Alyssa Naeher exited the Chicago Red Stars game early on Sunday with an apparent injury.
After making a recovery run in the second half of Chicago's 3-1 win over the Utah Royals, the 36-year-old walked off the pitch limping but unassisted in the 62nd minute. She was replaced by backup keeper Mackenzie Wood.
Red Stars head coach Lorne Donaldson didn’t offer an update on the star goalkeeper's status in his postgame interview.
"No [update], I'm leaving it to the pros — the medical staff — so I don't know what's going on yet," he said.
While the injury is bad news for Chicago, who currently sit fifth in the NWSL table, it’s also potentially troubling for the UWSNT's Olympic prospects. Naeher, a two-time Women's World Cup champion with the US, has served as the team's default starting goalkeeper for the last several years.
Naeher is virtually a lock for the 2024 Olympics, should her injury not be too serious. But depending on its gravity, the knock could keep her out of a series of upcoming friendlies kicking off June 1st and 4th, Emma Hayes’ first as head coach for the USWNT.
Also leaving her game with an injury on Sunday was Jaedyn Shaw, who limped off the pitch well into stoppage time in the Wave's 1-1 draw with Gotham FC. Shaw has recently emerged as one of the Wave's top strikers, making it all the more concerning if she ends up joining teammates Alex Morgan, Naomi Girma, and Abby Dahlkemper on the injured list. All four have played in recent camps for the USWNT.
San Diego head coach Casey Stoney did not provide an update following Sunday's game, but noted that she thought Shaw had landed on her ankle.
The 2024 Paris Olympics begins Friday, July 26th, with rostered players scheduled to appear in their final club matches in mid-July.
After an illustrious career for both club and country, Gotham FC and U.S. Women’s National Team defender Kelley O’Hara announced today via Kelley on the Street that she will be retiring from professional soccer at the end of this year, making the 2024 NWSL season her last.
"I have always said I would play under two conditions: that I still love playing soccer, and if my body would let me do it the way I wanted to," O’Hara told Just Women’s Sports in the lead-up to her retirement announcement. "I realized a while back that I was always going to love it, so it was the physical piece that was going to be the deciding factor."
The 35-year-old will retire as a two-time World Cup champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and at least a two-time NWSL champion, depending on where Gotham finishes this season. Her legacy as a player is hard to fully encapsulate, and will forever run through some of the biggest snapshots in USWNT and NWSL history.
In 2012, O’Hara played every minute of the USWNT’s Olympic gold medal run, after having recently converted into a defender. Her soaring goal off the bench in the 2015 World Cup semifinal is the stuff of legend. And her return from lingering injury to play in every knockout match of the national team’s 2019 World Cup win cemented a storybook international career.
It was O’Hara who scored the overtime goal in 2021 to earn the Washington Spirit their first-ever NWSL championship, and O’Hara who returned to help see Gotham earn a title in 2023 after years spent in the trenches with the club’s previous iteration, Sky Blue. Her 15-year career spanned two professional women’s soccer leagues in the U.S. (she earned her first professional title in 2010 with WPS’s FC Gold Pride), as well as sweeping changes to the sport both on and off the pitch.
On the field, O’Hara has always been known for a motor that never quits, making the right flank her domain in attacking possession and defensive transition. In recent years, she’s also been celebrated for a competitive fire that raises the level of her teammates, whether she’s in the starting XI or supporting from the bench.
But injuries take a toll, a reality not always seen by the fans watching from home. "I've never taken anything for granted, and I feel like I've never coasted either," O’Hara said of her late-career success in the NWSL despite battling injuries. "I've always been like, 'I gotta put my best foot forward every single day I step on this field' — which is honestly probably half the reason why I'm having to retire now as opposed to getting a couple more years out of it. I've just grinded hard."
Recently, O’Hara has been sidelined at Gotham with ankle and knee injuries, and the situation motivated her to really prioritize listening to her body. "To get injured and come back, and get injured and come back, and just keep doing it, it really takes a toll on you.
"People don't see the doubt that's associated with injury,” she continued. "As athletes we feel a certain way, we perform a certain way, our body feels a certain way, we're very in tune with our bodies. And there's always so much doubt surrounding injury. It’s like, 'Can I feel the way I felt before?' The reality is sometimes you don't."
