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The secrets behind on-field communication in NWSL title game

Becky Sauerbrunn is the anchor of Portland’s backline and lines of communication. (Craig Mitchelldyer/USA TODAY Sports)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The way players on a soccer team are able to anticipate each other’s movements at times can seem like a melding of minds. In other instances, the labor of communication is obvious, as goalkeepers yell out to their backline during clearances and midfield leaders guide their teammates forward.

The Portland Thorns and the Kansas City Current have achieved a combination of both, with verbal and non-verbal communication techniques carrying them all the way to the 2022 NWSL Championship in Washington, D.C. on Saturday.

While both teams communicate at a high level, they differ in their approach. A number of Current players, for example, prefer intuitive movements that rely on team principles and non-verbal connections.

“As much as we try to communicate, sometimes having no answer is an answer enough,” defender Kristen Edmonds says.

Portland players like to problem-solve using check-ins during breaks in the game and clear commands in the heat of the moment. With each tactic, they give their teammates a full picture of what they are seeing on the field.

“The most important communication is the one that’s going to create the most damage,” Thorns defender Meghan Klingenberg says. “So if it seems like something’s going to happen, and it’s going to create big shockwaves, that needs to be the number one priority.”

While each team’s collective approach is not always the same, positionally things line up. There’s an inherent relationship between a player’s ability to see the whole field and responsibility to communicate, which means the hierarchy begins with the goalkeepers.

“Whether we need to make a tactical change, or I’m just seeing maybe a passing lane that’s been open a few times in a row, I try to take chances [to speak] when the game resets,” Thorns keeper Bella Bixby says.

Along the defense, Portland staggers its line of connectivity, with wide players speaking more to the wingers and center-backs communicating with the defensive midfielders. “My communication style is a lot of pointing,” Thorns defender Becky Sauerbrunn says, and center-back partner Kelli Hubly agrees: “When we all get quiet, then that’s when stuff is probably not going great.”

For Kansas City, body language along the backline is everything. “Non-verbal communication has been a big piece for us throughout the year in season,” Current keeper AD Franch says. “Your demeanor, the way in which you approach things, your movement on the ball, off the ball — those are all different types of communication.”

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Kansas City's AD Franch and Portland's Bella Bixby are vocal throughout games as the last line of defense. (Nick Tre. Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

In the midfield, the ability to size up a full-team defense is paramount when you’re trying to force your opponent into turnovers. Kansas City midfielder Lo’eau Labonta quips that her communication style is “loud,” but specifically notes that she tries to help with pressing triggers, letting players in front of her know that she’s got them covered when they push forward.

“I need to hear voices, especially being in the middle of the park in a stadium that’s filled with 20,000 people,” teammate Desiree Scott says. “I need to hear the people around me to guide me.”

In the attack, most players pride themselves on being good listeners. With the breakneck speed of NWSL play, you often just have to trust what you hear from the players behind you. “As a center forward, you really don’t see a lot,” Thorns striker Sophia Smith says. “You check your shoulder, but you can only see so much.”

Forwards gesture whether or not they want the ball at their feet, but more often than not, a perfectly timed run hinges on the ability to read tendencies. To receive the ball, attackers have to turn back and watch play develop behind them, which can leave them vulnerable to challenges or turnovers.

“Obviously, we don’t have eyes in the back of our head, so it’s hard to know what’s going on around you at all times,” Current forward Elyse Bennett says. “So having people in the midfield behind me to kind of communicate where I can press or where I can put off angles is huge, because it saves me from looking behind myself all the time.”

Outside the lines, the managers try to make sure that their instruction isn’t heavy-handed. Thorns coach Rhian Wilkinson and Current coach Matt Potter each singled out one of the main barriers to communicating: crowd noise. Managers can try to project, but as attendance throughout the league rises, they have to pick their moments, including when to call players over to the sidelines for in-game instruction.

“Something maybe I wasn’t ready for as a female coach was — no one ever talked about it to me — it was how you strain your voice,” Wilkinson says, calling her attempts to shout from the coaches box “useless” as her voice disappears every game. “If they don’t want to come to the bench because of whatever reason, I trust their leadership to take care of it.”

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Current coach Matt Potter trusts his players to problem-solve when he can't pull them over during games. (Amy Kontras/USA TODAY Sports)

Potter focuses on breaks in play and halftime, and when the noise gets too overwhelming, he relies on his team to problem-solve on their own. “We trust our players, and we try to give them as much autonomy to be the decision-makers as they possibly can,” he says.

