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NWSL Players Talk Upcoming Challenge Cup

ABBY SMITH (ROBIN ALAM/ISI PHOTOS)

The NWSL Challenge Cup kicks off June 27th, making soccer the first team sport to return amidst coronavirus. We spoke to multiple NWSL players about their thoughts ahead of the tournament. Here’s what they had to say:

What is your overall outlook on the tournament?

“I think it’s exciting. It’s like a roller coaster of emotions really, because there’s so much going on, and so much goes into this, whether it’s with the player union, which I’ve been a part of, and then the NWSL, and no sports going on in general right now. Then trying to have this tournament. I do think the NWSL and the NWSLPA have worked really hard to get this going and make it as safe as possible.” — Lu Barnes, OL Reign

“I’m super excited about having an opportunity to play again. Yes, there’s an entertainment factor for everybody else, but this is still our job. Our job is to play, and it’s nice to be able to come back and have the opportunity to play games, because we’ve all been training to stay in shape and get touches on the ball. But obviously, it’s really hard to do that for an extended period of time, not knowing if you’re going to have games. So I think the league did a really good job with trying to come up with the best option for us, just given the circumstances. And I think a lot of people are really excited just to have something.” — Abby Smith, Utah Royals FC

“We are all super excited about the tournament. Our offseason really has been eight months of preparing, running, lifting and training on our own. Obviously with the pandemic it’s really frustrating that we couldn’t have a normal season. But we’re super stoked that the commissioner and all the owners and coaches got together and figured out at least something for this year. And they’ve done a really good job with all the safety protocols. It’s going to be a really great opportunity to keep growing the league and hopefully getting us more TV time for the future.” — Paige Nielsen, Washington Spirit

There’s been some pushback from those who think the league is rushing back. Is there anything you’re nervous about?

“Obviously the scariest thing is probably just the unknowns. That’s what’s scary in life in general, but especially during the circumstances that are given. But the OL Reign have been super informative, super transparent, whether it’s good, bad, whatever. They’ve just been super honest with us. So as a group, you just feel more comfortable when you have more information and you can just better make a decision for yourself.” — Barnes

“Obviously, there were some concerns with COVID, and how quickly the tournament’s coming up, but I think that in the grand scheme of things, a lot of people are just so excited to get back on the field. And the league has taken the initiative of making sure that we’re getting tested frequently and making sure that we’re socially distancing and staying in quarantine, and that everybody is taking this as seriously as possible. And also respecting the fact that it’s a very sensitive time for the rest of the world. I think they’ve done a really good job with reassuring us that they’re taking all the steps necessary, and then also providing us with the opportunity to play.” — Smith

“I know there’s been some negative backlash about how we’re the guinea pigs of live sports in this pandemic. But I just want people to know that I think we’re going to do the best we can with safety protocols. And we’re all itching to do our job, which is to play soccer. Everyone is slowly going back to work, not just athletes, and no one knows the correct way to do it, but we’re going to do it in the best we can and safest way possible.” — Nielsen

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LU BARNES (WILF THORNE/ISI PHOTOS)
What are your thoughts about playing without fans? 

“It’s obviously so strange. I’ve been playing professional for eight years, and you always have fans pretty much at every game even if the weather’s terrible, or whatever the circumstances are. Still, with or without fans, as a professional athlete, what drives us is our competitiveness and the will to win. I feel like that’s all still there, which will make the games exciting. I’m still counting on getting the usual adrenaline rush.” — Barnes

“I think that’s going to be a bit weird, to be perfectly honest. In preseason you have the scrimmages where you don’t have people there, but I’ve never been in a situation where it’s been completely empty. I have been watching the Bundesliga, and the stadium’s completely empty. You can hear everything. That’s honestly so interesting to me how they’re making it work. But I also think that they are at the forefront of everything, showing that it is possible to play and not have fans, and it can still work for the players and the staff.” — Smith

What has the communication been like with your team? 

It’s been great, honestly. I think we’ve actually had one of the best communications. I’ve talked to other players, and I know it hasn’t been great across the board. But we’ve done Zoom calls for the last two months together as a team and with our coaches. They let us know that players could go home if they had to go home, if they didn’t feel safe. And we’ve done maybe small group training sessions the past couple weeks. And they made sure to tell everyone that it’s not mandatory as long as they feel safe. So even leading up to this tournament they’ve done a really good job.” — Nielsen

“Our player reps have been very on top of everything, making sure that we know as much information as possible, whenever it becomes available. Our team has been very aware of other states and their circumstances. I feel like we’ve done a really good job with making sure that we’re following the rules and wiping everything down and being very, very cautious, because even though the numbers have been low in Utah, we’re still trying to stay on top of everything that we need to take care of.” — Smith

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PAIGE NIELSEN (RANDY LITZINGER/GETTY IMAGES)
What do you expect from yourself and/or your teammates after such a long layoff? 

