to claim the 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3 victory.

"Naomi is playing amazing tennis," the 23-year-old said of Osaka's US Open run. "She's back where she belongs. I told her I'm so proud of her after having a baby and playing at this level — it's insane."

With her Thursday win, Anisimova is now the only player to ever defeat Osaka in a Grand Slam quarterfinal, semifinal, or final — ending the Japanese fan-favorite's 13-0 run in the later rounds of tennis's major tournaments.

Anisimova's US Open success is even more impressive considering the result of her first-ever Grand Slam final — a brutal 6-0, 6-0 loss at Wimbledon in July.

In a massive turnaround, Anisimova handed No. 2 Iga Świątek, the 2025 Wimbledon champion, a redemptive straight-set loss in Wednesday's US Open quarterfinals en route to reaching this weekend's championship match.

Anisimova's victory means that a US player has now competed in every women's Grand Slam final dating back to the 2024 US Open, extending the country's championship-match streak to five straight Slams.

With even more history on the line, the US rising star now has a second shot at joining No. 6 Madison Keys and No. 3 Coco Gauff in hoisting a 2025 Grand Slam trophy for the US — a feat not accomplished by any single country since Serena Williams won the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon in 2015.

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How to watch the 2025 US Open championship match

Just like Keys and Gauff, Anisimova will have to defeat Aryna Sabalenka to claim her own 2025 Grand Slam trophy — with the hard-hitting US finalist holding a 6-3 all-time record against the world No. 1 player, most recently downing the 2024 US Open champion in this year's Wimbledon semifinals.

Anisimova will battle Sabalenka in for the 2025 US Open crown on Saturday, with live coverage of the championship match beginning at 4 PM ET on ESPN.

The sale saga of the Connecticut Sun added a new chapter this week, as the state of Connecticut submitted a bid proposal on Thursday that would see the WNBA team remain in-state.

Owned by the Mohegan Tribe since 2003, the state is just the latest entrant into an ongoing bidding war for the franchise, with Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca, ex-Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, and the WNBA itself all making offers ranging from $250 to $325 million in recent weeks.

Unlike previous relocation bids, the state's proposed sale plan sees the Connecticut Sun splitting home games between their current Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville and Hartford's larger PeoplesBank Arena, while also promising a new practice facility in the state capital.

Despite winding down 2025 in 12th place, the Sun have amassed a loyal local following, selling out their 10,000-capacity arena four times this year in a state buoyed by NCAA basketball powerhouse and current national champion UConn located less than an hour away.

"The best place for the Connecticut Sun is Connecticut because we have this very fierce fan base for women's basketball," Connecticut Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz told ESPN. "We love the [UConn] Huskies. We love watching the Sun… and we've seen that the Connecticut Sun players have been great community leaders and role models."

The Chicago Sky reportedly held a team meeting to address the explosive Chicago Tribune interview of Angel Reese this week, after the star forward put the already-eliminated WNBA team on blast.

"We are aware of [Reese's comments]," Sky head coach Tyler Marsh said on Wednesday. "We're addressing it in-house as currently speaking. That's where we'll stay right now."

"Angel has shown a commitment to wanting to be here," he continued. "We as an organization continue to show a commitment that we want people that want to be here."

Reese focused much of her critique on the team's leadership and roster construction, expressing disappointment as the Chicago Sky closes in on back-to-back losing seasons.

"We can't rely on Courtney to come back at the age that she's at," the 23-year-old Reese said of veteran Sky guard Courtney Vandersloot, following the 36-year-old's season-ending ACL tear in early June. "I know she'll be a great asset for us, but we can't rely on that."

"We need someone probably a little younger with some experience, somebody who's been playing the game and is willing to compete for a championship and has done it before," Reese added.

Notably, Vandersloot helped the Chicago Sky snag the 2021 WNBA title before taking the New York Liberty to a franchise-first championship last season.

A high-stakes coastal clash tops this weekend's NWSL bill, with results directly impacting the increasingly tight league standings as No. 8 Gotham tries to hold off a No. 9 Angel City side sitting just one point outside of postseason positioning.

The pair last met in April, when Gotham shutout ACFC 4-0 at LA's BMO Stadium behind a brace from the NWSL's current Golden Boot leader Esther González.

"That's the key — everyone knows their role, their responsibilities, and they're willing to sacrifice for the team defensively while also bringing their quality in attack," Gotham manager Juan Carlos Amorós said earlier this week.

As they try to rise above the crowded mid-table traffic, both teams have seen positive results in recent weeks — along with challenging levels of upheaval.

Angel City recently lost defender Alanna Kennedy, midfielder Katie Zelem, and star forward Alyssa Thompson to midseason overseas transfers, while Gotham's had little room to breathe after defeating Concacaf W Champions Cup opponent Alianza 2-0 in El Salvador on Tuesday.

"You need to be loyal to your style, cement it, and make sure the players know it," said Amorós. "That's critical when you're playing three games in seven days and traveling almost around the world."

How to watch Gotham vs. Angel City this NWSL weekend

No. 8 Gotham will host No. 9 Angel City this Sunday, kicking off live at 5 PM ET on ESPN.