Atlanta is reportedly next in line to join the NWSL, with sources telling The Athletic on Sunday that the Georgia capital has won the bid to field the league's 17th franchise, with the newest expansion club aiming to take the pitch in 2028.
AMB Sports & Entertainment — the parent company to MLS side Atlanta United and the NFL's Falcons — shelled out a record $165 million expansion fee to enter the league, a significant jump from the $110 million Denver Summit FC owners paid to snag the 16th NWSL club in January 2025.
With the Atlanta United routinely drawing some of the largest crowds across MLS, the move to Georgia allows the NWSL to tap into both the area's existing soccer fanbase as well as the United's pitch at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the anticipated downtown home of the incoming women's club.
Also setting up shop in Atlanta in the near future is US Soccer, after AMB founder Arthur Blank donated $50 million to help fund the federation's 2026 relocation.
If confirmed, the Atlanta expansion will continue a wave of growth for the NWSL, with new teams kicking off their inaugural campaigns in Denver and Boston next year — despite rising concerns about dwindling attendance across several key markets.
Angel City center back and captain Sarah Gorden and goalkeeper Angelina Anderson spoke out on Thursday, opening their gameday press conference by addressing Monday's New York Post op-ed penned by teammate Elizabeth Eddy that urged the NWSL to adopt a "clear standard" for gender eligibility.
"Questions and controversy abound over intersex and transgender athletes," Eddy wrote, suggesting the league require players be "born with ovaries" or undergo genetic testing, with a photo of Orlando Pride and Zambia striker Barbra Banda — who faced fan harassment earlier this year — as the lead image.
The article — and its originating tweet — provoked backlash online, with Angel City issuing a statement on Tuesday saying the op-ed "does not reflect the opinion of an entire organization," and that the team "has remained committed to equity, inclusion, and belonging."
ACFC captain Gorden used stronger language, saying that the article directly caused her teammates "hurt" and "harm."
"We don't agree with the things written for a plethora of reasons, but mostly the undertones come across as transphobic and racist," Gorden, who has a history of addressing social justice issues, told reporters.
Gender policy abandonment "invites harassment" of NWSL players
After quietly abandoning a 2021 policy that deemed all transwomen eligible so long as their testosterone levels mirrored those assigned female at birth, the NWSL has failed to provide official gender eligibility guidelines in the three years since — though no current league athletes identify as trans.
"The league may have hoped its silence over this lack of policy would be taken as an openness to revisiting or reworking its approach, or at least neutrality when it comes to the inclusion of trans and intersex players," wrote The Athletic’s Meg Linehan in response.
"But the league and commissioner Jessica Berman's silence have instead repeatedly invited harassment of current players — to whom such a policy would not apply in any case — especially Black and queer players."
According to an NWSL Players Association spokesperson, collective bargaining — rather than the league itself — must determine all policy matters, including guidelines surrounding gender eligibility.
As for where the players union stands on the issue, the spokesperson told The Athletic that "Any position the NWSLPA takes…is and will be the product of a thoughtful, deliberate process that engages all our members and the issues that are important to them."
The WNBA and WNBPA might have 30 more days to negotiate, with sources telling ESPN late Tuesday that the league has formally offered an extension on the pair's October 31st CBA deadline.
With no agreement currently in sight and mounting rumors of a possible work stoppage, the proposed extension would allow bargaining to continue without interruption.
The action comes with precedent, as both parties agreed to a 60-day extension during the last CBA negotiation in 2019, with the deal later finalized in January 2020.
In response to the offer, ESPN reported that "players might be willing to consider an extension 'under the right circumstances' but they feel 'those circumstances do not yet exist.'"
The WNBPA did see an extension offer coming, with union senior adviser and legal counsel Erin D. Drake telling The Athletic on Tuesday, "We have worked hard to be able to say on Friday, we did it. Unfortunately, that's not going to happen."
Increased public scrutiny has fueled tensions around key issues on the negotiating table like revenue sharing and salary structure, with the league claiming that the WNBPA hasn't yet offered a viable counterproposal while the union accuses the WNBA of undervaluing players and delaying meaningful engagement.
"We urge the Players Association to spend less time disseminating public misinformation and more time joining us in constructive engagement across the table," a WNBA spokesperson told ESPN.
With Friday's CBA deadline fast approaching, the WNBPA could feel pressure to accept the extension offer from the WNBA — though kicking the can down the road doesn't always guarantee progress.
Two-time World Cup champion Christen Press is hanging up her boots, as the Angel City and USWNT star announced her retirement on Wednesday, marking the end of the 2025 NWSL season as the finish line of an almost two-decade-long pro and amateur career.
