The NWSL and national teams have long had a complex relationship, sometimes symbiotic and sometimes at odds, with players having to balance playing for both club and country.

Now, international players are calling on the league to amend the 2022 schedule to honor FIFA windows and improve the NWSL calendar.

Snacks host Lynn Williams recently stopped by The Athletic’s Full Time with Meg Linehan podcast to discuss the Challenge Cup with the Houston Dash’s Rachel Daly and Orlando Pride’s Alex Morgan.

Williams tells Snacks co-host Sam Mewis that the trio talked about how “the NWSL continues to play through FIFA windows and how hard it is for internationals to feel sometimes a part of the NWSL as well a part of the National Team and being pulled in two different directions.”

Williams admits that splitting time between a club and national team can create interesting dynamics in the locker room.

“Sometimes the club team, you get this bad reputation of like, ‘you don’t want to be here, you are always with your National Team.’ In reality you do, it’s just so hard because they continue to play and you’re just pulled all over the place,” says Williams.

Mewis says she’s also felt divided between representing the USWNT and her NWSL team, the North Carolina Courage.

“I think it’s hard to do both when they conflict. Obviously, you can’t be there 100 percent of the time for your club team even though in the rest of the world the schedules are just made in a way that clubs and the leagues respect the FIFA windows so that international players aren’t missing 25 percent of the games in a season.”

“You always hear coaches say ‘you’ll get your shot when the national team players go away,’” Williams adds. “And I feel like they say that trying to make it a positive, but in reality it’s kind of a negative because it’s like, ‘Oh you only value me when they’re gone’ — so, it’s a very interesting dynamic that is so unique to the NWSL.”

Going forward, Williams and Mewis hope the NWSL will shift the schedule — including moving the NWSL Challenge Cup. Mewis points explicitly to next summer when there is a “big FIFA window” for international qualifying tournaments as a potential place for the NWSL Challenge Cup.

“Doing the Challenge Cup during that window, I feel like, makes so much sense. Instead of having a break or just continuing with games, I think it makes sense to put a different kind of competition in that big window and to kind of get used to doing that in the summers when there are these big tournaments.”

This would mean the Challenge Cup would be without international players. But as someone who has experienced both sides of that playing dynamic, Williams says this could be a change that would benefit all NWSL players.

“I’ve been on both sides. I’ve been where I just played in the NWSL and not with the National Team and then having to do both. And I also think it’s not fair [in terms of the regular season] to the players when all the internationals leave because some teams have more internationals, then you’re trying to figure out formations and player personnel while your players are away.”

Williams adds that placing the Challenge Cup during the Summer could provide players who aren’t typically awarded minutes more time on the pitch while allowing international and club players to get back on the same schedule and avoid missing crucial regular season games.

The Challenge Cup was initially played as a replacement tournament for the 2020 NWSL season, with teams competing within a single bubble. This season, the league moved the Challenge Cup to the beginning of the year and used it as a kick-off tournament. The Houston Dash won last year’s tournament in memorable fashion, while the Portland Thorns won this years, claiming their first trophy in a season that’s been full of them.

Listen to the latest episode of Snacks for more on Williams and Mewis’ thoughts on the NWSL schedule.

Rose Lavelle is hoping to return to the field soon. 

The 28-year-old midfielder has been sidelined with a lower leg injury since the Gold Cup in early march. Since then, she has yet to play for new club Gotham FC in the NWSL. She also missed a potential USWNT appearance at the SheBelieves Cup in April, where senior team newcomer Jaedyn Shaw saw success assuming Lavelle's role in the attacking midfield. 

At the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee media showcase on Monday, Lavelle told reporters that she’s doing well and hopes to be back soon.

"I’m doing good — I’m hoping I’ll be back in the next couple weeks," Lavelle said. "It’s frustrating to start the year off with an injury, just because I feel like you come off preseason and you’re revving to go, so it’s so annoying."

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Lavelle is still looking to compete for one of just 18 Olympic roster spots. When healthy, she ranks as one of the national team’s most trusted assets, but considering this most recent injury, her health is an obvious concern. Faced with an onslaught of experienced competitors and young talent, incoming USWNT coach Emma Hayes will have some big decisions to make when selecting the Paris-bound squad — a reality Lavelle seems to be taking in stride as she works to regain full fitness.

"We have so many special players, we have so much depth, and so many different weapons to utilize on and off the bench," Lavelle said. "Unfortunately that means really good players are going to get left off, too. And I think for all of us, it’s just about being ready for whatever role is given to us, embracing that, and looking to put it into a collective picture so that we can go into the Olympics ready to go."

Stanford has found its replacement for legendary head women's basketball coach Tara VanDerveer in associate head coach Kate Paye.

