Add U.S. women’s national team star Megan Rapinoe to the group of players unhappy with FIFA for exploring a partnership with Visit Saudi, the official Saudi Arabia tourism agency, for the 2023 World Cup.

“I think [the sponsorship is] totally inappropriate. If they want to do, like, a 20-year-long women’s empowerment project and in 2043 sponsor a World Cup, that would be something. But I think it kind of just further proves the corruption and the thought process of FIFA,” Rapinoe told reporters Wednesday in Orlando as the USWNT prepared for its first SheBelieves Cup game.

Rapinoe’s teammate Alex Morgan already has offered her own criticism of the partnership.

“I think it’s bizarre that FIFA has looked to have a Visit Saudi sponsorship for the women’s World Cup when I myself, Alex Morgan, would not even be supported and accepted in that country,” she told reporters prior to the SheBelieves Cup, a round-robin tournament in which the USWNT will face Brazil, Japan and Canada.

The decision has brought outcry from host nations Australia and New Zealand, who say they were not consulted in the decision to pursue partnership with Saudi Arabia, who does not have a track record of investing in their women’s program.

“I think that what Saudi Arabia can do is put efforts into their women’s team that was just formed only a couple of years ago, and doesn’t even have a current ranking within the FIFA ranking system because of the such few games that they’ve played,” Morgan said.

“So that would be my advice to them, and I really hope that FIFA does the right thing. I mean, pretty much everyone has spoken out against that, because morally it just doesn’t make sense.”

Rapinoe agreed with Morgan’s sentiments, saying: “If they thought for one second that this would be a good sponsor for women’s tournaments, outrageous. I think Alex said the other day, like Alex Morgan couldn’t exist in Saudi Arabia, the way that she does in America and the world or on the global stage.”

The two-time World Cup champion expressed a certain level of fatigue in having to address FIFA’s decisions, likening it to “banging our heads against the wall,” with little likely to change without a priority shift at the highest level.

“I’ve said for a long time, I don’t think FIFA really truly cares about the women’s game the way that it cares about the men’s game,” Rapinoe said.

Indeed, in some ways, Rapinoe is seeing a shift in the wrong direction.

“I think even their priorities in the men’s game have shifted a lot, and it’s pretty blatant a lot of times what they care about,” she said. “So for us, I don’t even want to waste any more time on FIFA. I feel like we say what we want, we are what we want, and we exemplify that. And I think women’s teams across the globe do that both internationally and on the club stage.”

USWNT captain Becky Sauerbrunn shared Rapinoe’s frustrations, saying Wednesday, “It’s just really disappointing that I think FIFA keeps putting us in the position where we have to speak on things like this, and there seems to be a bit of a pattern.”

Even having spoken up, U.S. players understand their influence only goes so far, and that others with financial stakes in the tournament are going to have to shake the table to make change.

“I would actually say to sponsors, you take the mantle,” Rapinoe said. “It’s your job, you’re the one giving the money. You’re the one that has a little bit more power. We’ve said everything that we could possibly say so we would like a little bit of help when it comes to that.”

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.