The 36-year-old forward ranks ninth on the USWNT's all-time scoring list with 64 goals across her 155 international appearances, earning World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019 plus Olympic bronze at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo.
However, a 2022 ACL tear saw Press sidelined, with the Stanford alum undergoing four surgeries over two years as she battled back onto the pitch, making her return to ACFC in 2024.
Press was the LA expansion side's first official signing in 2021, going on to make 37 appearances for her hometown NWSL team after stints with the Chicago Red Stars, Utah Royals, and the WSL's Manchester United, among other teams.
Her impact also extended beyond the pitch, as Press found success alongside her wife, recently retired fellow USWNT star Tobin Heath, in the lifestyle brand RE—INC and its "The RE—CAP Show" podcast.
"I'm retiring from professional soccer and I've decided that this is my last season and my last few games," Press told Good Morning America on Wednesday morning. "I thought I would wait until I didn't want to play anymore, but I realized…that time is never going to come."
"I feel a mix of everything," Press acknowledged about her impending retirement. "Yes, there's relief, there's joy, there's excitement, there's fear, there's so much grief. I have so much grief, a part of me, a piece of me, I'm losing her."
The WNBA released its 2025 All-Defensive Teams on Wednesday, delaying the announcement more than a week amid the fallout from the viral takedown of league leadership by Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier.
Collier herself headlines the First Team, with Lynx teammate Alanna Smith, Phoenix Mercury standout Alyssa Thomas, Seattle Storm star Gabby Williams, and the Las Vegas Aces' four-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson joining the Minnesota star on the 2025 WNBA All-Defensive roster.
Second Team honors went to Indiana Fever center Aliyah Boston, the Golden State Valkyries' 2025 WNBA Most Improved Player Veronica Burton, Atlanta Dream guard Rhyne Howard, Seattle Storm forward Ezi Magbegor, and New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart.
The WNBA's first-ever co-Defensive Player of the Year award-winners Wilson and Smith put up leading individual stats throughout the 2025 season, with Wilson averaging a league-high 2.3 blocks along with 7.9 defensive rebounds per game while Smith averaged a team-high 1.3 steals and 1.9 blocks per game.
Collier averaged 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks per game, contributing to Minnesota's league-best 97.5 defensive rating, while Williams tied for the second-most single-season steals with 99 — just one short of WNBA legend Teresa Weatherspoon's 1998 record.
In her debut year with the Mercury, Thomas became the first-ever WNBA player to average 15+ points, 8+ rebounds, 9+ assists, and 1+ steals per game while shooting over 50% from the field.
This year's Second Team featured three first-ever selections, with Boston, Burton, and Howard all making their All-Defensive Team debuts.
The NWSL is changing up its athlete acquisition process, with the league announcing on Wednesday that it will replace the CBA-eliminated draft with a pair of player combines starting this December.
Dividing prospects into two groups — adults and college-aged (U18-23) and youth (U13-17) — the three-day programs will showcase player talent and allow clubs to sign standouts as free agents.
To maintain competitive balance across the NWSL and set incoming 2026 expansion teams Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC up for success, the league already revised several roster-building mechanisms, including adopting a new allocation money structure as well as intra-league loans.
Like the abolishment of the draft and the new mechanism requiring athletes to acquiesce to their own trades, the new NWSL combines will give players more freedom over their careers while also better aligning the growing US league with global soccer standards.
"As the women's soccer landscape continues to rapidly evolve, a Combine is a strategic platform that will allow us to support NWSL clubs in early talent evaluation and provide players with exposure to a professional environment," said league director of youth development Karla Thompson in Wednesday's statement.
"This initiative is about widening the lens...and ensuring that talent, wherever it resides, has a continued pathway to our league."
Despite falling from the playoffs on Wednesday night, Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase is still ending her season on a win, with the WNBA naming the first-year expansion team sideline boss the 2025 Coach of the Year this week.
Nakase picked up 53 out of the sports media panel's 72 votes to take the title, with fellow sideline rookie Karl Smesko (Atlanta Dream) trailing with 15 votes while veteran leaders Becky Hammon (Las Vegas Aces) and Cheryl Reeve (Minnesota Lynx) tied for third place with two votes apiece.
"What this does, is it reflects on [our] whole organization," said Nakase, sharing credit with her team and staff. "Without [the players], we wouldn't have had a winning season and we wouldn't be where I am today now."
