After two weeks off, Just Women’s Sports‘ NWSL weekly power rankings are back and, in typical NWSL fashion, are full of chaos.

Most notably, the Chicago Red Stars move out of the top three for the first time since May as the Houston Dash surge into their spot. The Kansas City Current slide down for reasons outside of their control, while the North Carolina Courage rise despite playing to a 3-3 draw on Friday.

The full season is taken into account in these rankings, but teams’ recent performances are also heavily weighted, which means some squads might be two or three places off of where they sit in the league standings. (For the last installment of JWS’ power rankings, click here.)

Here we go.

12. Racing Louisville FC (2-6-5) -1

Since June 11, all of Louisville’s results have had a maximum one-goal difference, and none of those seven games have been a win. They dominated the beginning of the second half against the Portland Thorns on Friday, before giving up a second goal in the 2-1 loss. Louisville has a lot of promising pieces, but in a league as competitive as the NWSL, they need to put them all together on a consistent basis. The six losses they’ve recorded in their last nine games are the most of any team in the league in that stretch.

11. NJ/NY Gotham FC (4-7-0) -1

Gotham continues to lead the league in losses after falling 4-2 to the Houston Dash, their fifth defeat in the last nine games. Gotham controlled the tempo at the beginning of the first and second halves against Houston, and even scored a goal just four minutes in. But as both teams settled into their possession, the Dash quickly assumed the upper hand and outdid Gotham in all areas except for blocks (2-1), clearances (24-11) and ground duels won (52 percent).

10. North Carolina Courage (2-5-3) +2

The Courage’s two-spot rise up the power rankings is generous, considering their last game was a draw. It would have been one spot if Gotham and Louisville hadn’t both moved down. North Carolina also suffered in the last power rankings after they had to postpone their match due to COVID-19 protocols. Currently 12th in the league standings, they’ve played four fewer games than the Spirit and Wave and three fewer than most teams, so the team’s situation is not just about poor results. They’re the best at possession in the league and are lethal in transition. They were particularly relentless against Washington on Friday, refusing to let them walk away with the win and answering every goal the Spirit scored to complete the 3-3 draw.

9. Washington Spirit (1-5-8) —

The Washington Spirit have found success creating and finishing their chances, and that’s partly where the momentum ends. They scored three times against the Courage on Friday, but they also conceded three, and it cost them what could have been their first win since the season opener. The Spirit did well in possession, recording an 83.7 percent passing accuracy, but they also allowed the Courage to connect on 83 percent of their passes. Needless to say, The offense is there for Washington, especially with Trinity Rodman back in the mix, but they need the same energy on the other side of the ball.

8. Orlando Pride (3-5-5) —

The Pride found their stride in the first half against the Current on Sunday, scoring the opening goal in the 25th minute and doubling their lead just seconds into the second half. They couldn’t adjust to the pressure that Kansas City piled on afterwards, however, ultimately conceding two goals for a 2-2 draw. Orlando’s lack of hunger in the second half was concerning, since the Current are a lower-ranked playoff contender that Orlando should set their sights on chasing down.

7. Angel City FC (5-5-2) —

Angel City came out flying against OL Reign on Saturday, with Cari Roccaro scoring the opening goal nine minutes into the game and Savannah McCaskill putting them up 2-0 in the 28th. ACFC didn’t carry the momentum into the second half, however, giving up three goals to fall 3-2. Despite having less possession than the Reign, they connected on 76.5 percent of their passes and effectively used their space on the dribble. Overall, a loss like that should result in a drop in the rankings. But after Angel City fell two spots in the last power rankings due to a postponed game, they deserve a second chance.

Quick strike! 💥 @cari_roccaro opens the scoring early with her first career NWSL goal!@weareangelcity | #AngelCityFC pic.twitter.com/exet8TIflQ

— National Women’s Soccer League (@NWSL) July 31, 2022

6. Kansas City Current (5-4-4) -2

It took 45 minutes for the Current to wake up on Sunday, but once they hit their stride, they came back from a 2-0 deficit to draw 2-2 with the Pride and extend their unbeaten streak to eight games. By the second half, they cleaned up their passing and increased the tempo to put pressure on Orlando. As coach Matt Potter said Sunday, “You can see that we haven’t come away from too many games in the second half where we haven’t played in a manner that fits our identity.” They could have easily stayed at fourth in the power rankings, but with Houston moving up, the Reign or the Current had to get bumped down.

