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Christen Press praises Angel City FC for commitment to gender equity

Christen Press presented the Angel City FC co-founders with an award at the Grassroot Soccer’s World AIDS Day Gala. (Noam Galai/Getty Images)

Angel City FC star Christen Press praised the NWSL team Thursday night as she presented an award to the co-founders for their commitment to gender equity in sports.

The 33-year-old forward, who became the first player to sign with the expansion club in 2021, helped to celebrate Angel City FC at Grassroot Soccer’s World AIDS Day Gala in New York.

“In its first year as a professional club, Angel City FC became one of the most successful business models in sports,” Press said. “All of this, because Angel City believes in a diverse, equitable and fair future for women and all people and they built a community that believes the same.”

Angel City FC co-founder and president Julie Uhrman accepted the Grassroot Soccer Game-Changer Award, which recognizes those who have demonstrated “extraordinary leadership in driving real and meaningful social change.” Her fellow co-founders Natalie Portman and Kara Nortman were also honored.

The presentation came during Grassroot Soccer’s 20th anniversary celebration. Throughout its 20 years in existence, Grassroot Soccer has helped to bring live-saving health information, services and mentorship to more than 18 million young people in over 60 countries. Grassroot Soccer raises over $1 million each year through the gala.

“Winners of the award are equity champions, passionate advocates, movement builders and unifiers who bring different stakeholders together to work toward a common goal,” Press said. “Angel City and Grassroots Soccer have shared values: We leverage soccer for social impact. Angel City is a women’s professional soccer club in Los Angeles that pursues goals that are bigger than soccer.”

In its first year as a club, Angel City FC sold out four home games, as well as 16,000 season tickets. The team also sold out a game against OL Reign on the same day that Juventus played a sold-out game against Real Madrid at the Rose Bowl.

“We have proof that if you lead with purpose, if you lead with your values you can build a community that’s different and will show up for you no matter who else is playing down the street,” Uhrman said during her acceptance speech.

Originally, Uhrman admitted, she and her co-founders didn’t strive to build a soccer club at all. They simply wanted to build something bigger than the game following the USWNT’s 2019 World Cup win.

The three co-founders wanted to drive equity and make an impact on the sport. Ultimately, Angel City FC was formed with a majority-female ownership group with a goal to make women’s soccer more accessible.

“After the women had won the World Cup in 2019 and we felt like there was an incredible wave that we could ride,” Uhrman said. “We could use football as a platform to drive for equity and impact and build an organization where mission and capital could co-exist where we never had to decide whether we wanted to do something good or make money, but recognize the importance of doing both at the same time.”

ACFC has shown up in their community in a number of ways, including creating a first-of-its-kind sponsorship model that drives revenue back into the community. Through that model, ACFC has generated more than $1 million to put back into the community.

They’ve also helped more than 70 different women become coaches and donated food through their partnership with Sprouts Farmers Market.

“This goes beyond just soccer,” Uhrman said. “We want to make sure that we have a positive impact in LA and ultimately grow that beyond. And we do that by building community. We’ve been intentional about building a community that is diverse and inclusive. That is representative of LA and we live our values every single day with our community.”

And ACFC doesn’t want to just make an impact domestically. They want to take their brand across the world.

“If we are global, we can draw more attention and awareness to the impact we are building,” Uhrman said. “We can draw more attention to these incredible women athletes who deserve the same attention, the same dollars, the same sponsorship as men. And we can put women on an even playing field. Because we believe getting to equity is possible and that is something that we focus and work on every single day.

“Our purpose and vision is global and we’re gonna use our platform unapologetically to tell the world that women are as good as men. We’re gonna drive to equity and we’re gonna make a difference every single step of the way.”

Gotham, Portland Gear Up for Concacaf W Champions Cup Semifinals

Gotham goalie Cassie Miller makes a save during a 2024 Concacaf W Champions Cup group-stage match.
Gotham played Tigres UANL to a 4-4 draw in last October’s Champions Cup group stage match. (Ira L. Black - Corbis/Getty Images)

The battle for continental soccer glory continues on Wednesday, as the Portland Thorns and Gotham FC land in Mexico for the 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup semifinals.