“I do think we’re going to be a little bit crazy right off the bat. We have a lot of new players this year, and I don’t know how cohesive we will be. But we’ve been doing Zoom calls to try and get close to each other. We actually had the opportunity to go to Florida before the pandemic started, and so we all got to go each other there as persons and personalities. But I think with the tournament having so many games in a short period of time, I don’t know if we will get to our style that we want to play. It’s just going to be who has the biggest heart at that moment.” — Nielsen

“I’m ready. I feel like I was a little bit nervous, but I’m ready to get going, and I think it’s the good nerves, the kind you get when you’re excited to get back with your teammates and play.” — Smith

US Tennis Stars Advance as Wimbledon Field Narrows

Italy's Jasmine Paolini celebrates her first-round win over Latvia's Anastasija Sevastova at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships
World No. 4 Jasmine Paolini fell in the second round of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships on Wednesday. (Daniel Kopatsch/Getty Images)

The 2025 Wimbledon Championships wrapped its second round on Thursday, with the grass court Grand Slam seeing just 15 of the tournament's 32 seeded players advance to the Friday and Saturday's third round.

A full half of the WTA's Top 10 players did not survive the week, with 2024 Wimbledon finalist and world No. 5 Jasmine Paolini joining four first-round star exits by falling to unseeded Kamilla Rakhimova in a three-set, second-round battle on Wednesday.

At the same time, unseeded fan favorites like Japan's No. 53 Naomi Osaka and England's own No. 40 Emma Raducanu secured third-round spots at the London Slam, joining top surviving contenders like No. 4 Iga Świątek and defending Wimbledon champion No. 16 Barbora Krejčíková.

Notably, a full five US players managed to move ahead, tied for the largest national contingent still standing at the tournament.

Led by 2025 Australian Open champion No. 8 Madison Keys, the US group also includes No. 10 Emma Navarro and No. 12 Amanda Anisimova, as well as unseeded players No. 54 Danielle Collins and No. 55 Hailey Baptiste.

With matches against Świątek and No. 7 Mirra Andreeva, respectively, Collins and Baptiste have a tough third round ahead — though Navarro's battle against the 2024 champ Krejčíková arguably headlines Saturday's slate.

US tennis star Emma Navarro eyes a return during a 2025 Wimbledon match.
US star Emma Navarro will face 2024 champ Barbora Krejčíková in Wimbledon's Round of 32. (Rob Newell/CameraSport via Getty Images)

How to watch Wimbledon this weekend

While world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is still holding strong in the dwindling field, this year's Wimbledon play is proving that the London Slam is anyone's to take, as the grass court humbles even the sport's top stars.

Expect the twists and turns to continue as tennis's best battle for spots in Sunday's Round of 16.

Round-of-32 Wimbledon play kicks off at 6 AM ET on Friday, with live continuous coverage of the tournament airing on ESPN.

Finland Opens Women’s Euro 2025 with Upset Upset Win Over Iceland

Finland's Katariina Kosola and Emma Koivisto celebrate a goal during their opening 2025 Euro match.
Finland earned a surprise 1-0 win over Iceland in their 2025 Euro opener on Wednesday. (Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

The 2025 European Championship is officially underway, as Euro action kicked off with a group-stage upset on Wednesday.

Though the 2025 UEFA tournament's opener was a sweltering affair amid a European heat wave, world No. 26 Finland prevailed, earning a 1-0 upset win over No. 14 Iceland in Group A.

Finnish winger Katariina Kosola played hero, curling in the winning goal in the match's 70th minute — just 12 minutes after Iceland midfielder Hildur Antonsdóttir picked up the competition's first red card.

"The result is important for our confidence," Kosola said after Finland's first major tournament win since the 2009 Euro. "It was the kind of goal I have been practicing a lot."

"It's terrible to lose and we feel frustrated," said Iceland head coach Thorsteinn Halldórsson. "It is an even group and we knew Finland were good, but our first half wasn't good enough."

Elsewhere, No. 16 Norway closed out Wednesday's slate on top of Group A, taking three points by defeating host No. 23 Switzerland in day's second match.

Led by captain and 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg — who pulled the match even with a second-half strike — Norway battled to a 2-1 comeback win, despite the Swiss side outshooting and out-possessing the Norwegians.

