The 2023 NWSL Draft offered sure bets, surprises and several interesting trades Thursday night in Philadelphia.

Angel City FC telegraphed its choice for the No. 1 overall pick last week when it orchestrated a blockbuster four-team trade for the prime spot. But the draft class runs much deeper than presumptive top choice Alyssa Thompson.

Just Women’s Sports tracked every pick from every team, while staff writer Claire Watkins provided live coverage from the draft floor.

First round

1. Angel City FC: Alyssa Thompson, F, Harvard-Westlake Prep

The 18-year-old California native made her debut for the U.S. women’s senior national team in 2022 in front of a near-sellout crowd at London’s Wembley Stadium.

2. Kansas City Current: Michelle Cooper, F, Duke

The Current swapped star forward Lynn Williams for the opportunity to take Cooper with the second overall pick. After a season in which she led the Blue Devils with 19 goals and 11 assists, the 20-year-old won the MAC Hermann Trophy, which recognizes the best player in college soccer.

3. Orlando Pride: Emily Madril, D, Florida State

The 23-year-old starred for Florida State during its 2021 title run, then signed a contract with the NWSL to maintain her draft eligibility while she played for Swedish club BK Häcken FF in 2022.

4. NJ/NY Gotham FC: Jenna Nighswonger, M, Florida State

In her senior season, the 22-year-old started all 22 games for the Seminoles, notching six goals and 16 assists.

5. Portland Thorns FC: Reyna Reyes, D, Alabama

Reyes scored a career-high eight goals in 2022. The 21-year-old also led the Crimson Tide defense to 12 shutouts in 2022 en route to the SEC Defender of the Year award.

6. North Carolina Courage: Olivia Wingate, F, Notre Dame

In her fifth year with the Irish, Wingate more than doubled her career goals total, notching 14 in the 2022 season. She finished her career at Notre Dame with 26 goals and 11 assists.

7. Chicago Red Stars: Penelope Hocking, F, Penn State

Before she scored seven goals and recorded 11 assists for the Nittany Lions in 2022, she starred for four years at USC.

8. North Carolina Courage: Sydney Collins, D, California

The team captain for the Bears in 2022 anchored the team’s backline for four seasons.

9. North Carolina Courage: Clara Robbins, M, Florida State

The redshirt senior played 110 games in college, the second most in women’s college soccer history, and she won the ACC tournament MVP award in 2020 and 2021.

10. Kansas City Current: Alexa Spaanstra, F, Virginia

A versatile winger, Spaanstra made a name for herself as a pass-first player but contributed eight goals and five assists for the Cavaliers in 2022.

11. North Carolina Courage: Haley Hopkins, F, Virginia

Hopkins joined the Cavaliers from Vanderbilt as a graduate transfer in 2021, and she stuck around in 2022. Across two seasons with Virginia, she had 22 goals and 14 assists.

12. Portland Thorns FC: Izzy D’Aquila, F, Santa Clara

D’Aquila finished second in scoring in the NCAA with 19 goals in 2022. She posted 50 career goals in 78 games across three seasons for the Broncos.

Second round

13. San Diego Wave: Sierra Enge, M, Stanford
14. Chicago Red Stars: Grace Yochum, M, Oklahoma State
15. Kansas City Current: Gabby Robinson, D, West Virginia
16. Racing Louisville FC: Kayla Fischer, F, Ohio State
17. Racing Louisville FC: Brianna Martinez, D, Notre Dame
18. Kansas City Current: Jordan Silkowitz, G, Iowa State
19. OL Reign: Shae Holmes, D, Washington
20. Houston Dash: Sophie Hirst, M, Harvard
21. Orlando Pride: Messiah Bright, F, TCU
22. Houston Dash: Jyllissa Harris, D, South Carolina
23. Chicago Red Stars: Ally Schlegel, F, Penn State
24. Portland Thorns FC: Lauren DeBeau, F, Michigan State