5. OL Reign (5-3-5) —

The Reign have so much potential, and yet they’ve only won once in their last four games. With a dynamic attack outshooting Angel City 25-9 and registering an 81.6 percent passing accuracy on Sunday, OL Reign showed what their capable of in the 3-2 comeback win. They’re second in the league in shots on target per match, but their six draws this season indicate they need to be more clinical in the final third. That’s what happened Tuesday in a 1-1 draw with Racing Louisville, where the Reign outshot their opponents 25-6 — with 11 of them on target — but were unable to get around goalkeeper Katie Lund, who made a league-record 12 saves in the game.

4. Chicago Red Stars (5-3-5) -2

The Red Stars haven’t won a game since July 2. With a 1-0 loss to San Diego on Saturday, Chicago dropped to fifth place in the standings. They put up a fight, though, maintaining 59 percent of the possession and a 77.6 passing accuracy. Even though they outshot the Wave 20-9, only four of their shots were on target, tying them with the Wave for shots on goal.

3. Houston Dash (6-4-3) +3

With a 70.6 percent passing accuracy and 51 percent of the possession against Gotham on Sunday, the Dash stuck to their high-press game plan and it paid off. An early mistake in the opening four minutes cost the Dash a goal against, but they didn’t let it get to them as they went on to bury four straight, including two within four minutes of each other. They’ve now scored four goals or more in four games this season, picking up enough points to take the Red Stars’ place in the top three of the NWSL standings and these power rankings.

You are simply world class, @sophieschmidt13 🤌#HoldItDownpic.twitter.com/jMFXHhHBrG

— Houston Dash (@HoustonDash) July 31, 2022

2. San Diego Wave FC (7-3-4) +1

The Wave were lucky not to come away with a draw against the Red Stars on Saturday after sustaining 20 shots against. Thanks to Naomi Girma making goal-line saves and 17-year-old Jaedyn Shaw scoring her debut goal, the Wave came out on top, 1-0. Chicago had the majority of possession, but San Diego did well defensively to hold onto the lead, winning 54 duels, 10 tackles and 38 clearances.

1. Portland Thorns FC (6-1-6) —

With their 2-1 victory over Racing Louisville on Friday, the Thorns extended their unbeaten streak to nine games. They’ve scored two or more goals in nine of their last 10 matches, and they were missing seven of their star players in half of those games due to overlapping international tournaments. Over the last four games, 10 different Thorns players have scored. Meanwhile, Portland’s leading scorer, Sophia Smith, returned from the U.S. women’s national team Friday to record her ninth goal of the season. The club was on a tear in July, and now that world-class players like Smith are back on the pitch, the Thorns’ chances are looking better than ever.

Jessa Braun is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering the NWSL and USWNT. Follow her on Twitter @jessabraun.

US swimming icon Katie Ledecky is back on top, earning her 22nd world title with a gold medal-winning 1,500-meter freestyle performance at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships on Tuesday.

Finishing with a time of 15:26.44, Ledecky now owns 25 of the top 26 times in the event's history and holds six World Aquatics Championships titles at that distance.

"Each one has meaning, and I love every race that I've had at Worlds over the years," the 28-year-old swimming star told broadcasters following her Tuesday victory.

That 22nd title brought Ledecky's combined Worlds total to an overall 28 medals, lifting the star to second on the all-time most decorated list where she trails only retired US men's star Michael Phelps's 33 podium finishes.

Earlier in the week, the Team USA standout took bronze in the 400-meter freestyle, coming in third behind China's silver-medalist Li Bingjie and Canadian sensation Summer McIntosh, who won the race with a time of 3:56.26.

Gold medals have been hard to come by for Team USA at this year's World Championships.

Other than Ledecky's win and the 100-meter butterfly title snagged by Gretchen Walsh on Monday, the US women have struggled to claim gold medals as they push to recover from the acute gastroenteritis that hit several team members at their pre-meet training camp in Thailand.

That stomach bug inhibited multiple US swimmers from traveling with the team to the Singapore meet, and saw contenders like 100-meter butterfly Olympic gold medalist Torri Huske pull out of initial heats.

"We're taking it a day at a time," said Team USA head coach Greg Meehan about the impact of the illness. "Obviously, this is not how we thought the first few days of this competition would go. But I'm really proud of our team."

How to watch Ledecky at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships

The 2025 World Aquatics Championships runs through Sunday, and US star Ledecky has two events left to swim at the meet.

On Thursday, she'll compete in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay, before facing another showdown with rival McIntosh in the 800-meter freestyle on Saturday.

