Allison Howard was announced Wednesday as the first president of the NWSL’s Kansas City Current.

A partnerships specialist with nearly two decades of experience in sports business, Howard joins the Current after 10 years with the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers. While the jump from basketball to soccer might be scary for some, Howard is ready to meet the challenge head on.

Just Women’s Sports sat down with Howard to discuss her new role and her plans for the Current.

You’ve been in L.A. for 22 years, and 10 of those years have been with the Lakers. What made you decide to join Kansas City?

So I think that really it’s the ownership group, right? It’s Angie [Long], Chris [Long] and Brittany [Mahomes], and not only the vision that they have for the future, and what to do for women’s sports in particular, but also the commitment that they’ve already shown that they’re going to take them there.

The way that I look at this is I really want to design the playbook for how to build a team, or, you know, if somebody has to rebuild a team, how to do it. And that’s by putting the players first. It’s by always listening to the fans, being in the community, and surrounding yourself with really great partners who are like-minded with the mission.

That’s been my lesson of coming from the Lakers. The Lakers always put the players first. So that’s a very easy transition to come over here, and definitely something that I stand behind.

You’re switching sports, from basketball to soccer. How are you feeling about the change?

There is definitely going to be a learning curve for me. However, I did play soccer in high school. I love this sport. And obviously, you can’t ignore this sport, anywhere. I mean, not only no matter where you are in the United States, but no matter where you are globally, and it’s such a friendly, easy game to play.

So I look forward to getting to my first game with the Current next Monday. I will be back in the market and looking forward to seeing what our players do.

Expanding upon that jump, do you see any particular opportunities or challenges in moving from a men’s league to a women’s league?

Just nothing that’s insurmountable, I’ll say that. Listen, I think, you know, the Lakers are a very established brand. And they have been strong for over 40 years. So there is definitely taking a lot of the blueprint of what Dr. Buss did there and bringing it here, because the reality is, he did a lot of things right. He was really instrumental in developing the league.

And that’s where I see Angie, Chris and Brittany. I really think the nice thing about them is they’re not just thinking about the Current, they are thinking so much bigger, right?

There’s definitely going to be a learning curve. I’m going to use muscles I have not used before, or maybe that I haven’t used in a really long time. But that’s exciting, right? And I think as long as you’re surrounded by really good people who are willing to dig in and get a little dirty for what the mission is, then I have I have confidence that we’re gonna get there.

Definitely. And it’s always fun to learn something new, even though you know you’ve been a veteran of the industry…

For sure. I mean, I definitely think that it keeps you young. And it keeps you curious. And it keeps you growing. And those are all things that are important, no matter where you are in your life.

You talked about it a bit, but you’re going from one of the most storied franchises in sports to a relatively new one. How do you think your experience is going to help you as you walk into this new role?

I learned so many lessons while being at the Lakers. And the vast majority of those are how you do business on, really, almost every level. And it’s really how you engage with the fans, and how you treat your season ticket members, and how you treat your corporate partners. It’s a very servant attitude. And that’s something that I definitely want to bring here. Because it’s authentic, and it’s genuine. And I think when you approach things from that route, everybody feels it, and they’re gonna want to not even get behind us, but walk alongside of us.

What do you hope to accomplish in Kansas City and with the Current?

My number one goal is to make sure that the players are talking to all the other players around the league and saying, ‘This is it. This is where you want to come, this is where you want to play, this is the best place in the league.’ And we’re getting there, we’re building that, literally building it.

Second, I want the fans to say, ‘This is the absolute best sporting experience that I can have.’ And I want the community to feel like they always have a supporter in us, and they can always reach us.

Lastly, selfishly because I come from a partnership background, I definitely want to be the top revenue provider in the league. Whenever it comes to corporate partners, such as corporate partnerships, ticketing, revenue, merchandise, you name it, I want to be at the top. But I want the partners to know that they can always reach us and we are always going to be flexible with them. And we are always going to design bespoke partnerships that are going to really meet what their needs are. This isn’t going to be a, choose Option A, B or C.

What are you most excited about in joining the Current, stepping into the role of president and moving to Kansas City?

I really feel like every step of my career has been to get me to this point. And I just have so many ideas of how I think a culture should be created and how people should be treated. And I’m really excited to put those plans into action.

The 2025 Wimbledon Championships wrapped its second round on Thursday, with the grass court Grand Slam seeing just 15 of the tournament's 32 seeded players advance to the Friday and Saturday's third round.

A full half of the WTA's Top 10 players did not survive the week, with 2024 Wimbledon finalist and world No. 5 Jasmine Paolini joining four first-round star exits by falling to unseeded Kamilla Rakhimova in a three-set, second-round battle on Wednesday.

At the same time, unseeded fan favorites like Japan's No. 53 Naomi Osaka and England's own No. 40 Emma Raducanu secured third-round spots at the London Slam, joining top surviving contenders like No. 4 Iga Świątek and defending Wimbledon champion No. 16 Barbora Krejčíková.

Notably, a full five US players managed to move ahead, tied for the largest national contingent still standing at the tournament.

Led by 2025 Australian Open champion No. 8 Madison Keys, the US group also includes No. 10 Emma Navarro and No. 12 Amanda Anisimova, as well as unseeded players No. 54 Danielle Collins and No. 55 Hailey Baptiste.

