Kristie Mewis is headed to her first World Cup with the U.S. women’s national team. But the wait for the call from head coach Vlatko Andonovski was “very painful,” she shared Wednesday.

After a morning of training for Gotham FC, the 32-year-old midfielder waited alone in her apartment until the call came at 4 p.m.

“So it was a very draining, emotional, wait-around day,” she told reporters Wednesday.

When she answered the FaceTime from Andonovski, who told her she would join the USWNT’s 23-player roster for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, the emotions hit her.

“I think I started crying before I even saw Vlatko’s face on the FaceTime, just because everything was coming into that moment,” Mewis said. “I feel like I’ve been waiting my whole life to hear those words.”

Kristie 😂

📸: kmewis19/IG pic.twitter.com/epc1W4U1UR

— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) June 22, 2023

The countdown to the World Cup roster drop officially started after the USWNT’s April training camp. But for Mewis, the wait seemed much longer.

While she made her debut for the senior national team in 2013, she spent five years off the team and missed out on the 2015 and 2019 World Cups. On Wednesday, she described herself as a “bubble player,” though she has made every USWNT camp since before the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Of the 14 players making their World Cup debuts for the USWNT in 2023, Mewis is the oldest.

Her parents, her sister — injured USWNT star Sam Mewis — and her girlfriend — Australia star Sam Kerr — served as her “absolute rocks” through the grueling process. She called all of them in turn as soon as she hung up with Andonovski.

“I called my girlfriend immediately. I called my parents. I called my sister,” she said. “They all have been such huge, huge people in my life through this process, because I’m sure I’ve been such a pain in the ass because I’ve been so stressed for so long.”

After the USWNT roster was revealed Wednesday, Kerr congratulated Mewis on Instagram. But she also noted: “Last time I’ll cheer for you is today.”

Kerr is the top player for the Matildas in their home World Cup, which kicks off on July 20. She and Mewis started dating during the COVID-19 pandemic, but they did not go public with their relationship until they made headlines at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. And they’re both ready to give everything they have this summer.

“We’re just raging for the next six months to the World Cup, doing whatever we can,” Kerr told soccer lifestyle magazine Gaffer in an interview with Mewis earlier this year. “We both feel like we’ve been gunning for this World Cup for so long now that it’s kind of going to be like we’re just giving everything for the next six months and then it’s gonna be like a breath of fresh air.”

The Equalizer’s Jeff Kassouf shared Mewis’ full comments on her World Cup call from Wednesday’s Gotham FC news conference.

Kristie Mewis made her #USWNT debut 10 years ago. Last week, she got the call that she was finally going to a World Cup. I asked her about the moment in light of all that waiting... and there was a little more waiting around that day. Her full answer is worth hearing. pic.twitter.com/BYnsYnMy1N

— Jeff Kassouf (@JeffKassouf) June 23, 2023

Wimbledon is leveling up, as the annual London-based Grand Slam announced Thursday that it's increasing its purse by 7% across the board in 2025, pushing the total prize money to £53.5 million ($72.59 million) ahead of tennis tournament's June 30th kick-off.

Both the 2025 women's and men's singles champions will earn winner's checks in the amount of £3 million ($4.07 million) — an 11.1% increase over the amount won by 2024 champ Barbora Krejčíková.

With increases across all Slam events, from singles and doubles to wheelchair competitions, even athletes who stumble early will see a raise over last year's competition.

For example, singles players ousted in this year's first round will take home 10% more than in 2024, earning deposits of £66,000 ($89,530).

The 2025 total purse now doubles the prize money offered by the tournament a decade ago, and makes Wimbledon the biggest potential payday across all four of the sport's Grand Slams.

"We're immensely proud of the fact that, if you look back 10 years, you can see the increase over that period and 7% this year," said All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club chair Deborah Jevans. "And we have listened to the players, we have engaged with the players."

Teen swimmer Summer McIntosh made a major splash at the 2025 Canadian Swimming Trials, shattering three world records in just five days of competition in Victoria, BC.

First on Saturday, the Toronto swimmer shaved 1.2 seconds off the Australian Ariarne Titmus's 400-meter freestyle mark to set a new world record time of 3:54.18.

Then on Monday, McIntosh took down a decade-old record in the 200-meter individual medley (IM), becoming the first woman swimmer to complete the race in less than 2:06.00.

Just two days later, the 18-year-old McIntosh broke her own 400-meter IM world record, besting her 2024 Canadian Olympic Trials time by 0.73 seconds with a 4:23.65 race Wednesday.

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With her unstoppable week-long performance, McIntosh became the first swimmer to set three new world records in different individual events at one meet since US legend Michael Phelps's historic run at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

"Going into tonight, I knew I could do something really special because this has probably been the best meet of my career," McIntosh told reporters after Wednesday's race.

That said, the young star is already eyeing new times — and new records.

"Overall, [I'm] happy with the time, but I know I can go faster," said McIntosh following her 400-meter IM performance. "The faster I swim, the happier I am."

The NWSL Championship is on its way back West, with the league announcing on Friday morning that the 2025 title match will kick off from PayPal Park in San Jose, California.

Hosted at the home pitch of 2024 expansion team Bay FC, the game will take place on Saturday, November 22nd.

In addition to the championship match, the 2025 NWSL season's final weekend will include a variety of supporting events like Fan Fest and the annual Skills Challenge competition.

"We're thrilled to bring the NWSL Championship back to the West Coast and to a region with as rich a history in women's soccer as the Bay Area," said NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman in a league statement.

Citing a long list of former USWNT stars with local ties, including Julie Foudy, Kelley O'Hara, and Alex Morgan, Bay FC co-founder Brandi Chastain — a US legend herself — called the Bay Area "the place women's soccer calls home."

"Our community's fabric is woven with the greatest the game has to offer," explained Chastain.

"This community's passion for the game, combined with the excitement surrounding one of our newest teams in Bay FC, makes it the perfect setting to celebrate the league's top talent and crown our next champion," said Berman.

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How to attend and watch the 2025 NWSL Championship

Like last year, the 2025 NWSL Championship will air in primetime, with CBS set to broadcast the match live at 8 PM ET on November 22nd.

Tickets to the game will be available for purchase beginning in August, though interested fans can sign up for presale access online now.

The NWSL and WNBA Players Associations teamed up to release a joint statement on Thursday, with the unions expressing their solidarity with "all people seeking safety, dignity, and opportunity" after the recent ICE raids and ensuing protests in Los Angeles.

The move comes after Angel City published their own social media post addressing the ICE raids last Saturday, with the Los Angeles NWSL club noting "We know that our city is stronger because of its diversity and the people and families who shape it, love it, and call it home."

ACFC also directed immigrants in need of assistance in the wake of the ICE raids to two community organizations: the Coalition of Humane Immigrant Rights and the LA County Office of Immigrant Affairs.

Calling the WNBA Players Association "leaders in this space," NWSL Players Association executive director Meghann Burke told The Athletic that the basketball union initiated their joint statement.

"It's important to stand together as workers' unions," she noted.

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NWSL and WNBA unions speak to families impacted by ICE raids

"It's not lost on us that this country and the world are in turmoil right now," wrote the NWSLPA and WNBPA. "Across the country, families are facing fear, hardship, and uncertainty tied to immigration."

The athlete unions then crystallized their position, saying, "We stand with all people seeking safety, dignity, and opportunity, no matter where they come from or where they hope to go."

"Every person deserves to be treated with dignity and respect," they continued. "We know not every situation is simple. But offering compassion should never be up for debate."