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Abby Wambach wants more women in charge of women’s sports

Abby Wambach has committed herself to growing the women’s game after retiring from her illustrious career. (Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)

“If you can see it, you can be it” has become a rallying cry for NWSL expansion club Angel City FC and Abby Wambach, one of the team’s founding investors.

The soccer icon is turning that mantra into action with her latest project. Wambach, who sits on Gatorade’s Women’s Advisory Board, is teaming up with the company to launch a new campaign dedicated to equal opportunities in sport. Gatorade’s “Fuel Tomorrow” initiative will include funding for community programs, access to sports facilities and resources and training for coaches on equity and inclusion.

With “Fuel Tomorrow,” Wambach says Gatorade put “their money where their mouths are,” telling Just Women’s Sports, “They didn’t just try to check a box with the Advisory Board; they’re also putting their resources, their real hard-earned money towards creating a better future and a better tomorrow for those who don’t have as many opportunities.”

Gatorade’s new program involves a $10 million initial investment in national organizations such as Athlete Ally, Good Sports, Honest Game Foundation, Laureus USA and the Women’s Sports Foundation, as part of its push for equity in sports.

“When they approached me last year about being a part of the Advisory Board, before they could finish the sentence I said yes because I do think stories and experience, not just from mine but from a whole diverse group of people, is really important to be able to drive the true kind of change that can be lasting and systemic changing,” Wambach says of Gatorade, which also signed on last year as a founding partner of Angel City.

While the former United States women’s national team star believes in the campaign’s mission deeply, citing the statistics and science behind the benefits of sport, specifically for women, she also knows it is simply good business to invest in sports.

Individually, Wambach says having a corporation recognize her as a leader is validating, especially when their vision aligns with her hopes and dreams for the growth of the game.

“You spend your whole life working for something, and in some ways, when the corporate world turns to you and says, ‘I see you,’ it’s like, ‘Oh, maybe this has all been worth it. Maybe we are going to see some real change,'” she says. “And Gatorade is kind of proof.”

As a part of the collaboration, 10 percent of Gatorade’s sponsorship funds will go toward developing conduits for female coaches, a point of pride for Wambach.

“The truth is women’s sports is an institution that has been built inside of a man’s world,” she says. “It’s been built by men for men, so you think, ‘How can women’s sports survive in this environment? This structure was built for men.’ But it needs to have more female leaders at the helm. I don’t think that there are better candidates to be in leadership positions than women inside of women-led teams.”

ACFC and Gatorade’s investment in the women’s coaching pipeline is especially relevant now, as the NWSL continues to reel from a season of unprecedented coaching turnover. Many of the coaches who were fired or resigned were men accused of emotional, sexual or psychological abuse.

Most recently, the NWSL and U.S. Soccer have come under fire for their handling of the Rory Dames case. The former Red Stars head coach held onto his position despite numerous complaints from players, as chronicled in two separate Washington Post reports.

One of those players was Christen Press, the USWNT star striker who brought allegations of Dames’ abuse to U.S. Soccer while she was playing for the Red Stars. Press filed an official complaint to the federation in 2018. Carlos Cordeiro, who was U.S. Soccer president at the time, said in a recent letter that he was “not aware of either Christen’s allegations of abusive coaching or any investigation into her allegations by the Federation.” Cordeiro is currently running against Cindy Parlow Cone in the U.S. soccer presidential race to try to take back the position.

Wambach says that type of shuffling of responsibility is precisely what needs to change in women’s soccer.

“The way that progress and change happens is enough people, some brave ones, come forward, and they tell their stories,” she says. “And what we need to do as a community around these women is to support them, to give them some kind of help in their healing, and one way we can really truly help those that have been traumatized … is to believe them.

“When somebody brings accusations forward, there needs to be due diligence to figure out where it went wrong. And I don’t care if an e-mail never got to Carlos Cordeiro’s desk, he was still the president when Christen Press made these claims, and so he bears that responsibility. It is his fault that he didn’t create an environment inside of his system, inside of his world, that those around him didn’t tell him.”

As urgently as Wambach advocates for an overhaul of the systemic issues within American soccer, the 41-year-old is as fired up as ever about the progress players are making on the field.

USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski has welcomed an influx of new talent this year, calling in young stars like Trinity Rodman, Catarina Macario and Ashley Hatch to first training camp of 2022.