O’Hara didn’t arrive at the decision to move on from her playing career lightly. But once she began seriously considering making 2024 her final year during the last NWSL offseason, it felt right. "Once I was like, 'Alright, you know what, this will be my last year,' I have had a lot of peace with it," she said. "Truly the only thing I felt was gratitude for everything that my career has been, all the things I've been able to do and the people I've been able to do it with."
She said she’ll miss daily interactions with her teammates and all the amazing memories they’ve created, though she feels lucky to have formed relationships that go beyond sharing a locker room. "You're basically getting to hang out and just shoot the shit with your best friends every day," she reflected. "Which is so unheard of, and I just feel very lucky to do it for so long."
The Stanford graduate also mentioned that the NWSL’s suspension of regular season play in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic made her realize how much playing allowed her the space to simply be creative every day. The tactical elements of soccer provided O’Hara an outlet for problem solving and made use of her naturally competitive edge.
She’s now gearing up to channel her on-field intensity into her post-playing career full time, which is a new chapter she’s excited to begin. "I don't know if the world's ready for it, like the fact that I'm not going to be putting all of my energy into football all the time," she said with a laugh.
O’Hara said she would like to stay connected to the game in some fashion, whether it be as an owner, coach, or member of a front office. She’s also interested in the growing media space surrounding women’s sports, having provided on-camera analysis for broadcasters like CBS Sports in addition to starting a production company with her fiancée.
"I just feel like I have a lot of passions, and things that excite me," she says. "And I do want to stay as close as I can to the game, because I feel a responsibility — and I'm not sure in what capacity — to continue to grow it."
A sense of responsibility to grow the game has been a consistent refrain for the USWNT and NWSL players of O’Hara’s era, who ushered in a new age of equal pay for the national team and collectively bargained protections for those in the league. The landscape for new players looks different than it did 14 years ago, in large part due to this pivotal generation.
"I feel an immense sense of pride around that, because I don't know if any of us knew that was gonna happen," she said. "We kind of, as things unfolded, took the next step towards changing what women's football looks like in this country and around the world.
"I'm really grateful to have been part of this era with the players that I was [with], not backing down and pushing and knowing that was the right thing to do."
Whatever the future holds, O’Hara is going ahead full throttle. It’s a piece of advice she’d also give to the next generation of professionals looking to make their own impact.
"Whatever you do in life, do it because you love it, and the chips will fall in place," she said. "If you love something, you're willing to do what it takes. You're willing to make the sacrifices, you're willing to handle the roller coaster.
"To me, it's simple. Don't do it for any other reason but that, and I think you'll be alright."
Rose Lavelle is hoping to return to the field soon.
The 28-year-old midfielder has been sidelined with a lower leg injury since the Gold Cup in early march. Since then, she has yet to play for new club Gotham FC in the NWSL. She also missed a potential USWNT appearance at the SheBelieves Cup in April, where senior team newcomer Jaedyn Shaw saw success assuming Lavelle's role in the attacking midfield.
At the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee media showcase on Monday, Lavelle told reporters that she’s doing well and hopes to be back soon.
"I’m doing good — I’m hoping I’ll be back in the next couple weeks," Lavelle said. "It’s frustrating to start the year off with an injury, just because I feel like you come off preseason and you’re revving to go, so it’s so annoying."
Lavelle is still looking to compete for one of just 18 Olympic roster spots. When healthy, she ranks as one of the national team’s most trusted assets, but considering this most recent injury, her health is an obvious concern. Faced with an onslaught of experienced competitors and young talent, incoming USWNT coach Emma Hayes will have some big decisions to make when selecting the Paris-bound squad — a reality Lavelle seems to be taking in stride as she works to regain full fitness.
"We have so many special players, we have so much depth, and so many different weapons to utilize on and off the bench," Lavelle said. "Unfortunately that means really good players are going to get left off, too. And I think for all of us, it’s just about being ready for whatever role is given to us, embracing that, and looking to put it into a collective picture so that we can go into the Olympics ready to go."
Alyssa Naeher found herself in a familiar position against Canada on Tuesday – and once again came away victorious.
