Arsenal confirmed USWNT defender Jenna Nighswonger as their newest signing on Thursday, with the ex-Gotham FC midfielder becoming a symbolic center-point for the recent exodus of NWSL stars heading overseas.
The 2023 NWSL champion is just the latest in a number of Gotham FC's offseason departures, as the NY/NJ club's superteam experiment resulted in a roster that's bursting at the seams.
At 24 years old, Nighswonger also finds herself among a group of NWSL players currently moving away from the US league. She follows USWNT teammate Naomi Girma — who last week signed with Chelsea for a record fee — 2023 NWSL MVP Kerolin, and other standouts to England's top-flight Women's Super League (WSL).
These moves have reignited longstanding discussions surrounding parity and superiority within international women's leagues. And with so many moving parts, it's easy for a single player to get caught up in a worldwide debate that far eclipses their career. But as Nighswonger tells it, the decision to sign with Arsenal comes from a simpler, more personal place.
"Playing in England is just something that I've always wanted to do," she told Just Women’s Sports this week in the lead-up to Arsenal's announcement. "So sometimes when an opportunity presents itself, even if you're happy at a club, you just have to take a leap of faith."
Of course, Nighswonger is less interested in comparing the NWSL to the WSL, preferring instead to detail her own footballing journey. "I have nothing but positive things to say about Gotham and the NWSL," she continued. "I think [transferring] is just a fun opportunity to play in another country, and learn about a new culture."
The opportunity to join Arsenal came about quickly. Though Nighswonger noted that any offseason comes with the possibility of player movement.
"My agent just called me and I was through the moon, just so excited," she said.
A fitting positional pick-up for Nighswonger
Beyond the headlines, the transfer is clearly a good positional fit for Nighswonger's continued development. Despite originally launching her professional career as an attacking midfielder, she moved to left-back after winning 2023's NWSL Rookie of the Year award in the role.
"I'm so grateful for [Gotham]," she said. "Because when they picked me up out of college, I was an attacking mid, and they saw the vision and had confidence in me to be a left-back."
The 24-year-old's successful conversion piqued the attention of the USWNT senior team. Going from a position of depth to one that centers on consistency was especially appealing for the national team. Subsequently, Nighswonger featured as an option off the bench for the US during last summer's Olympic gold medal run. However, she has yet to unseat 32-year-old Crystal Dunn to claim a starting spot in any major competition.
Dunn herself is just one example of an attacking-minded player making the move to outside-back at the international level. As such, Nighswonger trusts that the more appearances she has on the flank, the more comfortable she will become.
"When I first changed to left-back, I was kind of like, 'What am I doing?'" she recalled. "I had a little bit of a moment — I thought I was the No. 10, that's what I've been for a while. Then switching to left-back, I started to love it more and more."
"I might not have the experience that all these other left-backs have," she added. "But I have talents coming from other positions that are useful as well."
Becoming a two-way player with Gotham
As she shifts through thirds on the pitch, Nighswonger is certainly attacking-focused. But she increasingly feels drawn to becoming a true two-way player at the highest level. The NWSL has a reputation for fast-paced play and a high level of transition. However, thanks in part to to Spanish head coach Juan Carlos Amorós's overseas experience, Gotham wasn't a stranger to favoring the possession-based style more often encountered in Europe.
Throughout the 2024 regular season, Gotham played a very fluid defensive formation that utilized Nighswonger's instincts as an attacker. The team would defend in a back four, but their offense saw the outside-backs pushing into the attacking third. Therefore, it wouldn't be uncommon to see Nighswonger alongside the center-backs on opposing goal kicks. But the moment Gotham won possession back, she'd be sprinting forward ready for service.
"The more I play this position and the more games I hopefully get on the national team or with Arsenal, challenges are gonna happen," she acknowledged. "It's just trying to work through those and accept that adversity is what's going to make you better in the long run."
Nighswonger talks overcoming adversity
While she downplays any talk of strife between her and her former NWSL club, some of the adversity she mentioned did show on the pitch. Nighswonger didn't start in Gotham's final regular season game — nor their two postseason matches — with the club instead featuring WSL product Jess Carter and longtime veteran Mandy Freeman.
With Gotham players Carter, Freeman, and Brazilian defender Bruninha all under contract through 2025, Nighswonger's position had become a little crowded. She also had her work cut out for her on the USWNT, struggling against the Netherlands alongside her teammates before coming off at halftime in 2024's hard-fought final friendly.