The Cardinal confirmed the hiring on Tuesday via a press release. Paye was largely expected to replace the longtime head coach, as the college mentioned they were still negotiating Paye's contract when they announced VanDerveer's retirement.

In Tuesday's statement, Paye reported that she was "humbled" to have been tapped to lead the women’s program.

"Stanford University has been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember and I am humbled to have the opportunity to lead its women’s basketball program," Paye said. "I’d first like to thank Tara, who has played such a pivotal role in my career for her friendship and guidance. It’s not what she’s done, but how she’s done it, that has had such a profound impact upon me."

A Woodside, California native, Paye played under VanDerveer from 1992 to 1995, taking home a national title her freshman year. After graduation, Paye briefly joined San Diego State as an assistant coach before making her professional debut with the ABL's Seattle Reign in 1996. After finishing her playing career with the WNBA's Seattle Storm, she joined the team’s coaching staff in 2007 and has been with the organization ever since, picking up another national title win — this time as associate head coach — in 2021. Paye's brother John played quarterback for Stanford from 1983 to 1986, while also serving as a point guard on the basketball team.

In her own response, VanDerveer said that she was "grateful" that Stanford picked Paye to follow in her stead. Last week, the decorated coach stated that this year would be her last after 38 seasons at the helm and three national titles under her belt.

"She has long been ready for this opportunity and is the perfect leader for Stanford at this time of immense change in college athletics," VanDerveer noted. "Kate was the choice for this job and I am confident she will achieve great success as head coach."

The 2024 WNBA Draft has officially concluded, leaving the newly minted rookie class facing a tough road ahead.

Only 144 roster slots are available throughout the league’s 12 teams, the reason why the players are sometimes referred to as the “144.” And Monday’s draft picks are set to join a large group of established players competing for those same roster spots, from seasoned veterans to young athletes determined to prove their value on the court.

Last year, just 15 of the league’s 36 draftees made it onto their drafting team's opening-day squad.

In reality, there are oftentimes fewer than 144 spots available, as not every team maxes out their roster. Per the league's CBA, each team roster must maintain a minimum standard of 11 players, but those lists can include players out with injuries or on other forms of leave. Players can also be assigned to short-term hardship contracts, something waived players must be prepared for at any point during the season.

Earlier this week, Laeticia Amihere — a 2022 national champion with South Carolina who currently plays for the Atlanta Dream — took to TikTok to provide some insight into the WNBA training camp process. 

"You can either get drafted on Draft Night, or you can get signed by a team," she said. "Once that happens, you go to training camp literally like two weeks later... Basically everybody's got to try out. There's 12 roster spots, and there's like 18 people at the at the trial."

@laeticiaamihere Replying to @dantavius.washington #wnba #draft ♬ original sound - Laeticia Amihere

Amihere also had an important point to make: Getting cut does not signify a player’s abilities. 

"If you get cut after training camp, that does not mean you're not good," she said. "That does not mean that player sucks, don't stop supporting that player. Literally, there's so many reasons somebody can get cut."

"If you guys look at the best players in the league, most of them have bounced around teams," she added. "And I promise you it is not a bad thing, it's just how the league is."

Things, however gradually, are changing. With Golden State's WNBA team scheduled to launch in time for the 2025 season, league expansion is just around the corner. On Monday, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced that the league is aiming to grow to 16 teams by 2028. But by then, it might be too little too late for the generation of talent emerging from an increasingly competitive NCAA system.

Monday night’s WNBA draft added to the nationwide uptick in record-breaking women's sports viewership, pulling in 2.45 million viewers throughout the nearly two-hour broadcast and peaking at 3.09 million, according to an ESPN release. 

That number shatters the previous draft viewership record — 601,000 in 2004 — which was fueled primarily by then-No. 1 pick Diana Taurasi entering the league after UConn's historic three-peat March Madness performance.  

The 2023 WNBA draft drew 572,000 viewers, the most for any televised WNBA event since 2.74 million tuned in to NBC for a Memorial Day matchup between the New York Liberty and Houston Comets back in 2000.

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While many came to watch Caitlin Clark get drafted No. 1 overall, it’s important to note that viewership didn’t take a massive dip after the superstar shooter left the stage. The numbers show that a bulk of the audience stuck around to watch the remainder of the show, making 2024's event not just the most-viewed WNBA draft in history, but also the most-viewed WNBA program to ever air on ESPN platforms.

Draft Day's popularity is yet another sign indicating an expected rise in WNBA regular season viewership. Clark and Iowa's NCAA tournament showdown with the Chicago Sky-bound Kamilla Cardoso's South Carolina side drew a record 18.7 million to ABC's Sunday afternoon broadcast. Banking on this trend, 36 of Indiana's upcoming 40 games are set to be shown on national television. In-person ticket sales are also soaring, leading the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces to re-home their matchup with the Fever to a venue that can accommodate some 6,000 more fans.