For the second time in just 34 days, Canada and the USWNT went to a penalty shootout. And Naeher went on an incredible run of form once again – stopping three shots – to give the USWNT the SheBelieves Cup win.
In addition to her key saves, Naeher also stepped up and drilled a penalty herself. It was reminiscent of her efforts against Canada in March – when she also saved three shots and converted an attempt of her own.
We have Alyssa Naeher. pic.twitter.com/uHDfVwY2NZ
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) April 10, 2024
“Alyssa is just so even keeled. She is someone that shows no emotion,” forward Alex Morgan said. “I know there are nerves under [there] somewhere, but she is never going to show them and she’s just someone that continues to show up in big moments.”
Her recent success in penalty shootouts comes after the USWNT’s dramatic exit from the 2023 World Cup, with Naeher both saving and making penalties before the team was eliminated by a millimeter on the decisive penalty against Sweden.
Naeher has since said she still believes she saved that shot. Irregardless, she’s been a difference maker in shootouts ever since.
"There's certainly a lot of mind games when you come into the penalty shootout, on both sides," Naeher said. "There's a lot of familiarity [with Canada] that makes it hard and also really fun to compete on the field."
Interim head coach Twila Kilgore called Naeher’s performance “incredible.”
“Is it not incredible?” Kilgore said. “I mean, nerves of steel.”
The USWNT are once again SheBelieves Cup champions, defeating Canada in a penalty kick shootout following a 2-2 draw.
After the team went down 1-0 at the half, Sophia Smith scored a brace to put the USWNT ahead 2-1. Adriana Leon would provide both goals for Canada, which included a late equalizer to send the game to penalties.
SOPHIA SMITH PERFECT LEFT FOOTED STRIKE 🇺🇸🌟⁰⁰🎥 @TelemundoSports pic.twitter.com/LCPdCvJssx
— Attacking Third (@AttackingThird) April 10, 2024
Following the game, USWNT interim head coach Twila Kilgore – who coached her final game at the helm of the national team – said that Smith’s play was another example of her “being a special player in a special moment within our team concept.”
"The first goal was just class," Kilgore said. "Sometimes individuals just do special things. It was a left-footed finish for Soph in a crowded box, just an exceptional moment, but also there's a big team concept there."
Although Smith started the game on the right wing she later moved to her preferred No. 9 position.
Four minutes later, Smith scored her second of the game. She was subsequently named MVP of the SheBelieves Cup.
SOPHIA SMITH PERFECT LEFT FOOTED STRIKE 🇺🇸🌟⁰⁰🎥 @TelemundoSports pic.twitter.com/LCPdCvJssx
— Attacking Third (@AttackingThird) April 10, 2024
"I just try to do my job when I'm told I need to step up," Smith said. "I don't think anything of that. I try to lead this team in any way I can and if that's putting the ball in the back of the net for the PKs or in the game, that's what I pride myself in and that's what I'm trying to do."
Substitutes Mallory Swanson and Trinity Rodman made late impact on the game, resulting in Smith’s second goal of the night, in which Jaedyn Shaw also played a part.
"I know an Olympic roster is very small, and we have a very talented player pool," Smith said. "So I'm just trying to put myself in the best position every day to make that [Olympic] roster, and by me doing that I'm making players around me better and they're making me better."
As Jaedyn Shaw continues her unprecedented start with the USWNT, interim coach Twila Kilgore thinks she hasn’t even hit her stride yet.
Speaking ahead of the SheBelieves Cup final, Kilgore said that there’s still more to come from the 19-year-old forward. Against Japan, Shaw became the first player in USWNT history to score in each of her first five starts for the team.
"I would say even though everyone is super pleased and happy, and we all see who she is, be patient, because there's more," Kilgore said. "She wants that challenge to bring everything she has to the table."
Shaw is just the 13th player in team history to score in five straight matches and now has seven goals in 11 appearances with the senior national team. While Shaw originally started out on the wing, she took on the No. 10 role on Saturday as the team’s playmaker – a place that she feels like she thrives.