Wambach, the all-time leading goal scorer in USWNT history, knows her way around the national team better than most. Still, she says the USWNT head coaching position is “truly a job that I would never want,” especially when it comes to navigating the delicate balance of naming veterans and young players to tournament rosters.

With the SheBelieves Cup set to kick off on Thursday, the narrative around the USWNT seems to be the passing of the torch to the next generation. To that, Wambach says not so fast.

“The Megan Rapinoes and the Becky Sauerbrunns to me, there is no question that they maintain their status on the national team, that they are still consistent players getting called in because the things that they can teach some of those younger players, to me, outweighs even sometimes their performance on the field,” she says. “And of course, they still have to perform, but you still have to weigh in that veteran experience, the conversations, the teaching that happens from a veteran’s perspective.”

Wambach credits the evolution of the domestic game for the USWNT’s loaded talent pool. The leagues Wambach came up in, before the NWSL was formed in 2013, were much different in size and scope.

“In the NWSL, the players are better, the teams are better, its way more competitive, it’s way more professional. And so, to me, it feels like it’s going to be even harder and harder year over year for the coaching staff to make that decision,” Wambach says of the USWNT roster.

The NWSL’s progression is something Wambach welcomes emphatically as an owner of Angel City, set to make its debut this season.

“We have so many amazing teams in and around the Los Angeles area, and we want Angel City to be a top-tier team. We want Angel City to bring home championships,” Wambach says. “For me, watching the Rams win [the Super Bowl] the other day was just fuel. It gives all those players an idea of how the city is going to show up for them.”

As tends to happen in women’s sports, the discussion of progress all circled back to investment, with Wambach highlighting the significance of Gatorade’s backing of ACFC.

“It’s a big deal. This league, like all leagues, are funded from sponsors and from sponsorships and partnerships like the one Gatorade has with ACFC,” Wambach says.

“Bring all the sponsors.”

Clare Brennan is an associate editor at Just Women’s Sports.

“Bend It Like Beckham” Sequel in Development for 2027 Release

Actor Parminder Nagra in a scene from "Bend It Like Beckham."
"Bend It Like Beckham" director and co-writer Gurinder Chadha confirmed that a sequel to the 2002 hit film is in the works. (Sundance/WireImage)

Over two decades after first hitting theaters, Bend It Like Beckham is on track for a sequel, Gurinder Chadha — the director and co-writer of the 2002 women's soccer blockbuster film — confirmed on Saturday.

"I'm excited to revisit the original characters and revive the enduring story and build on the legacy we helped to create for the women's game," she told Deadline late last week.

Though the new script is still in development, Chadha is aiming to collaborate again with co-writer Paul Mayeda Berges and hoping to lure the original cast — led by actors Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley — back to set.

With women's football booming both in England and beyond, London-based Chadha has been ruminating on a Bend It Like Beckham follow-up for the last two years.

"I [initially] didn't want to do anything because I didn't have a story. And then I came up with a great story, really super-cool story. So now I’m inspired," the filmmaker explained. "It's my very clear wish to bring the characters back very, very soon. Women's football is more competitive, more exciting, and more global than ever. It is an honor for me to be a small part of it."

USWNT head coach Emma Hayes looks on before a 2025 friendly.
Chadha tapped USWNT boss Emma Hayes for help with the "Bend It Like Beckham" sequel. (Brad Smith/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images)

"Bend It Like Beckham" sequel snags assist from USWNT boss

As part of her development process, Chadha is consulting with major players in the women's soccer space — including USWNT manager Emma Hayes, whom Chadha met at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival in May.

"[Hayes's] insights into the world of football at her level are invaluable," noted Chadha.

As for Hayes, assisting Chadha is somewhat of a full-circle moment for the decorated London-born women's soccer coach.

"I cried in the cinema watching the film because I felt just like [the main characters] Jess and Jules," Hayes told Deadline. "There was no hope for women's football in Britain then so I was going to the States to try my luck."

"Twenty-three years ago I could never have dreamed of how much that film changed the women's game, and now I have the best job in the world: head coach of the US women's national team."

The Bend It Like Beckham sequel is aiming for a 2027 debut to coincide with both the 25th anniversary of the original film's UK opening and the 2027 Women's World Cup.