Golden State made WNBA expansion history under Nakase
In leading Golden State to a 23-21 regular season — a league record for wins by an expansion team in their first campaign — Nakase also minted the Valkyries as the first-ever expansion franchise to make the WNBA Playoffs in their debut season.
That success came from the team's strong defense, as the Valkyries held opponents to a league-wide low in both points per game (76.3) and field goal percentage (40.5%) on the year.
Before joining the Valkyries, Nakase served as an assistant coach in Las Vegas, helping guide the Aces to back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023.
"Natalie has been a fierce leader from the very moment she was announced as head coach," said Golden State GM Ohemaa Nyanin. "Her core philosophy of connectivity and emphasis on high character has created an environment where everyone can thrive. Her unique approach to leadership and ability to hold players accountable with care while staying true to her values has been remarkable."
"I love playing for a fiery coach who always wants to win and believes in her players so much," said Valkyries — and former Aces — guard Kate Martin.
The NWSL is expanding its footprint across ESPN, with the broadcaster signing on to carry 16 additional regular-season games in both the 2026 and 2027 seasons, upping the platform's total to 33 matches per year.
ESPN will also introduce a season-long "Match of the Week" centerpiece series, as well as live coverage of NWSL Decision Day, when eight concurrent matches will close out the season on the same day.
"The NWSL showcases some of the best athletes in the world," ESPN EVP of programming and acquisitions Rosalyn Durant said in a press release. "We are proud to increase our commitment on ABC and ESPN, and to further elevate women's sports and the athlete stories."
This media rights extension builds on the league's ongoing blockbuster four-year, $240 million TV deal with ESPN, adding inventory for the final two seasons of the November 2023 agreement.
The deal expansion comes in light of the league's significant growth this season, with the NWSL seeing gains across both attendance and viewership, including a 72% year-over-year ratings rise on ESPN.
"This supplemental agreement underscores the growing demand for women's soccer and ensures our players and clubs receive the visibility they deserve on some of the most prominent sports platforms," said NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman in a statement.
The 2025 WNBA season is over for Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese, but the 23-year-old star is still making headlines, with Reebok set to drop her signature Angel Reese 1 sneakers on Thursday.
The Angel Reese 1 is a cornerstone of Reebok's re-entry into the basketball market, with the sportswear giant engineering the signature shoe for on-court performance by including features like responsive cushioning and added upper support.
Inspired by the brand's classic Mobius line, the shoes will hit the shelves in three colorways — an iridescent white "Diamond Dust," a bold pink "Mebounds," and a black and white "Receipts Ready" — with Reese's personal logo incorporated into the design.
Reese first signed with Reebok as an NIL athlete at LSU in 2023, a little over six months after winning the NCAA championship with the Tigers.
This week's rollout follows the July sneak peek of the signature sneakers worn by Reese on the cover of NBA 2K26's WNBA Edition.
"This isn't just a shoe, it's my style, my story, and my stamp on the game," Reese said in Reebok's press release. "I wanted to design a basketball shoe that elevates performance, innovation, style, and creative expression, all at once."
"Reebok and I built something that's true to who I am, and I hope it pushes others to stand in their power too."
How to buy the Angel Reese 1 Reebok sneakers
All three colorways of the Angel Reese 1 sneakers will be available for a retail price of $120 beginning at 10 AM ET on Thursday at Reebok.com as well as in select stores.
Star sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is reaching new heights, setting a new US record for the 400-meter race in the event's Tuesday semifinals at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
The four-time Olympic gold medalist finished the flat event in 48.29 seconds, shaving more than 0.40 seconds off the previous US record of 48.70 seconds set by track legend Sanya Richards-Ross in 2006.
Both her personal best and the fastest time in the world for that event this year, McLaughlin-Levrone's performance also makes her the seventh-fastest woman of all time in the 400-meter dash — elevating expectations that she could challenge the long-standing world record of 47.60 seconds, set by then-East German sprinter Marita Koch in 1985.
Known for her dominance in the 400-meter hurdles, the 26-year-old made the decision to focus on the flat 400-meter event ahead of this year's competition.
"I definitely wasn't expecting that time," she said afterwards. "It just shows the fitness is there. I'm excited for the finals and grateful to have taken down a record by an amazing woman."
How to watch McLaughlin-Levrone in the 400-meter final
McLaughlin-Levrone will take aim at the 2025 World Athletics Championships' 400-meter podium — and, perhaps, another record time — during the event's final on Thursday.
The US star will race against 2024 Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino and silver medalist Salwa Eid Naser when the final begins at 9:24 AM ET.
Live coverage will air on USA Network.