Kristie Mewis is enjoying her time so far in the Women’s Super League. 

In an interview with Betway, Mewis called it a “dream” to get to play in England. And even though she’s been sidelined with an injury since Feb. 18, she’s relishing the opportunity to play in the WSL. 

“It has been amazing,” she said. “It's been a dream of mine to play in England, so I'm happy to be here and to be part of a great club. I'm excited to be here and hopefully I can get out on the pitch.”

Mewis has spent a lot of time playing in leagues around the world, having also played for Bayern Munich in Germany, Canberra United in Australia and Iga FC Kunoichi in Japan. 

As debate continues about different women’s soccer leagues around the world – and how the NWSL stacks up – Mewis notes that the NWSL is more “transitional” than the WSL. The ball, she says, is more controlled in the WSL. But that doesn’t mean that either league is better than the other. Instead, the focuses are just different.

“I think they are different in terms of the games being transitional and a bit more athletic in America,” she said. “It's more athlete driven in the US, but here there's a bigger concentration on looking after the ball, keeping possession and more tactical. It's not a huge difference, but I think that would be the slight difference between the two leagues from my experience.”

After being named to last summer’s USWNT World Cup roster, Mewis says her Olympics status is still up in the air.

“I'm not sure because of the injury right now. But I'll try to get back out on the field and see if I can prove myself for it,” she said. “It's very up in the air right now, but we'll see if I can make it.”

Even still, she’s excited to see what new coach Emma Hayes is going to bring to the squad. She’s no stranger to the Chelsea manager. Hayes has coached Mewis’ partner Sam Kerr at Chelsea since 2020.

“I think she's going to do an amazing job with the team, I think she's just going to bring her knowledge. All the reasons she's been a successful coach are the exact reasons why the US needs her,” she said.

“She is a really good player-manager, she's so intelligent and reads the games so well. I've watched a lot of the games she's coached in, and you can see she's an incredible leader and I think all the girls will look up to her, so it's going to be interesting to see.” 

Arsenal’s sellout of Emirates Stadium on Sunday has brought its average attendance higher than that of 10 Premier League teams. 

The game was a win over rivals Tottenham, and brought the club’s average attendance this season to 34,997. In total, they’ve brought in over 279,000 fans to watch the team this season, selling out Emirates three different times. 

"I was thinking about a quote from Dennis Bergkamp when he said you don't support a team only for a player, or only for history, or only for trophies, you go and support a team because that's where you found an environment where you think you belong," said Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall said when asked about the crowd.

"And that's what makes me extremely proud to be able to say that I think we have found a place where more than 60,000 people feel that they belong. They feel that this is their home, this is where they want to come and support their football team. That is very special and that is something we need to keep very very much alive and keep building on. But, that's a special feeling that we have been able to create that together."

The average attendance so far this season also marks a 63% increase on total ticket sales from the team’s 11 home WSL matches last season. 

They’re set to play a match against Leicester on April 20 or 21 also at Emirates, having already played five of their eight WSL home games at the stadium. 

"I'm so happy that they've put one more game at the Emirates -- it would have been really sad to sit here and say that this was the last time we were going to the Emirates this season," Eidevall said. "We are looking forward very much to that and I hope our fans are as well. There is a lot of time for that game so hopefully the tickets sell fast."

Lawyers for Chelsea forward Sam Kerr will attempt to have charges of racially aggravated harassment dismissed in a London hearing in April. 

Kerr pleaded not guilty to the charges on Monday, when she appeared via video link at Kingston upon Thames Crown Court. Another hearing is set to take place on April 26, when her lawyers will “be arguing abuse of process,” according to multiple reports. 

The charges stem from an incident in southwest London in January 2023 involving a dispute over a taxi fare. The charge against Kerr was filed on January 21 of this year “with a racially aggravated offense,” according to the Crown Prosecution Service. 

According to The Guardian, Kerr reportedly called the police officer a “stupid white bastard.” 

Kerr’s lawyers intend to argue an abuse of process after it took almost 12 months for charges to be laid against the star striker. Should they be unsuccessful, a four-day trial is expected to take place next February. 

A star in women’s soccer, Kerr is Australia’s all-time leading scorer, with 69 goals in 128 games. She’s also a star for Chelsea, helping the team to the WSL title in each of her four seasons with the club. Currently, Kerr is sidelined with an ACL injury suffered in January. 

Speaking with the media on Wednesday, manager Emma Hayes said that Chelsea has given Kerr “our full support.”

“Sam has our full support, she knows that,”  she said. “It's a difficult time for her. Of course I can't comment, you know that. … I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize anything for Sam by speaking about it. For that reason, I’m sure you can appreciate that’s all I’m going to say on the matter. But she has our full support, she knows that, it’s really important I get that across, it’s something I really really value.”