But none of those factors spell disaster for a young player. Instead, they might simply signal a need for a change. And Nighswonger won't be without Arsenal allies to get her through it. Soon, she'll be suiting up beside fellow USWNT star Emily Fox, who has excelled since joining the Gunners in early 2024.
It's 'full steam ahead' with Arsenal
Nighswonger named Fox as an important point of contact during her transfer decision. She also mentioned her excitement to learn as much as possible from Katie McCabe, with the Ireland captain having run Arsenal's left flank for years. And off the pitch, she's ready for every new challenge.
She's eager for Fox to show her around London. Additionally, she can't wait for her first match at the Emirates, the women's side's primary home this season. She's already heard good things about player housing. And when touring the facilities for her medical checkup, she was awestruck by the English club's rich history.
"I've wanted to come here since I was seven because I watched the Premier League," she said. "It's always been a dream of mine."
Nighswonger is now laser-focused on getting up to speed, integrating herself into the locker room culture Arsenal has already established. From there, it's all about competing for trophies against the other ambitious European sides. With Chelsea catapulting ahead in the WSL standings and a slew of top squads vying for this year's UEFA Champions League title, Arsenal's success will surely be a team effort.
"We're going after trophies," Nighswonger told JWS. "I'm here to help the team win, and I know they want to win, too. So full steam ahead."
Women's college basketball star and Notre Dame guard Olivia Miles recorded her second-straight triple-double on Sunday, becoming the first ACC player to hit the tally in back-to-back NCAA games.
Miles notched a career-high 14 assists in Notre Dame's 95-54 win over Virginia, complementing the feat with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
The 21-year-old now has six career triple-doubles, tying WNBA mainstay and Maryland alum Alyssa Thomas for the most in ACC history.
"It's even more special coming off a year where I just sat on my butt," Miles told reporters, referencing last season's sidelining ACL tear.
"It's definitely not an easy thing to do, to sit out, but I learned so much, and it's enabled me to come and do what I do."
NCAA conference play tips off with Top 10 matchups
With non-conference fireworks smoldering, college basketball is transitioning to conference play as tournament contenders enter the regular-season gauntlet hoping to peak at just the right time.
Subsequently, top NCAA basketball teams held court in two ranked Big Ten matchups over the weekend. No. 8 Maryland edged out No. 19 Michigan State 72-66 while No. 4 USC took down No. 23 Michigan 78-58.
This week's lone Top 10 matchup revives a longtime rivalry, when SEC newcomers and former Big 12 foes No. 5 Texas and No. 9 Oklahoma tip off in Norman on Thursday.
Star Texas sophomore Madison Booker and senior point guard Rori Harmon will face big name Oregon State transfer Reagan Beers. Since joining the Sooners, Beers has emerged as Oklahoma's leading scorer this season.
The Sooners won't see much rest after their clash with the Longhorns, as Oklahoma then gears up for Sunday's date with No. 15 Tennessee.
How to watch Texas vs. Oklahoma college basketball this week
Oklahoma hosts Texas on Thursday at 9 PM ET, with live coverage on ESPN2.
Less than two weeks after qualifying play wrapped, the 15 nations joining hosts Switzerland in the 2025 Euro were drawn into four groups on Monday, setting up intriguing matchups throughout the July tournament's group stage.
National teams were placed into four different selection pots based on UEFA rankings in an attempt to ensure each group contained as equal a level of competition as possible. The top two teams in each quartet at the end of group play will advance to the Euro quarterfinals.
The lone outlier from this process was Switzerland, with the host nation assigned to Group A prior to Monday's main draw.
Notably, Poland and Wales are not only making their Euro debuts next year, but their first appearances in a major tournament after upsetting Austria and Ireland, respectively, in the qualifying play-offs earlier this month.
2025 Euro groups littered with top-tier matchups
Monday's draw laid out the path to next year's European Championship, complete with match dates and venues.
Switzerland's Group A will kick off the tournament on July 2nd, with the Swiss taking on two-time champions Norway while Iceland contends with Finland.
Headlining Group B is 2023 World Cup champions Spain, who will face their neighbors and rivals Portugal to open their 2025 Euro account on July 3rd. Later that same day, the remaining Group B competitors, Belgium and Italy, will take the pitch.