"I do feel like I play my best game when I have freedom and when I can be myself, but also have a starting structure," Shaw told ESPN on Monday. "It's just gotten better since my first camp so I'm just excited for it to continue to go up."
With just three months to go until the Olympics, Shaw is cementing her place on the team’s roster – particularly with her ability to move positions, something that will be important as the team looks to build just an 18-player roster for Paris.
And according to Kilgore, Shaw is “still in the onboarding process.”
"Jaedyn has always been a really good goal scorer," Kilgore said. "I think finding her niche in this team and being able to score consistently is quite a feat, especially as you're being integrated.
"I would actually say even though she's here, she's doing a great job, we're seeing great things from her, and we're really pleased, I'd say she's still in the onboarding process. She's still working on all phases of her game -- excellent in a lot of them and being challenged in some others.”
The USWNT will play in the SheBelieves Cup final on Tuesday after a back-and-forth matchup with Japan that ended in a 2-1 win for the home team.
While Japan scored mere seconds into the game, the USWNT was able to recover. Jaedyn Shaw earned an equalizer in the 21st minute with a brilliant strike from distance. The goal also set a personal record, as she’s now the first player in USWNT history to score in each of her first five starts.
Jae's stunning strike 💫💫💫#USWNT x @att pic.twitter.com/kAqdNpDEB4
— U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (@USWNT) April 7, 2024
Shaw's mark was felt throughout the game, as she shifted to the No. 10 position and also tried her hand at a little bit of defense.
"I just want to point out, not only did she score a brilliant goal, and not only was she part of a lot of very effective build-ups, but she did a great job defensively," U.S. interim coach Twila Kilgore said about Shaw. "And this is an area where she has accepted a challenge and is continuing to grow and makes a massive difference for our team."
USWNT captain Lindsey Horan, who had the game-winning penalty, called Shaw “a footballer.”
“She has a physical presence, but she’s so smart on the ball and technical and savvy and creative,” she told CNN.
Both Mallory Swanson and Catarina Macario also made their returns. For Swanson, it was her first start for the USWNT since April 2023, when she suffered a season-ending injury.
“I looked up to her. She’s an amazing player,” Shaw told reporters about Swanson. “I’m so happy that she’s back and I can play with her.”
In total, 50,644 fans turned out for the USWNT, setting a new record for women’s soccer as the most-attended USWNT friendly ever hosted in the U.S. It’s also the most-attended USWNT match at home since the 1999 World Cup final.
The USWNT will now play Canada on Tuesday at 7pm ET in a re-match of the Gold Cup semifinal, which the USWNT won in penalties.
USWNT interim head coach Twila Kilgore opened her media availability on Friday addressing Korbin Albert’s social media activity, calling it “disappointing.”
Both captain Lindsey Horan and long-time veteran Alex Morgan addressed it earlier this week, saying that the team had conversations internally after Albert's activity came to light.
“We’ve worked extremely hard to uphold the integrity of this national team through all of the generations, and we are extremely, extremely sad that this standard was not upheld,” Horan said. “Our fans and our supporters feel like this is a team that they can rally behind, and it’s so important that they feel and continue to feel undeniably heard and seen.”
On Friday, Kilgore confirmed that such conversations had taken place, noting that “this team has never shied away from hard conversations.” It’s a sentiment that is similar to what was shared by Morgan.
Kilgore noted that Albert’s social media activity does fall short of the expectations within the team, although it’s unclear if U.S. Soccer can discipline social media activity.
“It is disappointing when somebody falls short of the very high standards that we set within this team,” Kilgore said. “This team has always been a beacon of respect, inclusion and demonstrated great allyship through actions for underrepresented and marginalized groups, including the LGBTQ+ community, and we will continue to do so.”
Albert has apologized for her social media activity, which included reposting anti-LGBTQ+ posts and appearing to like a post making light of Megan Rapinoe’s injury in her final professional game.
Kilgore said that the team is “continuing to work on getting better” and putting themselves in the best position to succeed in the SheBelieves Cup.
Albert, who was called in for the tournament, is available to play, per Kilgore.
USWNT captains Alex Morgan and Lindsey Horan addressed midfielder Korbin Albert’s social media activity on Wednesday, opening their SheBelieves Cup media appearance with a series of statements on the state of the team.