Kristie Mewis made a statement in her West Ham debut on Sunday, assisting on a game-tying goal against Tottenham Hotspur.

Tottenham would win the game 4-3, but it still marked a point of positivity for the east London team, which currently sits 11th in the league table.

Elsewhere in the WSL, USWNT defender Emily Fox made her debut for Arsenal over the weekend, starting in the team’s 2-1 win over Everton. Forward Mia Fishel also earned a start for Chelsea in the wake of Sam Kerr’s season-ending injury.

It’s Fishel’s third start for Chelsea, and her second at Stamford Bridge.

Bunny Shaw had an outstanding performance over the weekend, notching a hat trick for Manchester City in their win over Liverpool. It marked her third hat trick in the last four league games.

Chelsea star Sam Kerr has reportedly extended her contract with Chelsea, per ata football.

On Thursday, ata football reported that Kerr has extended her contract through 2025. The striker’s contract was set to expire upon the conclusion of this season.

Her fiancé Kristie Mewis recently signed with West Ham, moving to the WSL after winning a NWSL championship with Gotham last year.

Kerr underwent surgery on Thursday to repair a ruptured ACL.

“I’m gutted for her and gutted for the team, these things happen in football and she knows that,” Chelsea manager Emma Hayes said. “The important thing is that we are here to support her and the recovery and rehab begins today. … Today is about letting Sam know that she’s with her Chelsea family and we’ll look after her.”

Hayes is set to depart Chelsea upon the conclusion of the WSL season for the USWNT.

Kerr has been with Chelsea since 2020, when she joined the club from the NWSL’s Chicago Red Stars.

She’s appeared in 128 total games for Chelsea, including 75 WSL games, and scored 99 goals with the club. During that time, she’s been the WSL’s top goalscorer twice and won three league titles and FA Cups, as well as the FA Women’s League Cup.

NWSL coaches Laura Harvey and Casey Stoney are reportedly the two leading candidates for the Chelsea women’s job, with current manager Emma Hayes set to take over the USWNT.

According to The Times, senior players on the team want a female to be Hayes’ successor. The Chelsea coach is set to take over as manager of the USWNT after Chelsea’s season concludes.

While other names are being considered, The Times reports that the NWSL’s Laura Harvey and Casey Stoney are the leading candidates for Hayes’ replacement. Harvey currently coaches the Seattle Reign while Stoney leads San Diego Wave FC.

Both coaches have previous experience in the WSL, and are proven winners in the US. Stoney, who joined San Diego from Manchester United, led the team to the NWSL Shield in 2023. Harvey, meanwhile, is a three-time Shield winner and was the manager at Arsenal before joining the NWSL.

Harvey’s name has appeared on a number of coaching shortlists, including on the list for USWNT coach, having previously been an assistant for the national team. In August, she noted that her “priority” was her NWSL club.

“I’m very mindful that this is my priority – this job is my priority,” she said. “I love it here, that’s no secret. I’ve committed to the future of this club. … I actually give our team and player credit if my name is anywhere near anything, because that just shows the performances that our group’s been putting in.”

Arsenal has announced the signing of Emily Fox, with the USWNT defender joining the Gunners from the North Carolina Courage.

It confirms what has been reported for weeks, including a rumored sighting of Fox in a Getty image that has since been removed from the photo database. She follows in the footsteps of USWNT stars Heather O’Reilly and Tobin Heath, who both played for Arsenal.

In a statement, Fox said that it’s “amazing” to have signed with Arsenal.

“When I think of Arsenal, I think of excellence, I think of a global organization, I think of family,” Fox said. “I think of pushing the standards of football and especially in the women’s game. It’s a huge honor to get the opportunity to represent this club and I’m excited to get started and play in front of our supporters.”

It will be the 25-year-old’s first time playing outside of the United States. But she already knows a couple of her teammates, having played with Alessia Russo and Lotte Wubben-Moy at the University of North Carolina.

“Emily has shown impressive development over recent seasons and her strengths in both phases will make her an important addition to our squad,” Arsenal head coach Jonas Eidevall said. “At international level, the experience she’s built up gives her an excellent foundation to make the transition to English football.”

Fox joins USWNT teammates Catarina Macario, Mia Fishel and Kristie Mewis in the Women’s Super League. Macario and Fishel both play for cross-town rival Chelsea while Mewis recently joined West Ham.

Arsenal currently sit third in the WSL behind Manchester City and leaders Chelsea. The league will return from its winter break on Jan. 27.

Fran Kirby still has a lot to give to the sport of soccer, whether it’s with Chelsea or not.

In a recent interview with BBC Sport, Kirby opened up about body image issues that she’s struggled with – particularly in the face of comments on social media. But she also spoke about her contract with Chelsea, which has six months remaining.