With matches against Świątek and No. 7 Mirra Andreeva, respectively, Collins and Baptiste have a tough third round ahead — though Navarro's battle against the 2024 champ Krejčíková arguably headlines Saturday's slate.

How to watch Wimbledon this weekend

While world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is still holding strong in the dwindling field, this year's Wimbledon play is proving that the London Slam is anyone's to take, as the grass court humbles even the sport's top stars.

Expect the twists and turns to continue as tennis's best battle for spots in Sunday's Round of 16.

Round-of-32 Wimbledon play kicks off at 6 AM ET on Friday, with live continuous coverage of the tournament airing on ESPN.

The 2025 European Championship is officially underway, as Euro action kicked off with a group-stage upset on Wednesday.

Though the 2025 UEFA tournament's opener was a sweltering affair amid a European heat wave, world No. 26 Finland prevailed, earning a 1-0 upset win over No. 14 Iceland in Group A.

Finnish winger Katariina Kosola played hero, curling in the winning goal in the match's 70th minute — just 12 minutes after Iceland midfielder Hildur Antonsdóttir picked up the competition's first red card.

"The result is important for our confidence," Kosola said after Finland's first major tournament win since the 2009 Euro. "It was the kind of goal I have been practicing a lot."

"It's terrible to lose and we feel frustrated," said Iceland head coach Thorsteinn Halldórsson. "It is an even group and we knew Finland were good, but our first half wasn't good enough."

Elsewhere, No. 16 Norway closed out Wednesday's slate on top of Group A, taking three points by defeating host No. 23 Switzerland in day's second match.

Led by captain and 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg — who pulled the match even with a second-half strike — Norway battled to a 2-1 comeback win, despite the Swiss side outshooting and out-possessing the Norwegians.

How to watch this week's 2025 Euro action

Group B steals the 2025 Euro spotlight on Thursday.

While No. 13 Italy snagged a 1-0 opening win over No. 20 Belgium to kick off the day, 2023 World Cup champions and tournament favorite No. 2 Spain will face No. 22 Portugal at 3 PM ET.

Friday's Group C slate will pit No. 12 Denmark against No. 6 Sweden at 12 PM ET, before No. 3 Germany contends with No. 27 Poland at 3 PM ET.

Closing out the first group-stage matches will be arguably the toughest draw of the 2025 Euro pool.

Saturday's Group D slate features major tournament debutants No. 30 Wales against the No. 11 Netherlands at 12 PM ET, with No. 10 France taking on defending champions No. 5 England to cap the day at 3 PM ET.

Live coverage of 2025 Euro matches will air across Fox Sports platforms.

The world No. 1 USWNT ruled the pitch on Wednesday night, shutting out North American rivals No. 8 Canada 3-0 to finish the international window on a high note.

Catching the Canada backline sleeping, US midfielder Sam Coffey opened the scoring at the 17-minute mark before 19-year-old Claire Hutton claimed her first-ever USWNT goal by heading in a Rose Lavelle corner kick in the game's 36th minute.

Houston Dash forward Yazmeen Ryan then padded the US tally in the waning minutes of the match, finding the back of the net just eight minutes after subbing onto the field.

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Despite fielding a young roster, the US overpowered a veteran-heavy Canada side in almost every category, topping their Northern neighbors in shots, shots on target, possession, and — most notably — set pieces.

Canada ultimately couldn't match the game's mental pace or physical battle, as the USWNT scored all three goals off dead ball situations — a free kick, a corner kick, and a throw-in.

"It's not about the opponent," US head coach Emma Hayes said after the match. "It's about what we do, and I felt that was extremely dominant."

With Wednesday's contributions, the USWNT finishes the summer window with 11 goals scored across the three friendlies — and zero goals conceded.

The US now enters an extended break before reconvening for another as-yet-unannounced friendly series in October — but players will be expected to perform in the meantime.

"I said to the players in the end in the huddle, if you want to compete to win the biggest things, it's not what you do here that matters," said Hayes. "It's what you do when you go back to your club."

The 2025 WNBA regular season returns on Thursday night, with teams at the top of the league standings looking to prove their mettle against close competition across the long holiday weekend.

The No. 5 Seattle Storm have arguably the toughest weekend assignments, taking on the No. 4 Atlanta Dream on Friday before tackling the No. 3 New York Liberty on Sunday.

Four middle-of-the-pack teams will look to close in on a double-digit season win tally while the league's frontrunners strive to maintain their advantage in this weekend's slate:

• No. 7 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 8 Indiana Fever, Thursday at 7 PM ET (Prime): Though still without star Caitlin Clark, the Fever hope to harness their 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup victory momentum against an Aces side tied with Indiana with an 8-8 season record.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 4 Atlanta Dream, Thursday at 7:30 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): Seattle will look to make strides against a strong Atlanta side while putting last Sunday's stinging 84-57 loss to up-and-comer Golden State in their rearview.

• No. 6 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, Saturday at 8 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The rising Valkyries must face a Lynx side hunting redemption, as the league-leaders look to bounce back from their stifling Tuesday Commissioner's Cup upset loss.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 3 New York Liberty, Sunday at 1 PM ET (CBS): With injured Liberty center Jonquel Jones still sidelined, the Seattle Storm will have a chance to steal a weekend game against the reigning champs, as New York struggles to re-find their footing.

With the 2025 WNBA All-Star break looming, early top performers must keep standards high if they want to hold the line when the season crosses the midway point.