Preliminary heats kick off the night before at 10 PM ET, with finals seeing staggered starts beginning at 7 AM ET.

Live coverage of the meet airs on Peacock.

UEFA Women's Euro 2025 made a splash across the pond, drawing an average of 458,000 US viewers per match across FOX platforms to mark a 97% viewership increase over the 2022 edition — making this year's tournament the most-watched English-language Women's Euro on record.

Building off the 2025 competition's previously reported record-breaking numbers, Sunday's grand finale between defending champs England and 2023 World Cup winners Spain averaged 1.35 million US viewers — a 53% increase in viewership over the last Women's Euro championship match.

Even more, the broadcast ultimately peaked at 1.92 million fans tuning in, making it the most-watched English-language Women's Euro Final on record.

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The historic viewership is a major win for broadcaster FOX, who secured the women's tournament's first-ever US media deal back in May.

Initially committing to live coverage of 20 of the tournament's matches, record returns motivated the broadcast giant to quickly pivot and air all 31 matches live as part of its FOX Sports Summer of Soccer campaign.

"More and more people are tuning in to watch soccer in the US," FOX Sports commentator and UWSNT vet Carli Lloyd told The Athletic. "There's just been an incredible amount of soccer on display, which has been fantastic for the sport."

As the NWSL preps for this weekend's return from an extended summer break, No. 4 Washington Spirit star forward Trinity Rodman is also hoping to re-take the pitch for the first time since April.

Rodman is currently back training with the team, rejoining her club after undergoing extended treatment overseas for chronic back issues.

"I'd never really dealt with something like that," Rodman admitted after an open practice earlier this week. "So, for me, mentally, it was very difficult."

"[I was] trying to function through pain, and kind of gaslight myself to thinking it was fine every day, when it wasn't," she said. "I can now kind of openly say, I was in pain all the time."

Rodman also admits that stepping away was, though difficult, the right call to make for her healing.

"Obviously, it sucks being away from the team and being away from soccer in general," she added. "But I got to work on things that I wouldn't have gotten to work on if I was in the team environment all the time, so I think that was a positive."

Rodman's availability fluctuated after she earned an Olympic gold medal with the USWNT in Paris last summer, with the soccer superstar featuring in just four Spirit games this season — and none since stepping away in April.

Now functioning pain-free, Rodman's next on-pitch challenge is balancing her competitive intensity with her newly found health.

"It's really understanding my body and acknowledging [when] it's in pain," she explained. "And not pushing through things that I shouldn't."

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Rodman eyes new contract amid NWSL return

On top of navigating her return to play, Rodman is also actively negotiating with the Washington Spirit for a contract renewal.

Her current deal expires at the end of 2025, and with interest in the US standout reportedly mounting from overseas clubs, the 23-year-old could eventually field multiple offers.

Considering her lack of minutes so far this season, the star called the assumed interest "a weird situation."

"I'm trying not to stress about it or put too much pressure on it," she said of the ongoing talks. "At the end of the day, I'm worried about health first.... Everything else can come next."

Wednesday's WNBA bill puts a heavyweight battle in the spotlight, as 2024 finalists and 2025 league leaders Minnesota will host reigning champion No. 2 New York in their first face-off of the season — with the Liberty hoping to rattle both the Lynx and the standings.

"I think common sense would say that those two teams probably should have played earlier in the season," Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve told media this week, referencing the apparent scheduling idiosyncrasies that delayed the championship rematch.

"It doesn't feel like a Finals rematch anymore, honestly," Lynx forward Napheesa Collier echoed. "It's a new year for us. And it's been so long, it's almost August, so it's just the two top teams going against each other."

Both squads enter the clash on uncharacteristic skids, as Minnesota and New York look to avenge recent losses while other WNBA teams jockey for positioning during the league's Wednesday night slate:

• No. 3 Phoenix Mercury vs. No. 6 Indiana Fever, 7 PM ET (ESPN3): The Fever must continue to contend without injured star guard Caitlin Clark, as Indiana faces a newly healthy Mercury side striving to steal back the No. 2 spot with a win.

• No. 5 Atlanta Dream vs. No. 11 Dallas Wings, 8 PM ET (ESPN3): After a disappointing Tuesday upset loss, the will Dream close out a back-to-back against a bolstered Dallas squad fresh off a big victory over New York.

• No. 2 New York Liberty vs. No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, 8 PM ET (ESPN): With a four-game lead in the standings, the Lynx aren't in danger of giving up their perch at the top, but a strong performance from the Liberty could provide a much-needed boost to the ailing title-holders.