Across the board, players agree that encouragement is as equally valuable as commands, especially as the clock winds down.

“If someone needs to press, I want to tell them that I’m with them so that they can go fully,” Hubly says. “Because when you hear someone behind you going, ‘Go, go, I’m with you,’ you’re going to be like, ‘OK, cool. I’m going to go as hard as I can.’”

“I’m big on energy,” adds Scott. “And I think that kind of encouragement really helps you continue on, especially when the momentum of the game can change.”

As both teams focus intently on their own processes, don’t expect much crosstalk on Saturday. Players say they don’t usually notice chatter from their opponent, outside of formational changes and negative emotions.

“I don’t hear [opponents],” Klingenberg says, “unless they’re being complete assholes to each other.”

“I only hear if they’re being negative towards each other,” Kansas City wingback Hailie Mace says. “I think that kind of lights a fire and I’m like, ‘Let’s go. We got into their heads.’”

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

USC’s McKenzie Forbes: From Gap Year to the NCAA Tournament

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate McKenzie Forbes. 

Here are five things to know from our conversation with the graduate transfer from Folsom, California.

#1 Inspired by USC’s Head Coach, Lindsay Gottlieb, McKenzie wants to be a basketball coach or work in the front office in the future.

When weighing in on what makes a good coach, McKenzie said x’s and o’s are important but “Coaching is a lot of relationship managing and people managing. I think you have to be a good people person and be able to build those relationships, but also in that same breath, you can’t be afraid to have people dislike you in moments. I think that’s a big part of leadership.”

#2 McKenzie says the trajectory of her career changed when she made the decision to transfer from Cal to Harvard.

 In order to transfer, she was forced to take a gap year and spend a lot of time in the gym. “I completely transformed my body and, going into the Harvard season, felt like I was a completely different player. Going to Harvard and playing in a more mid-major conference, I had the ball in my hands a lot more than I might have if I transferred to another Power 5. It really developed other parts of my game.”

#3 How does McKenzie think USC will do in the Women’s College Basketball Tournament?

“I’m not going to give a typical interview answer. I want a Final Four. We have that potential and capability. Like why not? Why not us? I think we have all the pieces.”

#4 Her older brother, Marcus, was her biggest mentor growing up.

“He was basically my trainer from Elementary school on until he went to college.”

#5 Fun facts about Forbes:

She can juggle and she was the quarterback of her Pop Warner football team. “I was slow but I could throw it!”

Watch the full conversation on the Just Women’s Sports YouTube channel.

Christen Press back training with Angel City FC

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 15: Christen Press #23 of Angel City FC waves to fans following a game between the Portland Thorns and Angel City FC at BMO Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

Christen Press continues to inch her way back to a return, having returned to training with her club team Angel City. 

Angel City FC coach Becki Tweed said on Wednesday that Press is back with the team full-time as she continues to make her way back from an ACL injury. While she’s still working on rehab, her being back with the team gives staff a better picture of her progress. 

"Christen [Press] is back with us full time which is amazing,” she said. “Having her in and around the team every day, continuing to work hard on rehab ... she's in a space where being in with the team is really important to her and her progression as well.”

The status update comes days after Press posted videos to social media that featured her doing lateral movement in cleats on grass. 

“Look out world she’s on the move !” Press captioned it. 

Press has been sidelined with an ACL injury since 2022, which caused her to miss the 2023 World Cup. She’s since had four separate surgeries to help repair her ACL.

Press told The Athletic a month ago that she’s been “relentless” in her optimism with her recovery despite it being a “slow process.”

“I have a bit of relentless optimism,” she told The Athletic. “I never, ever doubted that I would make it back on any of the timelines I’ve been on."

"Every single time I’ve heard, ‘You have to have surgery,’ I’m completely shocked,” she said. “When somebody asks me how it’s going, I’m like, ‘It’s going great. And it was going great every time. So I don’t know what to tell you anymore!’”

Sophia Smith re-signs with Portland on record deal

(Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports)

Sophia Smith is now the NWSL’s highest-paid player. 

The Portland Thorns announced on Wednesday that they have signed Smith to a new contract through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the team did reveal that Smith is now the highest-paid player in the league on an annual basis.

It’s the latest in what has been a series of record-breaking contracts in the NWSL offseason. 

Chicago Red Stars forward Mallory Swanson, Bay FC forward Racheal Kundananji, and Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda all signed multi-year deals worth between $2 million and $2.5 million in total. While Smith’s contract is shorter and not worth as much over the long-term, the annual worth is higher. 