July 4th begins with tournament behemoth Germany, who've won an astounding eight of the 13 Euro titles, taking on debutant Poland in Group C action. The biggest group-stage threat to Germany's first title since 2013, though, likely rests in the day's second match between a tough Denmark team and inaugural Euro champions Sweden.
Group D is arguably this edition's "Group of Death," as reigning champions England must face perennial contenders France and the Netherlands, plus UK rival Wales, throughout group play.
Interestingly, England boss Sarina Weigman, who won the last two Euros by first leading first the Dutch to the top of the 2017 podium before doing the same with the Lionesses, will face off against her previous team and home country the Netherlands in England's second group-stage match on July 9th. The Lionesses will begin defending their title by taking on France on July 5th.
The 2025 Euro groups
- Group A: Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Finland
- Group B: Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Italy
- Group C: Germany, Poland, Denmark, Sweden
- Group D: France, England, Wales, The Netherlands
With the 2024 NWSL Shield firmly in Orlando's hands, attention turns to the final three available playoff spots up for grabs as the regular season turns into the home stretch. The Chicago Red Stars, currently in sixth, could become the next team to clinch a postseason berth with a win against the surging Gotham on Saturday at 4pm ET (Paramount+).
Only Houston has been eliminated from postseason contention thus far, but Portland (7th) and Bay FC (8th) will try to hold off those below the playoff line to better their odds at a quarterfinal appearance. Racing Louisville appears poised to challenge for their own spot, sitting only three points below eighth place.
Both Portland and Bay FC will have their work cut out for them, as the Thorns take on first-place Orlando on Friday at 10pm ET (Prime), and Bay FC battles fourth-place Kansas City on Saturday at 10pm ET (ION). Amidst a losing skid, Portland is already looking toward the future after announcing this week that general manager Karina Leblanc will be transitioning out of her role at the end of the 2024 season.
Standings stragglers look to ward off elimination
With only three regular season matches left, Seattle, Angel City, San Diego, and Utah will all face elimination scenarios this weekend.
LA's playoff hopes hang by a thread after a three-point deduction due to a salary cap violation, but forward Alyssa Thompson is keeping the dream of the postseason alive. Thompson has scored five goals and registered two assists in her last seven NWSL games, including a crucial assist in a win against the Seattle Reign last weekend.
Six points off the playoff pace with three games to go in the regular season, Angel City will need Thompson at the height of her powers in their matchup against North Carolina on Saturday at 7:30pm ET (ION).
Andi Sullivan suffers season-ending ACL tear
The Washington Spirit announced on Wednesday that captain Andi Sullivan suffered an ACL tear in the team's loss to the Orlando Pride on Sunday, and will miss the rest of the 2024 season. A Spirit stalwart, Sullivan started all 21 regular season matches she appeared in for the club in 2024, tallying two goals.
Sulivan joins a growing number of injured Spirit contributors, including Croix Bethune (out for the season), Trinity Rodman, Casey Krueger, and Ouleye Sarr. The Spirit will take on Racing Louisville on Sunday at 5pm ET.
The MVP race heats up
With KC Current forward Temwa Chawinga running away with the 2024 NWSL golden boot, is there still intrigue to be found in this year's MVP race? Chawinga won NWSL Player of the Month for September, while forward Barbra Banda continued to excel with the unbeaten, Shield-winning Orlando Pride.
Banda's goal contributions are slightly off Chawinga's pace, with 13 goals and six assists to Chawinga's 18 goals and six assists. Chawinga leads the league in goals per 90 minutes, but Banda holds the title in goals and assists per 90 minutes, while both players comfortably lead the league in xG and npxG per 90.
It's been a year for blazing offense in the NWSL, personified by Chawinga and Banda's excellence. But voters will have to decide if individual contributions, playmaking, and total team success are a bigger part of the picture when deciding who will walk away with 2024 NWSL MVP.
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Sparks parted ways with head coach Curt Miller. The LA team finished the season 12th in the WNBA standings with a record of 8-32.
After leading Connecticut to the 2022 WNBA Finals, Miller joined the Sparks ahead of the 2023 season. He went on to oversee a 2024 rebuild that added top rookies Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson to LA's roster.
Miller showed "courage" during an LA Sparks rebuild
"Takes courage to come into a situation as such and do the dirty work that essentially you don’t and won’t get credit for. Everyone not built for that. He wanted that challenge! Some people like and only want gold handed on a platter," Sparks All-Star Dearica Hamby tweeted after the news broke.
