Angel City FC’s first season in the NWSL was a rousing success by almost every metric off the pitch. The team hosted sold-out crowds, sold sponsorships, connected with the community and more.

On the field, the results were slightly less conclusive, as a number of key players suffered injuries and the team’s plans hit bumps in the road. An expansion team taking some time to find its footing in its inaugural season is understandable, but the Los Angeles club will need to take steps forward on the pitch in 2023 to keep pace with the rest of the league.

2022 Review: Baby steps

Angel City made a handful of splashy moves prior to their inaugural season. The team swapped their first-round draft pick for USWNT superstar Christen Press and benefitted from smart deals and player wishes to compile what looked like a competitive starting XI.

The team’s best-laid plans never quite came to fruition, in part due to an influx of injuries. Angel City lost center-back Sarah Gorden for the year with an ACL tear as well as star striker Christen Press to an ACL tear in June. After trading for Orlando’s Sydney Leroux later in June, the forward’s availability was limited the rest of the season. Winger Simone Charley dealt with lingering Achilles issues in the latter half of the summer, and midfielder Julie Ertz took time away from the sport entirely after the club acquired her rights before the season.

Angel City’s availability issues made it difficult to gauge their roster construction. The team became a gritty unit of starters who withstood the ebbs and flows of possession to try to grind out results. Angel City’s depth was put under a microscope by necessity, and the toll at the end of the season showed as the expansion side faded to eighth after a season-ending loss to the Chicago Red Stars.

Offseason moves: Betting on the future

After an inaugural season involving many factors outside the club’s control, Angel City took the two-pronged approach of running it back and planning for the future. The club traded for the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NWSL draft, selecting local teenage talent Alyssa Thompson. Thompson will get significant minutes in her first year as a pro as Press and Leroux continue to work their way back from injuries.

The assets L.A. dealt to acquire Thompson, in addition to the assets used to pick up Press and others in 2022, left the club with little room for more moves. As a result, Angel City needs to rely on their current team taking steps forward in 2023. Canada international Vanessa Gilles remains on loan to Olympique Lyon, but Gorden has made a full recovery and appears ready to run the backline in 2023.

“We didn’t necessarily get where we were looking to in the first season but were able to establish a foundation and a training facility,” general manager Angela Hucles Mangano said at the beginning of preseason. “We are looking at how we’re rounding out our entire roster, for the immediate and long term. We really want to make sure that we can provide depth in different positions. That is where you see how those players can be additive.”

While Angel City eagerly awaits the returns of Press and Leroux, the club made no moves to shore up the frontline that will likely be commanded by Thompson and Charley. Former North Carolina outside back Merritt Mathias should walk into a defensive role if she’s available, and former San Diego Wave forward Katie Johnson can also connect the attack to the midfield with her connective passing.

2023 outlook: Patience for the payoff

It’s difficult to gauge how head coach Freya Coombe plans to manage Thompson’s high ceiling while also getting the most out of the rest of her squad. A preseason friendly against Club América showed both the strengths and the weaknesses in Angel City’s roster construction.

While Thompson showed off her electric speed and poise to score her debut goal, the team started defender Madison Hammond at defensive midfielder and center back Paige Nielsen at outside back. Angel City never quite addressed the positional needs in the offseason that would allow the club to control the pace of play without requiring as much off-the-ball defending to pick up points. Jun Endo and Savannah McCaskill’s playmaking will be the key toward unlocking opposing defenses, and reliability at the less flashy positions might be what Angel City needs more than a brand-new star.

Angel City could be one of the biggest boom-or-bust propositions in the NWSL. They have the on-the-ball quality and speed of play to put opponents on their heels, but they might find that living dangerously gets in their way during a punishing regular season.

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

Naomi Osaka advanced to the third round of the 2026 Australian Open with a three-set victory over Sorana Cirstea on Thursday.

But the hard-fought win was overshadowed by a heated exchange at the net and a subsequent public apology from the former Japanese fan favorite.

After Osaka defeated the unseeded 35-year-old 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 at Margaret Court Arena, the two shared a tense handshake before Cirstea reportedly called Osaka out for her on-court conduct. The issue apparently centered on Osaka’s habit of shouting "Come on!" to celebrate points, specifically between Cirstea’s first and second serves — a move the Romanian considered both a distraction and a breach of sportsmanship.

In her immediate postmatch interview, Osaka dismissed Cirstea's complaints.