Spain jersey hang in lockers ahead of the team's 2025 Euro opening match against Portugal.
Reigning World Cup champions Spain will open their 2025 Euro account against Portugal. (Aitor Alcalde - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)

How to watch this week's 2025 Euro action

Group B steals the 2025 Euro spotlight on Thursday.

While No. 13 Italy snagged a 1-0 opening win over No. 20 Belgium to kick off the day, 2023 World Cup champions and tournament favorite No. 2 Spain will face No. 22 Portugal at 3 PM ET.

Friday's Group C slate will pit No. 12 Denmark against No. 6 Sweden at 12 PM ET, before No. 3 Germany contends with No. 27 Poland at 3 PM ET.

Closing out the first group-stage matches will be arguably the toughest draw of the 2025 Euro pool.

Saturday's Group D slate features major tournament debutants No. 30 Wales against the No. 11 Netherlands at 12 PM ET, with No. 10 France taking on defending champions No. 5 England to cap the day at 3 PM ET.

Live coverage of 2025 Euro matches will air across Fox Sports platforms.

USWNT Caps Summer Friendlies with 3-0 Canada Shutout

Yazmeen Ryan, Michelle Cooper, Claire Hutton, Mandy McGlynn, and Izzy Rodriguez and the rest of the USWNT huddle after their July 2025 friendly win over Canada.
The USWNT finished the summer international window with 11 goals, conceding none, across three matches. (Brad Smith/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images)

The world No. 1 USWNT ruled the pitch on Wednesday night, shutting out North American rivals No. 8 Canada 3-0 to finish the international window on a high note.

Catching the Canada backline sleeping, US midfielder Sam Coffey opened the scoring at the 17-minute mark before 19-year-old Claire Hutton claimed her first-ever USWNT goal by heading in a Rose Lavelle corner kick in the game's 36th minute.

Houston Dash forward Yazmeen Ryan then padded the US tally in the waning minutes of the match, finding the back of the net just eight minutes after subbing onto the field.

Despite fielding a young roster, the US overpowered a veteran-heavy Canada side in almost every category, topping their Northern neighbors in shots, shots on target, possession, and — most notably — set pieces.

Canada ultimately couldn't match the game's mental pace or physical battle, as the USWNT scored all three goals off dead ball situations — a free kick, a corner kick, and a throw-in.

"It's not about the opponent," US head coach Emma Hayes said after the match. "It's about what we do, and I felt that was extremely dominant."

With Wednesday's contributions, the USWNT finishes the summer window with 11 goals scored across the three friendlies — and zero goals conceded.

The US now enters an extended break before reconvening for another as-yet-unannounced friendly series in October — but players will be expected to perform in the meantime.

"I said to the players in the end in the huddle, if you want to compete to win the biggest things, it's not what you do here that matters," said Hayes. "It's what you do when you go back to your club."

Seattle Storm Looks to Climb the WNBA Standings in Weekend Gauntlet

Seattle Storm star Nneka Ogwumike high-fives teammates as she's introduced before a 2025 WNBA game.
The No. 5 Seattle Storm will face No. 4 Atlanta and No. 3 New York this weekend. (Soobum Im/NBAE via Getty Images)

The 2025 WNBA regular season returns on Thursday night, with teams at the top of the league standings looking to prove their mettle against close competition across the long holiday weekend.

The No. 5 Seattle Storm have arguably the toughest weekend assignments, taking on the No. 4 Atlanta Dream on Friday before tackling the No. 3 New York Liberty on Sunday.

Four middle-of-the-pack teams will look to close in on a double-digit season win tally while the league's frontrunners strive to maintain their advantage in this weekend's slate:

  • No. 7 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 8 Indiana Fever, Thursday at 7 PM ET (Prime): Though still without star Caitlin Clark, the Fever hope to harness their 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup victory momentum against an Aces side tied with Indiana with an 8-8 season record.
  • No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 4 Atlanta Dream, Thursday at 7:30 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): Seattle will look to make strides against a strong Atlanta side while putting last Sunday's stinging 84-57 loss to up-and-comer Golden State in their rearview.
  • No. 6 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, Saturday at 8 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The rising Valkyries must face a Lynx side hunting redemption, as the league-leaders look to bounce back from their stifling Tuesday Commissioner's Cup upset loss.
  • No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 3 New York Liberty, Sunday at 1 PM ET (CBS): With injured Liberty center Jonquel Jones still sidelined, the Seattle Storm will have a chance to steal a weekend game against the reigning champs, as New York struggles to re-find their footing.

With the 2025 WNBA All-Star break looming, early top performers must keep standards high if they want to hold the line when the season crosses the midway point.

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