After advancing past last fall's group-stage play, both NWSL sides now face Liga MX standouts in the knockout rounds with a ticket to Saturday's Champions Cup Final on the line.

The back-to-back semifinals will take place on Wednesday in Nuevo León, Mexico, with live coverage streaming on Paramount+:

  • Club América vs. Gotham FC, 7:30 PM ET: Both the Bats and this year's Liga MX regular season champions are looking to bounce back, as Gotham attempts to shake off a recent NWSL skid while América seeks redemption after stumbling in their season-ending league tournament earlier this month.
  • Tigres UANL vs. Portland Thorns, 10:30 PM ET: Expect a high-energy clash between the three-time NWSL champs and six-time Liga MX title-winners, with the Thorns coming off a five-match undefeated streak and the Tigres shooting to impress in front of their home crowd at Estadio Universitario.

It's not just hardware and continental bragging rights on the line, though.

Saturday's 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup victors will also earn automatic qualification into FIFA's 2026 Champions Cup — a six-team tournament between confederation winners — and the first-ever Club World Cup, which will kick off in 2028.

National Seeds Fall as NCAA Softball Storms into Super Regionals

Ole Miss pitcher Aliyah Binford winds up during a 2025 NCAA softball postseason game.
Ole Miss is one of four unseeded teams to make the 2025 NCAA softball Super Regionals. (Mady Mertens-Imagn Images)

After a first-round weekend of pitcher's duels and red-hot bats, the 2025 NCAA softball tournament's best-of-three Super Regionals field is set — and it's missing four of the 16 national seeds.

No. 10 LSU fell on Saturday after two upset losses to unseeded SE Louisiana, before Sunday saw No. 13 Arizona and No. 14 Duke follow suit while unseeded Ole Miss, Georgia, and Nebraska all punched second-round tickets.

Eventually ousting SE Louisiana in the winners' bracket to advance to their first Super Regionals in 11 years, the Huskers rode in on the back of two-time All-American pitcher Jordy Bahl, with the Oklahoma transfer throwing 12 innings and hitting four home runs across Nebraska's three Regional games.

Elsewhere, unseeded Liberty booked a program-first trip to the Supers by eliminating top-seed Texas A&M — the first time the NCAA bracket's overall No. 1 seed failed to advance from Regionals.

Should they similarly bounce No. 16 Oregon this weekend, Liberty will become just the second mid-major team to make the Women's College World Series (WCWS) since 2014, joining James Madison's 2021 Cinderella run.

Rounding out the rest of the Super Regional round's 16 teams are No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Florida, No. 4 Arkansas, No. 5 Florida State, No. 6 Texas, No. 7 Tennessee, and No. 8 South Carolina, as well as No. 9 UCLA, No. 11 Clemson, No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 15 Alabama, and the aforementioned No. 16 Ducks.

Oklahoma's Ailana Agbayani celebrates her three-run homer with her team during the 2025 NCAA softball tournament.
Four-time defending champs Oklahoma will face Alabama in this weekend's Super Regionals. (BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Super Regional weekend to feature blockbuster matchups

The 16 contenders will battle head-to-head for eight available WCWS berths, with the four-time defending champion Sooners now leading the field.

To advance, however, Oklahoma must first outlast Alabama, a team with which the Sooners have a long, contentious postseason history — the pair have faced off in five of the last 12 NCAA tournaments.

After Oklahoma bounced Alabama from the 2019 WCWS semifinals — the last time the pair squared off before becoming SEC rivals — the Tide enacted revenge by narrowly beating the Sooners in April's conference play, teeing up a tense weekend Super Regional series.

After narrowly missing this weekend's hosting rights as the No. 9 seed — UCLA's lowest seeding since 2016 — the Bruins proved why they are the sport's winningest program, run-ruling ever Regional game while allowing just two runs all weekend.