Miller began his head coaching career at Bowling Green in 2001, where he coached the Falcons to a 258-92 career record including 135-41 in conference play and a trip to the Sweet Sixteen in 2006. He departed Ohio in 2012 to helm Indiana University's women's basketball team.
After three seasons with Indiana, Miller left college sports for the WNBA in 2015, spending a year-long stint as an assistant coach with the LA Sparks.
Establishing a WNBA career with the Connecticut Sun
Miller spent the bulk of his pro career with the Connecticut Sun, joining the team for the 2016 season and assuming general manager duties that same year. In 2017, Miller went on to win both WNBA Coach of the Year and WNBA Basketball Executive of the Year.
While he led the Sun to the playoffs in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022, Miller never won a WNBA title with the franchise.
LA currently has the best odds to land 2025's No. 1 draft pick via the WNBA lottery, with UConn guard Paige Bueckers expected to fill that slot.
The WNBA has a new single-season scoring champ in A'ja Wilson, who surpassed Jewell Loyd's 2023 record of 939 points by dropping 27 against Indiana on Wednesday, boosting her season total to 956.
With four games left in Las Vegas's season, Wilson could easily become the first WNBA player to ever record 1,000+ points in one season.
"She's not just the best player in the world, she might be the most loved and adored by her teammates. I mean, this woman is special," commented Aces head coach Becky Hammon after the game.
2024 has been the year of the broken WNBA record
Thanks to achievements at both the individual and team level, the 2024 WNBA season has already left a lasting impression on the record books. In addition to Wilson's points tally, Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese set a new single-season rebound record before a wrist injury cut her season short.
Just five assists away from setting a new single-season assists record, Indiana rookie Caitlin Clark is on the brink of joining the bar-raising party.
While adding games likely plays a role in these feats, 2024 — the league's second 40-game run — has seen all three major stats fall in record time. Reese broke Sylvia Fowles's rebound record in 32 games this season, Wilson surpassed Loyd's scoring record in 35, and Clark is looking to break Alyssa Thomas's assist record in 38.
Final WNBA playoff spot on the line in last regular-season weekend
Tonight, Wilson and Clark will face off in their last regular-season matchup, as Indiana tries to earn their first win against the reigning champs this year.
Meanwhile, the race for the final playoff spot has never been tighter. Wednesday's huge win over Chicago putting the 10th-place Mystics just one game outside of postseason contention. With two games against ninth-place Atlanta this weekend, Washington could officially rise into that last playoff spot by Sunday night.
As for current eight-spot Chicago, the Sky will try to maintain their position by bouncing back against second-place Minnesota tonight before the top four teams in the standings battle for survival on Sunday.
The USA wheelchair basketball team and sitting volleyball team will both compete for Paralympic gold this weekend, after thrilling semifinal wins in the final days of the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games.
USA sitting volleyball took down Brazil 3-1 in their semifinal on Thursday, and will continue their long-held Paralympic rivalry against China on Saturday at 1:30pm ET. The US will be going for their third-straight gold medal in the event, after finishing atop the podium in 2016 and 2020.
On Sunday, the US wheelchair basketball team will take on the Netherlands in a gold medal rematch of group play at 7:45am ET, in search of their first Paralympic gold since 2016.
Breaking through
US wheelchair basketball reached their first Paralympic gold medal game since Rio on Friday with a thrilling 50-47 win over China, exacting revenge on the squad who defeated them in their semifinal in Tokyo.
Rose Hollerman led the team in scoring with 20 points, and Chicago native Ixhelt Gonzalez scored 11 points off the bench after a game-clinching performance against Great Britain in the team's quarterfinal.
On Friday, the US struggled at times with China's full court defense, but a strong third quarter performance prompted a comeback from a halftime deficit, and Team USA proved clinical enough at the free throw line to hold off a late fourth quarter push.
The US will now look to erase their only loss of the tournament thus far, taking on the Netherlands for gold after falling to the Dutch 69-56 in their second game of group play.
Familiar gold medal opponent
USA sitting volleyball's gold medal foe is very familiar, as the US and China have played each other for Paralympic gold in every Games since 2008, with China's Paralympic final streak dating back to 2004.
The US are the reigning champions, winning gold in 2020 and 2016 after falling to China in 2012 and 2008.
Team USA will look for another strong match from outside hitter Katie Holloway Bridge, who led all scorers with 21 points in the team's semifinal win over Brazil.