Currently, she says, the two aren’t in talks about a new contract. Chelsea manager Emma Hayes is set to depart the club upon the conclusion of the season to manage the U.S. women’s national team.

“At the moment there has been no conversations between myself and the club. I want to continue playing football and continue playing football at a high level,” she said. “I still feel I have a lot to give wherever I am, whether that’s at Chelsea or that has to be somewhere else. But I love the club. I’ve been here a long time and have some great friendships with players and staff.

“I still want to be competing and playing consistently so obviously that’s a decision that has to be made.”

Kirby has struggled with injuries in her career, but thus far has been available for Chelsea in every match during the current WSL campaign. Admittedly, though, the injuries have frustrated her in the past.

“You do question how many times you can go through something. It’s never an easy thing. I also have frustrations with my body and its limitations,” she added. “Playing football is something I still enjoy doing. I still have that really competitive nature inside me. I will keep playing until that fizzles out.

“I remember coming on against Tottenham at Stamford Bridge and hearing the crowd. Hearing that was knowing what I had done was being appreciated.”

The 30-year-old has played for Chelsea since 2015, making 101 appearances for the Blues and scoring 61 goals. That includes an outstanding 2020-21 campaign in which she scored 16 goals in 18 appearances and helped the club to the FA Cup. That season, Chelsea became the first English women’s club to secure the domestic quadruple (FA Women’s Community Shield, FA Women’s League Cup, FA Women’s Cup, FA Women’s Super League).

They also finished as Champions League runners-up that season. She’s currently the team’s all-time leading scorer.

A knee injury kept Kirby out of England’s World Cup campaign last summer, and limited her time with Chelsea last season to just 16 games (eight in the WSL).

“It’s not easy but my most recent [knee injury] was probably the easiest one to come back from because as soon as I had surgery, I didn’t have any pain. That was a relief in itself,” she said. “Of course, missing a World Cup is not a nice feeling at all. I was super proud of watching the girls but there was always that feeling inside, wishing you were there.

“It was still hard. I won’t sit here and say it was the best time of my life going through rehab while everyone was at the World Cup – because it wasn’t. But I tried to stay in a good place mentally. I wanted to be ready for the start of the season and to be able to do that made it all worth it.”

USWNT and Chelsea star Catarina Macario is back on grass and training in cleats.

After Chelsea women posted a photo of Macario in warm weather training, Macario wrote that she is “Happy to be back on the field” in response.

It’s a welcome sign for Chelsea and U.S. women’s national team fans everywhere, after Macario’s status remained in limbo late into 2023. The star midfielder tore her ACL with Lyon in the Women’s Champions League final back in June of 2022.

In November, Chelsea coach and soon-to-be USWNT manager Emma Hayes said that it was unlikely Macario would make her return in 2023. Interim USWNT head coach Twila Kilgore had said earlier that month that Macario was “integrating at Chelsea” but wasn’t yet ready for international minutes.

“When you’ve been out a long time, this isn’t about me withholding something, this is about the recognition that – with all the will in the world – you can’t just put a player on the grass with a knee history, and sometimes if the knee blows up, you then have to come back off it again,” Hayes told Forbes.

Macario signed with Chelsea in June of 2023, but has yet to compete for the WSL club. Earlier this week, Hayes said that she was excited to finally include Macario – as well as forward Maika Hamano – in the lineup. And it comes at the right time, as star forward Sam Kerr tore her ACL in training and will be out for the remainder of the season.

“Cat and Maika are going to feel like new signings for us,” Hayes said. “That’s why we built the squad like this. We knew there would be more games coming in the second half of the season.”

All signs point to Emily Fox having signed with Arsenal after the USWNT star showed up in the background of some training photos on Sunday in Getty Images.

The picture has since been deleted from Getty, but was credited to Arsenal photographer David Price as part of the club’s coverage collection. In the foreground of the photo are defender Leah Williamson and forward Beth Mead in pre match jerseys. In the background of the picture walks another player, who looks strikingly similar to Fox.

The team had a closed door friendly against Dutch club Feyenoord in Portugal.

Reports have previously linked the North Carolina Courage star to the WSL club. Arsenal head coach Jonas Eidevall has hinted at adding more players in the offseason, and Arsenal reporter Tim Stillman reported that the restricted free agent was a potential target.

On Friday, BBC’s Emma Sanders reported that Arsenal were “close” to signing Fox, with hopes of reaching an agreement. She also reported that the two sides had been in “advanced talks since before Christmas.”

Arsenal is currently third in the WSL, tied with Manchester City with 22 points and sitting behind Chelsea, who has 25 points and will now be without star forward Sam Kerr, who tore her ACL on Sunday.