The 12-time champions will now travel to Gamecock territory, where No. 8 South Carolina will try to boost the Bruins and book their first WCWS ticket in 28 years.

Powerhouses still rule the diamond, but parity has never been higher in college softball, with this year's NCAA tournament already delivering whiplash results.

Texas Tech pitcher NiJaree Canady celebrates a 2025 NCAA softball postseason win.
2024 National Player of the Year NiJaree Canady led Texas Tech to a program-first Super Regional. (Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

How to watch the 2025 NCAA softball Super Regionals

The best-of three NCAA softball Super Regionals kick off on Thursday and run through the weekend, with possible winner-take-all clashes finalizing the WCWS slate on Sunday.

First games are as follows:

  • No. 12 Texas Tech at No. 5 Florida State, 7 PM ET on Thursday (ESPN2)
  • No. 11 Clemson at No. 6 Texas, 9 PM ET on Thursday (ESPN2)
  • Georgia at No. 3 Florida, 11 AM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • No. 9 UCLA at No. 8 South Carolina, 1 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • No. 15 Alabama at No. 2 Oklahoma, 5 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • Nebraska at No. 7 Tennessee, 7 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • Ole Miss at No. 4 Arkansas, 8 PM ET on Friday (ESPNU)
  • Liberty at No. 16 Oregon, 10 PM ET on Friday (ESPNU)

PWHL Details 2025/26 Expansion Plan, Outlines Draft Rules

A close-up of the PWHL logo patch on the sleeve of a jersey.
The PWHL will expand to eight teams in the league's third season. (Rich Graessle/Getty Images)

With the 2025 PWHL Finals in full swing and new franchises on the horizon, the league rolled out a detailed expansion plan to build its two new teams on Monday.

The expansion process will see 24 current PWHL players — four from each of the six founding teams — join either Vancouver or Seattle next month.

To be eligible for selection, athletes must be either under contract or have rights held by a current team for the 2025/26 season. 

Each original team can protect three eligible athletes at the outset, with squads reserving the right to protect one additional player should the incoming clubs select two players off the same roster.

In the lead-up to June 9th's expansion draft, Vancouver and Seattle will have five days to sign up to five unprotected players each.

After that window closes, Seattle and Vancouver will increase their rosters to a required total of 12 players via expansion draft selections, with the number of picks for each team determined by how many athletes the new franchises choose to sign.

Finally, the West Coast squads will then complete their 23-athlete lineups alongside the other six teams during the PWHL's June 24th entry draft.

With such a broad unprotected player pool, about half of the PWHL's current athletes — including some of its brightest stars — will be up for grabs, ensuring a very different landscape when the league takes the ice for its third season.

USA Hockey Star Hilary Knight Says 2026 Olympics Will Be Her Last

USA hockey forward Hilary Knight skates with the puck.
Team USA captain Hilary Knight will make her international exit after the 2026 Olympics. (Steven Bisig/Imagn Images)


Team USA hockey titan Hilary Knight is hanging up her international skates, with the record-10-time world champion announcing Tuesday that the 2026 Winter Games in Milan, Italy, will be her fifth and final Olympic run.

"It's time," Knight told USA Today. "I'm at peace. I just have this feeling that it’s time."

Going out on her own terms is top-of-mind for the USA hockey great, with Knight acknowledging "That is such a privilege that only a handful of competitors get."

Making her national team debut at 17, the now-35-year-old is one of the sport's most decorated athletes, winning Olympic gold in 2018 to complement three silver medals in 2010, 2014, and 2022.

Just last month, Knight led the US to victory at the IIHF Women's World Championship, and currently sits as the tournament's all-time leader in goals (67), points (120), and assists (50).

Despite her impending step off the international ice, Knight, who currently captains the PWHL's Boston Fleet, plans to continue playing for the second-year league — a pro venture she helped bring to life in 2023.

"I understood what the sport gave me and I wanted to give that to other people," Knight said. "Obviously, there's tons of work that always needs to be done, but I think we now have a career path."
 
 
 
 

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