"Apparently a lot of 'come-ons' that she was angry about, but whatever," Osaka said. "I think this was her last Australian Open, so, okay, sorry she was mad about it."

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However, during her subsequent press conference, Osaka apologized for her dismissive tone.

"I'm a little confused. I guess that emotions were very high for her," Osaka said. " I also want to apologize. I think the first couple of things that I said on the court were disrespectful. I don't like disrespecting people. That's not what I do."

Osaka went on to clarify that her vocal outbursts are self-motivating and not an attempt to rattle her opponent.

Cirstea, who recently announced that the 2026 season will be her last on the WTA Tour, later downplayed the incident. She called it a "five-second exchange between two players," insisting that "there was no drama."

Osaka, the No. 16 seed, will next face unseeded Australian Maddison Inglis in the third round on Friday.

How to watch Naomi Osaka at the Australian Open this week

No. 16 Naomi Osaka takes the court against Australia's Maddison Inglis this Friday (time TBA), live on ESPN.

While competing at the 2026 Australian Open this week, US tennis star Coco Gauff is giving back to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), with the world No. 3 WTA player announcing a $150,000 donation to the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to fund HBCU tennis scholarships on Tuesday.

"Education has the power to change lives, and I hope this gift will help students achieve their dreams," said Gauff in a Tuesday statement.

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Even more, this week's donation marks the two-time Grand Slam champion's second UNCF contribution in as many years, with her $100,000 pledge in 2025 bringing Gauff's total gift to $250,000.

"I feel like HBCU tennis a lot of times doesn't get the funding that they need," Gauff said after advancing to Thursday night's Australian Open third round. "I would always try to uplift marginalized communities and support where I can."

One of the youngest major donors in organization's 80-year history, the 21-year-old star's Coco Gauff Scholarship Program has already sponsored multiple HBCU tennis athletes.

"My family has a deep-rooted history with HBCUs," Gauff wrote in a 2025 press release. "As a young Black athlete, I understand how impactful it is to see people who look like me thriving in both sports and education…. My hope is that this scholarship gives more young Black players the confidence to chase their dreams, knowing they have a strong community behind them and a bright future ahead."

PWHL players made their voices heard this week, as The Athletic published the results of the third-year league's first-ever anonymous player poll on Wednesday, surveying athletes on everything from the best trash-talkers to which nation's team will win Olympic gold at next month's 2026 Winter Games.

Leading the poll's individual accolades is 34-year-old Team Canada and Montréal Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin, dubbed the PWHL's best player by 80% of respondents.

Poulin's Team USA counterpart, Seattle Torrent forward Hilary Knight, snagged second as each standout prepares for a fifth career Olympic run.

As for who will win gold in Italy, all but one player predicted a Canada vs. USA Olympic Final, with a 50/50 split on the eventual victor.

Athletes also answered overarching questions about the growing league in the player poll, with Detroit earning the most nods as a PWHL expansion city — though Denver and Chicago also scored double-digit votes.

As for the future face of the league, current New York Sirens forward and 2024 PWHL No. 1 draftee Sarah Fillier narrowly edged out current University of Wisconsin senior and Team USA Olympic defender Caroline Harvey in the players' poll.

Toronto Sceptres forward Emma Maltais beat out Montréal's Abby Roque by one vote for the title of top PWHL trash-talker, though most players tapped her for quantity over quality — an assessment Maltais herself agrees with.

"I'm not trash-talking," clarified the 26-year-old Canadian. "I'm just yapping."

WNBA star Angel Reese is lighting up the silver screen, with the Chicago Sky forward racking up multiple film and TV credits during the league's offseason.

On Tuesday, Netflix revealed that Reese will play a character called "Trainer Barbie" in the second season of the streamer's hit show, The Hunting Wives.

Already a fan of the series, Reese's told Hunting Wives creator Rebecca Cutter to "just let me know if you need me for season 2" on X last summer — a conversation that helped spark the basketball star's casting.

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Tuesday's news follows last week's announcement that Reese and Las Vegas Aces star center A'ja Wilson will each voice a role in the upcoming animated film GOAT, produced by the NBA's Golden State Warriors superstar Steph Curry.

When the film hits theaters on February 13th, fans will see Reese as Propp, a polar bear, while Wilson plays a reptile called Kouyate.

Reese first opened her acting portfolio by playing herself in a cameo in the October 2025 Netflix film A House of Dynamite, with Hunting Wives marking the 23-year-old's first foray into a scripted series.

The eight-episode second season of the Netflix show is currently in production, though a premiere date is still unknown.