Jaelene Daniels has agreed to a one-year contract with the North Carolina Courage, the club announced on Sunday, in a move that has sparked much backlash due to controversial comments Daniels has made in the past regarding LGBTQ+ rights.

Daniels, 28, previously played for the Courage from 2017-19, making 46 appearances with the team. A two-time NWSL champion, she was named the Courage’s 2019 Defender of the Year in a team vote.

With the contract, which includes an additional one-year option for 2023, Daniels returns to the NWSL after she retired in 2020 and gave birth to her first child in August.

“It was a huge blow when Jae decided to retire after the Challenge Cup in 2020, but we understood her decision and are thrilled for her and Matthew on the arrival of their baby, Zoe,” Courage president and GM Curt Johnson said in a statement. “Jae has been a huge part of our biggest moments as a Club and she is someone that we are excited to welcome back. She is one of the most decorated players in league history and will be a valuable part of our 2022 team and beyond.”

[NEWS] Courage Agree to Terms with Jaelene Daniels

📰: https://t.co/WU5vdXFK8g pic.twitter.com/v3zAENsNrn

— NC Courage (@TheNCCourage) December 19, 2021

Despite the Courage front office’s optimism, the signing has received widespread public criticism due to Daniels’ checkered past with the U.S. women’s national team. In 2017, Daniels (then Hinkle) declined a call-up to the USWNT, citing “personal reasons” at the time. Later, she said that her Christian beliefs prevented her from wearing a jersey designed to honor members of the LGBTQ+ community. In a 2018 video from the Christian Broadcasting Network, Hinkle said she “felt so convicted that it wasn’t my job to wear this jersey.”

“I’m essentially giving up the one dream little girls dream about their entire life, and I’m saying no to [it],” she added. “I knew in my spirit I was doing the right thing. I knew that I was being obedient.”

After the USWNT won the World Cup in 2019, goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris responded to a tweet with Hinkle’s interview and the suggestion that the USWNT is “not a very welcoming place for Christians.”

Harris, who is married to former USWNT defender Ali Krieger, wrote that Daniels’ religion “was never problem.”

“The problem,” Harris wrote, “is your intolerance and you are homophobic. You don’t belong in a sport that aims to unite and bring people together. You would never fit into our pack or what this team stands for. Don’t you dare say our team is ‘not a welcoming place for Christians.’ You weren’t around long enough to know what this team stood for. This is actually an insult to the Christians on our team.”

In a release, Courage owner Steve Malik said the decision “sparked a lot of discussion internally, and with a cross section of fans.”

Ultimately, the club decided to re-sign Daniels because of her “positive impact she had on the Courage’s successful history,” he said.

This past season was a tumultuous one for the Courage, who were at the center of the scandal involving former coach Paul Riley. The club fired Riley in the wake of former players’ accusations of emotional coercion and sexual abuse and have since hired Sean Nahas as permanent head coach. Nahas led the team to the quarterfinals of the NWSL playoffs, where they lost to the eventual champion Washington Spirit in extra time.

“Jae and I had some very good conversations leading up to her signing and bringing her back into where she wanted to be, and that is here in N.C.,” Nahas said. “To add such a great talent to our team, one who knows us and is comfortable with what we do, is something that we are looking forward to as we begin to move forward into the 2022 season.”

Incoming NWSL expansion team Denver announced more infrastructure news on Thursday, naming the squad's first-ever employee in decorated sports executive Jen Millet, who will serve as club president.

"Jen stood out amongst an extensive list of qualified candidates," said controlling owner Rob Cohen in a club statement. "Jen’s understanding of soccer, building world-class brands, ability to engage the community, and passion for creating a culture of excellence made her the ideal fit to run our club."

Previously, Millet served as the chief operating officer for 2024 expansion team Bay FC, a club she led to the league's top in merchandise sales and top-three in ticketing revenue in the franchise's inaugural season.

The Denver post, in which Millet will lead all of the club's business operations, will return Millet to her hometown as she takes on another NWSL launch.

"People might say I'm crazy to do back-to-back builds," Millet told The Athletic. "But I actually love this kind of work, and so I'm excited to get going."

With a new dedicated stadium and training facility in the works, plus record season ticket sales and, now, NWSL-savvy leadership, Denver looks prepared to hit the ground running as the league's 16th team in 2026.