“We are over the moon to have Soph commit again to the Thorns. She is a proven, world-class talent and one that we are excited to have contribute to the team’s continued success,” said head coach Mike Norris in a statement. “We look forward to working with her in a Thorns jersey as she continues to shine as one of the top strikers in the world.”

In just four seasons in the NWSL, Smith has led the Thorns to five trophies – including the 2022 NWSL championship – while winning league and championship MVP in 2022. In 61 appearances with Portland, she has 34 goals – including a brace to start this season against Kansas City. 

She’s also a member of the USWNT, having scored 16 goals in 44 international appearances.  Set to become a free agent at the end of this season, she told ESPN she “thought of all the options” but ultimately Portland felt like the right decision.

"There is no place like Portland," Smith said in a small roundtable interview that included ESPN. "I don't believe there's an environment like Portland to play in and it's a city that's so special to me and a city that I feel like I've grown up in almost and become who I am."

She also told ESPN that the team’s new ownership “changes everything.” The club is now led by the Bhathal family, who bought the club after Merritt Paulson was forced to sell it following his part in the NWSL’s abuse scandal. 

"Since I've been here there has been a lot of things going on with this club -- a lot of not-great things going on with this club -- and I have just been waiting for some stability and some reassurance that this club is headed in the right direction, and the Bhathal family coming in is doing exactly that, if not more,” Smith said. 

"Their vision for this club is so exciting, and you can just tell how passionate they are about making this what it should be and continuing to push the standard in women's soccer globally.”

Caitlin Clark offered $5 million to compete in Ice Cube’s league

IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates as time runs out in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)

Caitlin Clark has been offered $5 million to play in Ice Cube's Big3 league, he confirmed on social media Wednesday after the offer leaked.

"We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship," Ice Cube wrote on social media. "But I won't deny what's now already out there: BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn't we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3."

While there has yet to be a women's player in the league, both Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie have been part of the league as coaches and won championships.

"The skeptics laughed when we made Nancy Lieberman the first female coach of a men's pro team, and she won the championship in her first year," Ice Cube continued. "Then Lisa Leslie won it all in year two. With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes."

Ice Cube, whose name is O’Shea Jackson, says that the offer was made with the intention that Clark be able to compete in the WNBA “offseason.” Clark is largely expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft in April. But it’s unclear how the scheduling of the two leagues would work. 

The 2024 Big3 season is set to tip off on June 15, with 10 games spanning through mid-August. The WNBA regular season, meanwhile, begins on May 14 and ends on Sept. 19.

On “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday, Jackson said that the league has yet to hear back from Clark. 

“We just need an answer, as soon as they are ready to give it to us,” he said. “It’s always 50-50 till we get a no. At the end of the day, it’s a generous offer.”

The offer – as well as the confusion on Jackson’s part about the timing of the WNBA season – caused some current WNBA players to react. 

"It's funny cause I be seeing his son at W games.. they don't talk?" wrote former No. 1 pick Rhyne Howard

"So no other women's basketball player has came to mind in the last 7 years?" wrote Lexie Brown, adding that she'd support if Ice Cube wanted to build a women's iteration of the league. She later discussed it on the Gils Arena Show, noting that his reasoning of wanting to “uplift and support WNBA players and women athletes” is a “cop out.”

Kalani Brown, meanwhile, told Clark to "take that money" and start a women's Big3.

WNBA salaries has been a talking point in recent months as more collegiate stars declare for the league. WNBA stars have often made more money playing abroad than they have in the WNBA. Clark is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on April 15, with a rookie salary of $76,535 for lottery draft picks (Nos. 1-4) that rises to $97,582 by her fourth season. But she also has an NIL valuation of almost $3.5 million.

Diana Taurasi famously skipped the 2015 WNBA season at the request of her Russian club, who paid her more to sit out than she would have made in the W. Her contract with the club was reportedly near $1.5 million per year.

Jackson also seemed to suggest that his league could be an alternative to going abroad

“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet,” he wrote. Although it’s unclear whether or not the rapper intends to make offers to additional WNBA players. 

While the league does hold prioritization rules in its CBA, those typically apply only to players playing in overseas leagues. It’s unclear whether or not that would prevent Clark’s participation in the Big3 league.

WNBA players that don’t want to go overseas currently have the option of playing in Athletes Unlimited, which competes in the WNBA offseason.

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