Third round

25. Orlando Pride: Tori Hansen, D, North Carolina
26. Washington Spirit: Nicole Douglas, F, Arizona State
27. Angel City FC: Angelina Anderson, G, California
28. Washington Spirit: Lyza Bosselmann, G, Gonzaga
29. Racing Louisville: Jadyn Edwards, M, New Mexico
30. Washington Spirit: Riley Tanner, F, Alabama
31. Racing Louisville FC: Riley Mattingly Parker, F, Alabama
32. Portland Thorns: Lauren Kozal, G, Michigan State
33. San Diego Wave: Lauren Brzykcy, G, UCLA
34. Washington Spirit: Lena Silano, F, Long Beach State
35. Kansas City Current: Mykiaa Minniss, D, Washington State
36. Houston Dash: Lindsi Jennings, D, LSU

Fourth round

37. Washington Spirit: Civana Kuhlmann, F, Colorado
38. Kansas City Current: Ella Shamburger, D, Vanderbilt
39. Orlando Pride: Summer Yates, M, Washington
40. Washington Spirit: Delaney Graham, D, Duke
41. Orlando Pride: Kristen Scott, F, UCF
42. Kansas City Current: Rylan Childers, M, Kansas
43. Chicago Red Stars: Sophie Jones, M, Duke
44. Houston Dash: Iliana Hocking, M, Arizona
45. San Diego Wave: Giovanna DeMarco, M, Wake Forest
46. OL Reign: Natalie Viggiano, M, Wisconsin
47. Kansas City Current: Ashley Orkus, G, Ole Miss
48. Portland Thorns FC: Madelyn Desiano, D, UCLA

Read more:

• What every team needs in the 2023 NWSL draft
• NWSL 2023 mock draft: Projecting every first-round pick
• Alyssa Thompson: Get to know No. 1 pick in NWSL draft
• Sophia Smith and the 2020 draft class that reshaped the NWSL

Tennis governing body finalized its elite 2025 WTA Finals field on Friday, with the sport's eight top-ranked players gearing up to kick off the tournament in Saudi Arabia this weekend, each aiming to claim the the final major trophy of the 2025 season.

World No. 6 Elena Rybakina became the last player to qualify for the Finals, with the 26-year-old Kazakhstani star clinching her spot by reaching the Japan Open semifinals last week — beating out No. 9 Mirra Andreeva in the race to reach Riyadh.

Rybakina joins the previously qualified finalists No. 8 Jasmine Paolini, No. 7 Madison Keys, No. 5 Jessica Pegula, No. 4 Amanda Anisimova, No. 3 Coco Gauff, No. 2 Iga Świątek, and No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Capping a banner year for the States, US stars populate a full half of the end-of-season tournament, with Keys, Pegula, Gauff, and WTA Finals debutant Anisimova comprising the largest US contingent at the competition in more than 20 years.

Gauff enters the round-robin tournament as its reigning champion, with 2023 winner Świątek as the only other title-holder in contention this year.

Where to watch the 2025 WTA Finals

The 2025 WTA Finals start this Saturday and run through November 8th.

Live coverage of the tournament will air on the Tennis Channel.

FIFPRO dropped its 2025 Women's World XI shortlist on Monday, with the worldwide organization representing pro footballers taking heat for snubbing more than a few standout athletes.

The 26-player lineup featured zero USWNT players, continuing a two-year streak of the award omitting US athletes, despite the USWNT winning Olympic gold at the 2024 Paris Games.d

Reigning Champions League winner and 2025 Euro runner-up Mariona Caldentey also failed to make the cut — a significant snub considering the Arsenal and Spain attacker came in second in at the 2025 Ballon d'Or last month.

Notably, soccer players exclusively vote for the FIFPRO World XI — the only global football award to do so — with this year's nominations ruled by the Euro-winning Lionesses, who snagged 11 overall nods.

Spain saw the second-most nominations — including reigning three-time Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmatí — while goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger (Gotham/Germany), right back Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash/Nigeria), attacker Debinha (Kansas City Current/Brazil), striker Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride/Zambia), and forward Marta (Orlando Pride/Brazil) repped the NWSL.

