This weekend is jam-packed with must-see WNBA matchups as the league’s regular season concludes. With one playoff spot left to clinch, Friday and Sunday’s games have big implications for the postseason, with the New York Liberty, Washington Mystics, and Los Angeles Sparks all in contention.

The oldest non-major LPGA tour event, the Portland Classic, will is also happening this weekend, airing every afternoon on the Golf Channel.

Minnesota Lynx vs. Indiana Fever

Friday, September 17 at 7 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network

Napheesa Collier and Sylvia Fowles lead the Lynx as Minnesota fights for a top seed in the playoffs. The team is up against the Fever, who are out of postseason contention but looking to build on something for next year.

Washington Mystics vs. New York Liberty

Friday, September 17 at 7 p.m. ET on Twitter

The final spot in the WNBA playoffs looms large over the Mystics and Liberty’s Friday-night matchup. Washington currently sits in the 8^th and last playoff slot, while New York is a game back in 10^th place.

Las Vegas Aces vs. Chicago Sky

Friday, September 17 at 8 p.m. ET on NBA TV

The Las Vegas Aces and Chicago Sky will face-off for the third time this regular season after splitting games earlier this month. A’ja Wilson has been red hot for the Aces, leading the team in points and rebounds.

Phoenix Mercury vs. Seattle Storm

Friday, September 17 at 10 p.m. ET on NBA TV

The Mercury sit 1.5 games back from the Storm and will look to cut into that lead this weekend. The Storm will have to fend off a surging Brittney Griner without Breanna Stewart, who is currently battling injury.

Atlanta Dream vs. Connecticut Sun

Sunday, September 19 at 1 p.m. ET on NBA TV

The Atlanta Dream will look to contain the Sun’s Jonquel Jones, who is averaging 19.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. Connecticut appears unstoppable heading into the playoffs, riding a 12-game win streak.

Las Vegas Aces vs. Phoenix Mercury

Sunday, September 19 at 3 p.m. ET on ABC

The Aces and Mercury have split games in their previous two regular-season meetings and will play a third and decisive match on Sunday. The matchup will be a battle of the frontcourt, with the Ace’s A’ja Wilson and Mercury’s Brittney Griner going head-to-head.

Minnesota Lynx vs. Washington Mystics

Sunday, September 19 at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN3

Tina Charles will look to lift the Mystics to the playoffs after a season plagued by injuries. The Lynx have defeated Washington twice this season, while the Mystics edged out a win over Minnesota back in June.

Los Angeles Sparks vs. Dallas Wings

Sunday, September 19 at 5 p.m. ET on NBA TV

A playoff push once looked unlikely for the Sparks, but a solid end to the season has made a spot in the postseason possible. The game is a must-win for Los Angeles to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Indiana Fever vs. Chicago Sky

Sunday, September 19 at 6 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network

Candace Parker and the Sky will look for a solid win in their last regular-season game of the year. Chicago’s Courtney Vandersloot currently leads the league in assists with 8.8 per game.

Cambia Portland Classic

Thursday, September 16 at 3 p.m. ET on Golf Channel (tee-off)

Friday, September 17 at 3 p.m. ET on Golf Channel

Saturday, September 18 at 3 p.m. ET on Golf Channel

Sunday, September 19 at 3 p.m. ET on Golf Channel

This weekend marks the 50^th anniversary of the Cambia Portland Classic. Jin Young Ko is the highest-ranked golfer competing in the LPGA event.

USWNT stalwart Alex Morgan will miss at least one week of NWSL action after suffering a left ankle knock in her last club appearance, Wave manager Casey Stoney said on Thursday.

Morgan was helped off the field after rolling her ankle in the later stages of the Wave’s 1-0 loss to the Orlando Pride last weekend, despite the San Diego side being out of available substitutes.

“She's got an ankle injury and she's out for this weekend, and then it'll be week by week from there,” Stoney said, confirming that Morgan’s been ruled out for Saturday’s showdown with NWSL newcomer Bay FC.

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Depending on its severity, Morgan’s ankle issue might have larger ramifications than missing a few weeks of NSWL play. Morgan was added to the team's Gold Cup roster after an ACL injury sidelined young striker Mia Fishel, and she's since made a number of USWNT starts in the team's Gold Cup and SheBelieves wins. A long-term injury could potentially derail the center forward’s Olympic plans.

With her return timeline uncertain, it's possible the injury could also impact Morgan's ability to participate in new head coach Emma Hayes' first U.S. friendlies in June and July.

Morgan's injury concerns aren't uncommon in the U.S. player pool, but add a sense of urgency as Hayes eyes the NWSL for top-performing players in the upcoming weeks. Gotham's Tierna Davidson and Rose Lavelle have also been dealing with injuries: Lavelle has yet to appear for Gotham, while Davidson exited last weekend's match early with a hamstring injury.

Gotham has yet to issue an update concerning Davidson's status.

This week, legendary Brazilian superstar Marta announced that she’ll retire from the national team at the end of 2024.

In an interview with CNN Esportes published Thursday, the iconic footballer confirmed that she would be hanging up her boots regardless of whether or not she ends up making Brazil's 18-player roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

“If I go to the Olympics, I will enjoy every moment, because regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team,” she said. “There is no longer Marta in the national team as an athlete from 2025 onwards.”

Marta will retire as a giant of the women's game, having appeared in five Olympics and multiple World Cups. When discussing her retirement, she stressed confidence in the rising generation of Brazilian players, noting that she was, “very calm about this, because I see with great optimism this development that we are having in relation to young athletes." 

The statement echoes back to a plea she made during the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup after Brazil lost to France 2-1 in the Round of 16. “It's wanting more. It's training more. It's taking care of yourself more. It's being ready to play 90 plus 30 minutes. This is what I ask of the girls,” she said then, addressing the young players following in her footsteps. 

In 2023, she signaled a farewell to World Cup competition with the same sentiment, telling media, “We ask the new generation to continue where we left off.”

If selected for the 2024 Olympic team, Marta has a shot at extending her own consecutive-scoring record with the ability to score in an unbelievable sixth-straight Olympic Games. She currently stands as Brazil’s top goalscorer, racking up 116 career goals in 175 matches, as well as the leading goalscorer in any World Cup, women’s or men’s, with 17 to her name. 

Marta will continue to play for the NWSL’s Orlando Pride through at least the end of 2024. The longtime forward and club captain has already contributed to multiple goals this season.

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

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Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

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Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.