Fever Guard Sophie Cunningham Sounds Off on WNBA Star Caitlin Clark in New Podcast

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham speaks to media during a 2025 press conference.
Outspoken Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham debuted a new podcast this week. (Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham became the latest WNBA player on the mic this week, as the outspoken athlete launched a new podcast on sports media personality Colin Cowherd's The Volume network.

Entitled "Show Me Something" in reference to the two hosts' Missouri roots, the podcast features the seven-year WNBA veteran as well as her former high school classmate and current Summer House reality star West Wilson.

"We're definitely going to hit on the WNBA, a huge topic in sports right now, and then Bravo, clearly, but pop culture, food, fashion, travel... we really do talk about anything," Cunningham said about the variety of topics she'll be discussing with her childhood friend on their podcast. "Our love language is, like, s—t-talking."

The media move follows several recent endorsement deals for Cunningham, as she continues to capitalize on the social media bump she experienced following a June 17th dust-up with Connecticut Sun players.

In this week's first episode, the 2025 Fever addition did not hold back, immediately digging into the ongoing discourse surrounding superstar teammate Caitlin Clark.

"There's really good, well-known people in our league. I'm not discrediting them," Cunningham said. "But when people try to argue that [Clark's] not the face of our league, or if our league would be where we're at without her, you’re dumb as s—t. You’re literally dumb as f—k."

USC Basketball Lands Top High School Recruit Saniyah Hall

Young Team USA star Saniyah Hall poses with her 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup MVP trophy.
Top-ranked high school basketball star Saniyah Hall will suit up for the USC Trojans in 2026. (Yaroslava Nemesh/FIBA via Getty Images)

USC women's basketball is stocking up, bringing on their third No. 1 high school prospect in four years with top-ranked Saniyah Hall committing to the Trojans on Friday.

Set to join the team for the 2026/27 season, Hall follows in the footsteps of 2023 top recruit JuJu Watkins and Class of 2025 No. 1 prospect Jazzy Davidson.

USC reportedly beat out both North Carolina and UCLA in the race to secure a commitment from Hall.

The Northeast Ohio product will close out her high school career at SPIRE Academy, returning to her home state following a junior-year campaign with Montverde Academy in Florida.

The 6-foot-2 guard, who turned 17 years old on Wednesday, has also seen significant international success, first helping Team USA earn gold in the 2024 FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup.

Hall added a 5x5 gold medal to her collection earlier this month, when the then-16-year-old set records en route to securing Team USA the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup title.

Her US U19-record 19.9 points per game — plus team-leading averages of 6.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.9 steals across the competition's seven games — saw the starter named tournament MVP following the July 20th championship victory.

Shortly after returning Stateside, Hall visited USC, announcing her NCAA basketball commitment almost immediately after leaving campus.

"I would say it felt like home. I loved all of my teammates," Hall told ESPN's NBA Today on Friday. "The girls there are so fun to be around."

Ex-Canada Coach Priestman Joins NZ Side Wellington Phoenix FC After Drone Scandal

Bev Priestman poses at a 2025 announcement that she will coach New Zealand club Wellington Phoenix.
Former Canada soccer head coach Bev Priestman will manage the Wellington Phoenix following her one-year suspension from FIFA. (Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

Embattled ex-Canada women's national team coach Bev Priestman has officially left the country, relocating to New Zealand to manage A-League Women's side Wellington Phoenix FC.

"We're really pleased to be able to welcome Bev back to football," Phoenix chairman Rob Morrison said in the club's announcement. "We all know she's had a period of time away from the game, but we understand the circumstances and we're really comfortable with this appointment."

In addition to her firing from Team Canada, Priestman served a one-year suspension from all football-related activities, finishing that mandatory moratorium this month.

FIFA issued the suspension after determining that Priestman was guilty of spying on opponents via illegal drone use during the 2024 Paris Olympics.

"For me, I didn't feel safe, that's being brutally honest," she told reporters this week, commenting on the drone scandal's local fallout. "It was very difficult for my family and I have to live with that. I have to wear that."

The Wellington Phoenix — the lone New Zealand club competing in the top-flight Australian league — finished the 2024/25 season ninth out of 12 teams, with the young club soon setting their sights on a deeper run in their fifth season behind Priestman.

"It feels like Christmas Day to me to come back," said Priestman, whose wife, Wellington Phoenix FC academy director Emma Humphries, is a former New Zealand national team player. "I know I have to earn the trust of everybody. And I'll be working hard to do that."

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