They will be looking for a little bit of revenge themselves, after falling to China in their Paralympic opener during group play.
TEAM USA WILL PLAY FOR GOLD!
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) September 5, 2024
Women's sitting volleyball moves onto the FINAL after a win over Brazil. 🇺🇸 #ParisParalympics pic.twitter.com/iQuOjNI2i0
“The team’s gone through a lot since they’ve been here," head coach Bill Hamiter said after the match. "To come together and keep playing, and play well enough to get into that championship match was good."
For the second year in a row, there will be a US tennis player facing Aryna Sabalenka in the final of the US Open, after Jessica Pegula wrapped up the best week of her career.
Having reached the quarterfinals in all four major tournaments, Pegula finally broke through to her first Slam semifinal and then final this week with wins over Iga Swiatek and Karolina Muchova.
A career-best run
Currently ranked No. 6 in the world, Pegula has played some of the best tennis of her career recently, reaching the quarterfinal of the Australian Open in 2021-23, and the quarterfinal of the French Open in 2022, and the US Open in 2023.
But Wednesday's straight-set win over World No. 1 Swiatek proved to be her first time breaking 'the quarterfinal curse,' with the hope of carrying the momentum all the way to the final.
Pegula had to battle back from a slow first set in her semifinal on Thursday, as Muchova took an early 6-1 lead and then a 3-0 advantage in the second set.
"I came out flat, but she was playing unbelievable," Pegula said after the match. "She made me look like a beginner. I was about to burst into tears because it was embarrassing. She was destroying me." But the 30-year-old battled back to take the second set 6-4 and rolled to a 6-2 win in the deciding third set, continuing her impressive 15-1 record since the Paris Olympics.
"I was able to find a way, find some adrenaline, find my legs," Pegula said. "At the end of the second set into the third set, I started to play how I wanted to play. It took a while but I don't know how I turned that around honestly."
Finishing the job
Pegula will face World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, who defeated her in Cincinnati, and who advanced past Emma Navarro in straight sets on Thursday. Sabalenka has only dropped one set this US Open, after not participating in the Olympics. The Belarusian will be looking for her second-ever Grand Slam title after coming up just short against Coco Gauff in New York in 2023.
"Hopefully I can get some revenge out here," said Pegula.
The USWNT closes out their group stage this afternoon, taking on Australia at 1 PM ET and grasping the opportunity to finish atop their Olympic group for the first time since 2016.
The US punches their ticket to the quarterfinals outright with a win or a tie, while a loss that maintains the team's goal differential advantage could also send them through.
Canada's spying scandal makes its Olympic mark
Somewhat ironically, seeding for the knockout stages depends on a decision that was made off — rather than on — the field.
The CAS dismissed Canada's appeal to reduce their six-point deduction as punishment for the team's drone cheating scandal this morning, forcing Canada — a 2-0 team with +2 goal differential despite having zero points on the board — into a must-win Group A showdown with Colombia to keep their Olympic hopes alive.
With Australia pushing to advance after Sunday's thrilling 6-5 win over Zambia, Canada's tricky situation makes them especially vulnerable.
Should Canada beat Colombia and Australia lose to the US, the Matildas could fail to advance out of Group B in third place due to goal differential.
Injuries continue to impact USWNT's Olympic lineup
For a US team already qualified for the knockouts, today's game will likely feature a good amount of player rotation without the team risking their competitive edge.
Defender Tierna Davidson will miss today's match after suffering a knee contusion against Germany on Sunday, while forward Jaedyn Shaw remains out with a leg injury. The USWNT announced earlier today that alternate Emily Sams will replace Davidson on Emma Hayes's gameday roster, while star NWSL rookie Croix Bethune will continue to sub in for Shaw.
Should the USWNT land in first after today's match, they'll play the second-place finisher of Group C — likely Brazil or Japan.
A second-place finish would line them up against the runner-up of Group A: Colombia, Canada, or France. While very unlikely, a third-place finish would see the US face off against the winner of Group A or C.
Where to watch the USWNT vs. Australia game
The USWNT will take the Olympic pitch against Australia at 1 PM ET this afternoon, with live coverage on NBC networks.
I am pregnant. I am actually very pregnant — 39 weeks as we speak. I’m also the founder and CEO of an early stage company, and for the first time in my life, I’m wondering if I bit off more than I can chew.
