The FIFA 23 ratings for women’s soccer have been unveiled ahead of the game’s release on Sept. 30, with many of the world’s brightest stars featuring among the top 25.

Alexia Putellas headlines the group with a score of 92, while cover star Sam Kerr, Wendie Renard and Ada Hegerberg fall in behind with scores of 91. Alex Morgan is the lone American in the top 25, sitting seventh with a score of 90.

Stars rise and fall

While Putellas has soared to No. 1 after the Spanish player failed to crack the top 10 in the last two versions of the game, others have seen their stock fall.

Vivianne Miedema was tied for the highest rating last year with a 92, but this year the Dutch star sits in 10th with an overall rating of 89. The tumble is not necessarily due to Miedema’s lack of success but rather the rising tide of talent overall.

Alongside Putellas, Hegerberg (91), Marie-Antoinette Katoto (90), Caroline Graham Hansen (90) and Christiane Endler (89) have all risen into the top 10 after not featuring at all last year.

USWNT’s Megan Rapinoe has fallen out of the top 25 despite finishing in the top 10 in both of the previous editions. She holds the No. 43 spot with a score of 85.

Paris Saint-Germain, Lyon lead club teams

For the first time ever, club teams from England’s Women’s Super League and France’s Division 1 Féminine are set to debut at launch in FIFA 23.

Olympique Lyonnais, with three players in the top 10, should be a solid pick for gamers, and Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal also should be top choices based on player ratings.

It’s unknown whether more teams will be added – or when the NWSL will be added. Reports have circulated about both the NWSL and Germany’s Frauen-Bundesliga being added sometime next year, and EA has said it intends to announce new leagues in the coming months.

With those additions could come better competition, although clubs such as PSG and Lyon likely will still have a stronghold.

Already, EA has confirmed that more World Cup 2023 players will be added in the form of a post-launch update.

Full Top 25:

1. Alexia Putellas, Spain – 92
2. Sam Kerr, Australia – 91
3. Wendie Renard, France – 91
4. Ada Hegerberg, Norway – 91
5. Marie-Antoinette Katoto, France – 90
6. Lucy Bronze, England – 90
7. Alex Morgan, United States – 90
8. Caroline Graham Hansen, Norway – 90
9. Christiane Endler, Chile – 89
10. Vivianne Miedema, Netherlands – 89
11. Beth Mead, England – 88
12. Kadidiatou Diani, France – 88
13. Mapi Leon, Spain – 88
14. Irene Paredes, Spain – 88
15. Jenni Hermoso, Spain – 88
16. Alexandra Popp, Germany – 88
17. Sandra Panos, Spain – 88
18. Amandine Henry, France – 88
19. Kim Little, Scotland – 88
20. Lina Magull, Germany – 87
21. Lauren Hemp, England – 87
22. Grace Geyoro, France – 87
23. Ashley Lawrence, Canada – 87
24. Millie Bright, England – 87
25. Lieke Martens, Netherlands – 87

USWNT stars in top 50:

7. Alex Morgan – 90
T-27. Catarina Macario – 86
T-27. Rose Lavelle – 86
T-27. Lindsey Horan – 86
T-27. Christen Press – 86
T-43. Megan Rapinoe – 85
T-43. Sophia Smith – 85
T-43. Jane Campbell – 85
T-43. Mallory Pugh – 85
T-43. Becky Sauerbrunn – 85
T-43. Alyssa Naeher – 85

Women's tennis got a boost on Wednesday, as the WTA announced it would institute rankings pauses for players who step away from competition to undergo fertility protection treatments like egg or embryo freezing.

Players returning from a procedure can opt to receive a Special Entry Ranking, calculated using their 12-week average ranking starting from eight weeks before taking leave.

Players can use that unique ranking to enter up to three tournaments at the WTA 500, 250, or 125 levels before the governing body will again institute traditional calculations.

The protection extends to any player ranked among the world's top 750 who spends more than 10 weeks out of competition.

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These latest rankings protection further secures the careers of tennis pro parents, who first earned special rankings in the 2019 WTA season after Serena Willams and Victoria Azarenka saw their seedings plummet simply from stepping away from competition to give birth.

The move also comes three months after the WTA agreed to grant players paid maternity leave for the very first time.