The final Best XI roster will drop on Monday.

Full 2025 FIFPRO Women's World XI shortlist

Goalkeepers: Ann-Katrin Berger (Gotham/Germany), Mary Earps (PSG/England), Hannah Hampton (Chelsea/England)

Defenders: Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash/Nigeria), Ona Batlle (Barcelona/Spain), Millie Bright (Chelsea/England), Lucy Bronze (Chelsea/England), Olga Carmona (PSG/Spain), Ellie Carpenter (Chelsea/Australia), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City/England), Leah Williamson (Arsenal/England)

Midfielders: Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona/Spain), Ghizlane Chebbak (Al Hilal/Morocco), Debinha (Kansas City Current/Brazil), Patri Guijarro (Barcelona/Spain), Vicky López (Barcelona/Spain), Alexia Putellas (Barcelona/Spain), Ella Toone (Manchester United/England), Keira Walsh (Chelsea/England)

Forwards: Michelle Agyemang (Arsenal/Brighton/England), Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride/Zambia), Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid/Colombia), Athenea del Castillo (Real Madrid/Spain), Chloe Kelly (Arsenal/England), Marta (Orlando Pride/Brazil), Alessia Russo (Arsenal/England)

Five WNBA stars became cover stars this week, as Glamour Magazine named Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, Indiana Fever guard Lexie Hull, Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally, and New York Liberty centers Jonquel Jones and Nyara Sabally as the 2025 Women of the Year on Monday.

In the feature story, the players discussed the ongoing CBA negotiations, how they manage the WNBA's booming popularity, and other key issues.

"This is the best women's league in the world for a reason," said Jones. "The best athletes and the best competition, and people are seeing that now… It's time that we're paid like that."

Though the interview occurred weeks before her now-viral exit interview calling out WNBA leadership, Collier was already pointing out the disparities between player success and compensation.

"The amount of money that Caitlin Clark has made the league is insane, and she's getting 0% of it because we have no rev share," Collier said in her Glamour interview. "She gets less than $80,000 a year, and she's bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars. It's insane."

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Hull also made waves, speaking to Clark's popularity with the Fever going on to battle injury adversity all the way to the 2025 WNBA semifinals.

"I think there is a level of jealousy when it comes to the Fever, just because of the media attention and the fans that have shown up for us ever since Caitlin got here," she told the magazine. "We've heard people and players and teams talking in their locker room about, 'We can’t let the Fever win.'"

With the October 31st WNBA CBA deadline just days away, more than 70 elected officials are weighing in, sending a letter voicing support for the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA) to league commissioner Cathy Engelbert and NBA commissioner Adam Silver last Friday.

"This new CBA deal is an opportunity to set the record straight that women are valuable workers who deserve to be paid accordingly and treated fairly," the letter states.

The lawmakers also urge the league to "bargain in good faith to reach a fair CBA" before the current agreement expires.

Mayors, council members, and assembly members from seven WNBA markets signed the document — including New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani — as WNBA leadership continues facing increased scrutiny.

"We all want to be able to take in a full season, but we know...what [the players] deserve to earn," said New York City council member Tiffany Cabán, a longtime NY Liberty fan who spearheaded the effort.

The action represents a growing number of politicians applying public pressure to commissioner Engelbert, with the letter's 70 lawmakers joining the 85 members of the Democratic Women's Caucus and House Democratic Caucus, who penned their own letter last month.

As external pressure builds, hope is dimming for an agreement by Friday, with WNBPA senior advisor and legal counsel Erin D. Drake telling The Athletic on Tuesday that "it takes two to tango, and it has been difficult to find a beat, to find a rhythm, and to find the same sense of urgency [from the WNBA]."

As all eyes turn to the WNBA this week, the question remains whether a new CBA or deadline extension will be on Friday's docket.

"We're still going to be negotiating until [it's] done," promised Drake. "We just don't know how long that is going to take, unfortunately."