“We just want to address the disappointing situation regarding Korbin that has unfolded over this past week," Horan began. "We’ve worked extremely hard to uphold the integrity of this national team through all of the generations, and we are extremely, extremely sad that this standard was not upheld.
"Our fans and our supporters feel like this is a team that they can rally behind, and it’s so important that they feel and continue to feel undeniably heard and seen.”
Albert, Horan and Morgan are all in camp for the USWNT as they prepare for the SheBelieves Cup, which starts this weekend.
Early last week, previous social media activity from Albert, who plays for both the USWNT and overseas for Paris Saint-Germain, was surfaced by fans. It included Albert sharing a video from a Christian sermon that expressed anti-LGBTQIA+ sentiment. Screengrabs also surfaced of Albert liking a post that appeared to make light of former USWNT star Megan Rapinoe’s Achilles injury that happened in her final professional game.
Albert, like Rapinoe, wears No. 15 for the USWNT. She received her first senior call-up last November, after Rapinoe retired.
Rapinoe spoke out condemning the posts, asking if such posts are “making any time of space safer, more inclusive … bringing the best out of anyone?”
Both current and former USWNT teammates, including long-time captain Becky Sauerbrunn, Lynn Williams and Abby Dahlkemper, reshared Rapinoe's post.
Rapinoe later confirmed to The Athletic that the post was in response to Albert’s social media activity, but also said that her focus was on protecting queer lives and sharing concerns over how online activity and anti-trans sentiment can have real-world consequences.
Albert later apologized, writing that the activity was “immature and disrespectful”:
“I'm really disappointed in myself and am deeply sorry for the hurt that I have caused to my teammates, other players, fans, friends and anyone who was offended,” she said, in part. “I truly believe that everyone should feel safe and respected everywhere and on all playing fields. I know my actions have not lived up to that and for that I sincerely apologize. It’s an honor and a privilege to play this sport on the world stage and I promise to do better.”
On Wednesday, Morgan told reporters that the USWNT is committed to “maintaining a safe and respectful space, especially as allies and members of the LGBTQ+ community.”
"This platform has given us an opportunity to highlight causes that matter to us — something we never take for granted. And we'll keep using this platform to give attention to causes that are important to us," she said. "It's also important to note we've had internal discussions around the situation and that will stay within the team. … We have never shied away from hard conversations within this team."
Mallory Swanson also spoke with the media, reaffirming that the conversations had happened.
“We’ve had internal conversations and ultimately, those just stay internal,” Swanson said.
USWNT midfielder Korbin Albert has apologized for past social media activity that appeared to support anti-LGBTQIA+ content and for liking an Instagram post that made light of Megan Rapinoe’s injury in her final professional game.
The posts caused Rapinoe to call out the midfielder, who now wears Rapinoe’s No. 15, on Instagram, addressing her note to “the people who want to hide behind ‘my beliefs’” and saying that “all you believe in is hate.”
Rapinoe’s comments were then shared by USWNT teammate Becky Sauerbrunn, as well as others like Lynn Williams, Sam Mewis and Kristie Mewis.
Among the posts reposted to Albert’s TikTok was a Christian sermon talking about how being gay and “feeling transgender” is wrong. The posts surfaced earlier this week and garnered widespread attention among fans of women’s soccer.
Albert started in Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League game on Thursday, scoring in the 70th minute. Following the game, and hours after Rapinoe’s post, Albert posted an apology to her Instagram.
"I want to sincerely apologize for my actions on social media," Albert wrote in a post shared on her Instagram story late Thursday. "Liking and sharing posts that are offensive, insensitive and hurtful was immature and disrespectful which was never my intent. I'm really disappointed in myself and am deeply sorry for the hurt that I have caused to my teammates, other players, fans, friends and anyone who was offended.
“I truly believe that everyone should feel safe and respected everywhere and on all playing fields. I know my actions have not lived up to that and for that I sincerely apologize. It’s an honor and a privilege to play this sport on the world stage and I promise to do better.”
U.S. Soccer has yet to address Albert’s social media activity, although she is set to join the USWNT next week in camp ahead of the SheBelieves Cup, which starts on April 6.