"I'm incredibly proud of our sport in recognizing the importance of fertility treatments for female athletes," said 2017 US Open champ and longtime reproductive health support advocate Sloane Stephens. "For any woman, the conversation of family life versus a career is nuanced and complex."

"It's truly ground-breaking and will empower this generation, and future generations of players, to continue with the sport they love without having to compromise."

Last week's landmark $2.8 billion House v. NCAA settlement is back in the headlines, as eight women's college sports athletes filed an appeal on Wednesday claiming that the approved NIL back-payment plan violates Title IX, the federal law banning gender discrimination in schools.

On June 6th, a federal judge approved a settlement between the NCAA and former student-athletes, with the college sports governing body agreeing to have schools directly distribute billions of dollars in back pay to players barred from financially benefitting off their name, image, and likeness since 2016.

Wednesday's appeal to that back-pay plan calls out alleged payment inequities written into the settlement ruling, which could see up to 90% of the $2.8 billion distributed to former NCAA men's sports athletes.

"The calculation of past damages is based on an error that ignores Title IX and deprives female athletes of $1.1 billion," said Ashlyn Hare, one of the lawyers representing the appellants. "Paying out the money as proposed would be a massive error that would cause irreparable harm to women's sports."

"If Nike wants to [pay male athletes more], that is their choice. If the school, or a conference acting on the school's behalf tries to do that, they are violating the law," John Clune, another lawyer on the team, clarified.

"They can either pay the athletes proportionately, or they can return all of their federal funds," said Clune. "But they can't do both."

With the USWNT back in action for the next set of summer friendlies later this month, head coach Emma Hayes filled ESPN in on her roster strategy earlier this week.

Hayes will rest all Europe-based US players during the upcoming international window, instead relying on domestic talent following a jam-packed year for the team's European stars.

"We don't necessarily decide the international calendar, but this is one where we think it's in the best interest of the players," Hayes said, noting both past demands and the increasingly busy road to the 2027 World Cup.

With player welfare and recovery top-of-mind, the lone exception to Hayes's European omissions is Chelsea FC defender Naomi Girma, who made her 2025 USWNT debut on May 31st.

The US manager is seeking more minutes for the star center back after Girma spent much of the year recovering from a calf injury.

Hayes also revealed some key updates on other injured players, with fans eager to see midfielder Rose Lavelle and forward Trinity Rodman return to the USWNT fold.

After a lengthy recovery from ankle surgery, Lavelle — who made her first NWSL appearance of 2025 in Gotham FC's 2-1 loss to Kansas City last Saturday — could return to international play this month.

Rodman remains slightly further out from returning to the USWNT roster, with Hayes saying she expects the Spirit forward to begin seeing club minutes sometime next month.

The USWNT core is coming together, with Stateside players looking to seize the chance to prove their worth as club soccer approaches its summer hiatus.

The NWSL is locking in its summer calendar, as teams across the league announce special July friendlies ahead of the regular-season break for major global tournaments.

Without a planned league-wide tournament like 2024's NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup, its up to individual clubs to fill their schedules until NWSL play resumes in August.

While there might not be a trophy at the end, the gap does provide an opportunity for some fresh friendly competition beyond the confines of the league.

The North Carolina Courage will welcome Liga MX titans and Concacaf W Champions Cup contenders Tigres UANL back to the States for a one-off exhibition match on July 9th.

Then on July 12th, Kansas City will kick off its Teal Rising Cup, a four-team friendly tournament pitting the NWSL's Current and Chicago Stars against Brazil's Série A1 clubs Corinthians and Palmeiras.

Late July will see both the Seattle Reign and Bay FC square off against Japan's WE League champions the Urawa Red Diamonds, with Bay tacking on an additional July 19th friendly against Angel City.

The USL Super League is also getting in on the summer interleague action, with the NWSL's Angel City facing the Carolina Ascent on July 26th after Racing Louisville hosts crosstown USL squad Lexington SC on July 13th — giving fans a glimpse at how the two US systems stack up against one another.

As teams juggle lineups in the wake of summer international departures, these July friendlies may feature decidedly different rosters than regular-season play — though hungry NWSL fans likely won't mind.