The NWSL Players Association is demanding the NWSL take action in the wake of a report by The Athletic detailing alleged sexual coercion and emotional abuse by Courage coach Paul Riley.

SYSTEMIC ABUSE PLAGUING THE NWSL MUST NOT BE IGNORED pic.twitter.com/WlhcWW7R8m

— NWSLPA (@nwsl_players) September 30, 2021

“Words cannot adequately capture our anger, pain, sadness and disappointment,” the NWSLPA wrote in a statement on Thursday. “To the players who suffer in silence, know that the Players Association holds a safe space for you. We stand ready to confidentially offer you resources and support.

“You are not alone.”

The PA added that they “refuse to be silent any longer.”

“We will no longer be complicit in a culture of silence that has enabled abuse and exploitation in our league and in our sport,” the statement continued. “The very lack of basic and fundamental protections that ensure dignity at work are part of what has led to stories like those that have come out this season.”

The accusations made against Riley follow multiple incidents this year involving violations of the NWSL’s Anti-Harassment Policy, which went into effect before the 2021 season.

As a result of Thursday’s report, the NWSLPA is demanding that the NWSL open an independent investigation into the allegations by Friday at 12 p.m. ET. They also are calling on the NWSL to investigate what enabled another club to hire Riley after the Portland Thorns investigated his conduct and did not renew his contract after the 2015 season.

Additionally, the NWSLPA demands that any league or club staff members who have been accused of conduct in violation of the anti-harassment policy be suspended and placed under investigation. That includes anyone who failed to report an alleged violation.

The 2025/26 PWHL season schedule arrived on Wednesday, with the pro hockey league preparing to hit the ice coast-to-coast for the first time ever when its third season begins on Friday, November 21st.

In celebration of the PWHL's two new West Coast teams, the season-opening doubleheader will feature the first-ever game between incoming expansion sides Seattle and Vancouver, who will face off after the back-to-back reigning champion Minnesota Frost takes on the Toronto Sceptres.

"We can't wait for puck drop to see the impact our new and returning players will make, and to deliver a competitive season with even more games for fans to enjoy," said PWHL EVP of hockey operations Jayna Hefford in a league statement.

While each team will again play 30 games on this season's schedule, the increase of the PWHL lineup from six to eight teams means that the 2025/26 campaign will span 120 total games — a 30-game increase over the league's second season.

The 2025/26 PWHL regular season will run through April 25th, though the league will pause play from January 29th to February 25th to allow for the 2026 Winter Olympics, with more than 50 PWHL players expected to compete for international glory in Italy.

How to buy tickets for the 2025/26 PWHL season

While season passes for each of the league's eight teams are available now, single-game tickets to all 120 PWHL clashes will go on sale on October 14th.

All tickets for the 2025/26 season will be available online.

Former San Diego Wave president Jill Ellis is back in the headlines, with the NWSL club's owners — private equity billionaire couple Lauren Leichtman and Arthur Levine — filing a lawsuit against Ellis on Monday for allegedly promising to stay on after the team's 2024 sale, only to resign days later in order to accept a new job as FIFA's Chief Football Officer.

According to the lawsuit, Ellis leveraged her longstanding friendship with Leichtman and Levine to convince them to purchase the San Diego Wave at a then-record price of $120 million, with the Levine Leichtman Family Office calling Ellis "a very attractive asset" that helped push the deal — and its nine-figure sticker price — across the line.

Though Ellis and other negotiators allegedly assured Leichtman and Levine that she would helm the NWSL club "for many years to come," Ellis resigned just two days after the sale closed, reportedly telling the new owners that she had "no intention of continuing any involvement with Wave FC."

Monday's court filing claims that Ellis and other unnamed defendants committed intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, concealment, and false promise, and requests damages as Ellis's departure allegedly resulted in an estimated $40 million in lost revenue.

Ellis's attorney deemed the suit "meritless," calling it retaliation for the former USWNT manager's ongoing pursuit of $1.2 million in deferred payments reportedly guaranteed by her original contract with the San Diego Wave.

As for the team, the NWSL club is staying out of it, releasing a statement saying, "This is a legal matter between the Levine Leichtman Family Office and Jill Ellis. San Diego Wave FC is not a party to this lawsuit."

World No. 3 tennis star Coco Gauff is through to the semifinals in Beijing, downing Germany's No. 66 Eva Lys in straight sets on Thursday to continue her title defense at the 2025 China Open.

With the quarterfinal win, Gauff booked her first WTA semifinals spot in nearly four months, last appearing the late rounds during her 2025 French Open championship run in June.

The 21-year-old overcame several obstacles in her current quest to become the first-ever back-to-back women's champion at the China Open, including a pair of heated three-set battles against Canada's No. 25 Leylah Fernandez and Switzerland's No. 16 Belinda Bencic in the Round of 32 and 16, respectively.

Not all top-ranked WTA stars were as lucky, however, as No. 2 Iga Świątek exited the Round of 16 after ceding a final-set bagel to No. 17 Emma Navarro on Wednesday.

Gauff and Navarro aren't the only US stars showing out on the 2025 China Open court, as No. 4 Amanda Anisimova punched her semis ticket by ousting Italy's No. 8 Jasmine Paolini on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Navarro will meet No. 7 Jessica Pegula in an all-US quarterfinal battle on Friday — guaranteeing that three of the four tournament semifinalists will hail from the US.

Along with her China Open success, Gauff also secured her spot in the 2025 WTA Finals this week, marking her return as the end-of-season tournament's reigning champion while also becoming the youngest player to qualify for the event in four straight years since Maria Sharapova in 2007.

Considered the most prestigious tennis event except for the four Grand Slams, the eight-player 2025 WTA Finals will kick off in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on November 1st, with Świątek and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka also taking part.

How to watch the 2025 China Open

The 2025 China Open quarterfinals will wrap early Friday morning, with England's No. 81 Sonay Kartal facing Czechia's No. 27 Linda Noskova at 3 AM ET before Navarro takes on Pegula at 6 AM ET.

Friday's winners will contend with each other alongside Gauff and Anisimova in Saturday's semifinals.

All tournament matches will stream live on the Tennis Channel.

Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell appears to be in the clear, with the 29-year-old guard posting an injury update following her early exit in the third quarter of Tuesday's Game 5 semifinal in Las Vegas.

After trainers and medical staff carried Mitchell off of Tuesday's court and sent her to the hospital, reports originally described her condition as extreme lower-body cramping.

Following the Fever star's hospital discharge, Mitchell revealed on Wednesday that doctors diagnosed her injury as a rare muscle condition called rhabdomyolysis.

"I went into sense of numbness/paralyzing feeling with no movement from my lower extremities for up to 5 to 7 seconds," she said. "It was an out of body experience for me and I thank God for covering me at a time like that."

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Often brought on by overexertion, rhabdomyolysis involves muscle tissue breaking down and releasing harmful proteins into the bloodstream, causing muscle stiffness and potentially leading to serious kidney damage.

"My muscles stopped producing positive blood to my bloodstream, my body locked up from a physical standpoint and from there fatigue and cramping settled in," Mitchell explained before relaying that she is now "moving at a slow pace" and expected to make a full recovery.

"I played literally til my wheels fell off," she added. "THANK you for the prayers, love, respect, and support throughout all of this."