The 2025 PWHL Takeover Tour was a smash hit, with the second-year league’s nine-game out-of-market series drawing record-breaking crowds across North America.

Built as both a marketing push and a way to size up cities for future expansion, the Takeover Tour has given hockey fans access to the PWHL from Seattle to Québec City.

"The PWHL Takeover Tour has been one of the most rewarding initiatives since our inception — for our fans, our athletes, and our staff," said PWHL EVP of hockey operations Jayna Hefford.

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Record-setting crowds packed PWHL Tour stops

According to a Friday press release, a total of 123,601 fans visited the Tour, setting a new US attendance record for professional women’s hockey with 14,018 cheering in Denver on January 12th — a mark that fell just over two months later when 14,288 fans filled Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena on March 16th.

More than half the games rank in the PWHL’s Top-10 most attended matchups, with the Takeover Tour's January 8th Vancouver stop registering fourth on the list with its 19,038-strong sellout crowd.

Even more, the league estimates that 80% of the Tour's attendees witnessed their first-ever PWHL game, making the series a rousing success in expanding the league's reach and growing the game beyond its six home markets.

"Across the nine stops, we connected with new fans, grew the game, and gave audiences the opportunity to experience the unparalleled excitement of a PWHL game live," said PWHL EVP of business operations Amy Scheer.

"This Tour created core memories for our fans and players and its success is a true testament to the passion and support we’re seeing across North America."

Already looking deep into the future, the Tour also gave 945 hockey-playing girls access to clinics and meetings with PWHL stars — a move that Hefford hopes inspires the young athletes to aim for pro careers of their own, now that the league has paved the path into "an achievable goal."

Projected 2025 WNBA Draft overall No. 1 pick Paige Bueckers announced her first pro deal on Friday, signing with new league partner Ally Financial as the bank gears up to help launch the WNBA’s first-ever Rivalry Week.

"I think the biggest lesson I've learned is to give with what you've been given," Bueckers said during a Friday morning press conference. "A lot of my partnerships, we have values aligned of giving back."

As draft prospects weigh the factors behind the decision to turn pro, Bueckers's early endorsement splash challenges the idea that NIL opportunities end the moment college players exit the NCAA.

The brand-new NCAA champion has been out of the college game for less than one week, but by cashing in with a deal immediately, Bueckers is proving that her value isn’t slowing down anytime soon.

"I think at times there's too much made about salary, and too much made about what's going on in college," Dallas GM Curt Miller told reporters on Thursday. "The top players that we're talking to, their endorsements are going to travel with them."

Ally backs debut WNBA Rivalry Week

In line with the deal, the Ally-sponsored inaugural WNBA Rivalry Week will run from August 9th through the 17th, highlighting matchups with a significant amount of recent history.

Key games will include Midwest regional foes Indiana and Chicago battling it out on CBS, new expansion team Golden State hosting a California clash against the LA Sparks, and a pair of WNBA Finals rematches featuring the NY Liberty, Minnesota Lynx, and the Las Vegas Aces.

Monday’s 2025 WNBA Draft could seriously shape the future for the three teams at the helm of this year’s lottery, as top pick-holders Dallas, Seattle, and Washington all prepare to make major moves after a rollercoaster offseason.

The Wings currently hold the overall No. 1 pick, while Seattle will select second after a blockbuster three-team trade with LA and Las Vegas sent star Jewell Loyd to the Aces and the No. 2 pick to the Storm.

Washington also wields significant draft capital following another series of trades, which sent top guard Ariel Atkins to Chicago in exchange for the No. 3 pick. Meanwhile, the Mystics also hold Monday's fourth and sixth first-round selections.

While Dallas and Seattle wield the highest picks, Washington’s wealth of selections gives them the most first-round influence — especially over expansion franchise Golden State’s No. 5 pick.

"I think it actually creates an opportunity for us to build strength in a couple of different ways," said Mystics GM Jamila Wideman.

Flexibility is key in navigating the WNBA Draft

Uncertainty has reigned supreme in recent months, as team executives find out alongside the public exactly which college stars are entering the WNBA’s talent pool as some eligible standouts opt to remain in the NCAA for one final season.

"We're always nimble as GMs in this league," Dallas GM Curt Miller told media on Thursday. "You don’t truly know who is declaring and coming into the draft until the very end."

As for teams outside of the lottery, they'll have to cross their fingers and wait patiently on Monday, as last year’s lowest record-holders raid the draft pool first.