For the last four years, I have poured my whole self into Just Women’s Sports. It’s been a wild, unpredictable ride, one that’s been both incredibly fulfilling and incredibly hard.
When I started JWS, no one wanted to bet on women’s sports, media, or a 26 year old with only one year of actual work experience under her belt. People didn’t think women’s sports could work as sports, and even stakeholders in the space talked about these leagues like they were charities — something nice to have, but not anything that would ever make real money. And that was from the people who "believed" in women’s sports — you don’t want to know what the doubters had to say.
In the early days, it was all heart and hustle. There was no playbook. We had a vision, but that was about it — no real money, connections, or media experience. To keep the lights on and get JWS off the ground, all I did was work. I ran from fundraising meetings to posting on social, to listening to and editing our first podcast with Kelley O’Hara. I designed graphics. I sold to brands. I worked all the time.
At one point, I even hospitalized myself from working too much. But even that wasn’t enough to tell me to chill out — I closed our first big deal sitting in a hospital bed, with a virtual background so they couldn’t tell where I was. For better and for worse, I was willing to sacrifice myself in order to win.
Slowly but surely, we started stacking wins and building some real momentum. But even as we grew and found our footing, I still had the same existential paranoia and grind-it-out mentality that had been there from the beginning. Every win, every new milestone, felt like a reason to push even harder.
But getting pregnant changed that.
I’m fortunate to say this has been a healthy pregnancy, but even then… it’s been tough. I’ve been nauseous the whole time. I can’t sleep. I never knew my back and hips could feel this bad. And in these final stages of my pregnancy, I’ve been more emotional than I’ve ever felt in my life — which is just not ideal when the bulk of your job is to stay level-headed, decisive, and be able to make unemotional decisions.
For the first time in my professional career, I physically cannot just grind it out and push through. Being pregnant has forced me to do something not even a week in the hospital could do: recalibrate my work habits and take time off.
The idea of stepping away for maternity leave is anxiety-inducing. I’ve poured my entire self into getting JWS to this point, women’s sports are taking off like never before, and now I’m supposed to just detach from it for an extended period of time? What will that mean for the company? Will I be able to balance being a CEO and a mom when I come back? Can we keep the momentum we worked so hard to achieve?
I have so many people asking me if I'm ready. And I can say with unequivocal confidence: No, I am absolutely not. My only expectation is that I’m about to get smacked in the face with a brand new version of my life any day now.
But this pregnancy and impending leave have had an unexpected side effect — being forced to "take it easy" and think about not being here has actually improved my leadership.
I’ve had to learn how to get out of the weeds. I’ve had to empower other leaders at the company and build systems where they can step up and take ownership. I’ve also gotten better at saying no and being ruthless about what matters.
Ultimately, I’ve had to learn how to let go a little bit and trust the people around me to a greater degree than I’ve ever felt comfortable doing.
And so far, the wheels haven’t fallen off. In fact, it’s been the opposite — people have stepped up in big ways across the board, traveling for me when I can’t go to events, driving initiatives that I usually would have been leading, and taking things off my plate to help ease the transition. We’re actually growing faster than we ever have before, and the team has collectively taken on a whole new level of ownership.
I’m definitely not the first pregnant CEO, but the fact is, there just aren’t many places where women can lead and grow a family. There isn’t a tried and true blueprint for how to balance being both a mother and a founder. And I won’t lie — that scares me. There’s no way to know what this future will look like. But to be able to build a company and culture where that is possible is, I think, really special.
As we all step into this next chapter, my overwhelming feeling is gratitude. For my family and for a healthy pregnancy, but also for everyone I get to work with everyday building this company and changing women’s sports. For my leadership team, who were the first people I told about my pregnancy after my immediate family. For the whole JWS team that has been unbelievably empathetic, thoughtful, and simply human during this time. And for our investors, advisors, and partners, who never made me feel like I was neglecting the company by starting my family.
We’re all nervous, to some degree. Inevitably, something will happen while I’m away that will be intense. There will be decisions that I would have made differently. Something will slip through the cracks.
But I’m also hopeful — this pregnancy forced us to empower the team to steer the ship and make decisions autonomously, and we’re already seeing the payoff.
There wasn’t a playbook when we started and there isn’t one now. But as has been the story of JWS since day one: We believe in our vision, and we’re taking the leap.
Haley Rosen is the CEO and Founder of Just Women's Sports. Follower her on X @haleyrosen.