Spanish star Alexia Putellas continues her reign as the world’s consensus No. 1 women’s soccer player, taking home the Ballon d’Or for the second consecutive year.

While the midfielder missed out on the Euros after injuring her ACL days before the start of the July tournament, she made the most of the first half of the year with FC Barcelona. She is expected to miss the entire 2022-23 season while recovering from the injury.

“I’m very happy to be back here,” Putellas said in her native Spanish. “I’m pleased. A year ago, I was able to win, and it pushed me to want to be better. Without my teammates this wouldn’t have been possible. I want to thank the team, the staff and the coach as well, and everyone involved with the club.”

Putellas had 18 goals and a league-high 15 assists for Barcelona as she led the team to its third-straight Primera División title.

The 28-year-old helped lead Barcelona to a perfect season, winning all 30 of their games.

She has played for the club since 2012, making 271 appearances and scoring 117 goals. Putellas has appeared in the second most matches in club history, behind Melanie Serrano, and is also second on the club’s all-time scoring list, behind Jennifer Hermoso.

In August, she became the first player to win back-to-back UEFA Women’s Player of the Year awards. She also soared to No. 1 in the FIFA 23 ratings after failing to crack the top 10 in the previous two versions of the game.

The speech of Alexia Putellas, the back-to-back Women's Ballon d'Or winner 💬#ballondor pic.twitter.com/o11kze5yoZ

— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) October 17, 2022

England’s Beth Mead finished second among the 20 nominees for the Ballon d’Or, followed by Australia’s Sam Kerr and Germany’s Lena Oberdorf.

As for the three American nominees, Catarina Macario placed ninth, Alex Morgan came in 13th and Trinity Rodman finished 18th.

Rodman was the youngest player on the nomination list, at 20 years old.

This is the fourth year of the award, as Norway’s Ada Hegerberg won the inaugural award in 2018, followed by Megan Rapinoe in 2019. The award was not given in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2022 women’s Ballon d’Or complete ranking! #ballondor pic.twitter.com/QJLVZW6XjG

— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) October 17, 2022

The 2025 Women's World Cup journey of the U-17 USWNT came to an end on Tuesday, when the US fell to the Netherlands in the tournament's Round of 16 after a 1-1 draw led to a tense penalty shootout.

FC Twente forward Liv Pennock gave the Dutch a one-goal lead in the third minute before a bullet from Chicago Stars attacker Micayla Johnson pulled the USWNT level in the game's second half, but the US couldn't finish the job, losing 7-6 in penalties.

The USWNT has never won a U-17 Women's World Cup, finishing as runners-up in the tournament's inaugural 2008 competition before taking third in the 2024 edition.

With three pros on the roster — Johnson, Gotham FC striker Mak Whitham, and Utah Royals forward KK Ream — as well as one player, defender Sydney Schmidt, on an amateur contract with USL Super League side Sporting JAX, the U-17 USWNT did manage to put together their most impressive group-stage performance yet, taking all nine points from their three opening matches for the first time in team history.

Even more, the team did so in dominant fashion, taking down Ecuador 3-0 and China 5-2 before blasting Norway 5-0 to advance to the knockouts.

The young USWNT will have another shot at a world championship next year, when the now-annual U-17 World Cup returns for its second straight edition in Morocco.

Malawi made women's soccer history on Tuesday, qualifying for the Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) for the first time in program history — and giving sister duo Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga the chance to shine on the global stage in 2026.

The Scorchers advanced through the second qualifying round with a 2-0 second-leg win over Angola on Tuesday, with defensive midfielder Faith Chinzimu's late brace securing the aggregate advantage to win the round.

Malawi now joins Cape Verde as the two debutantes to clinch spots in the expanded 16-team 2026 tournament.

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Even more, the Scorchers' breakthrough will give two of soccer's biggest club stars their biggest platform yet, as sisters Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga gear up for the first major international tournament of their decorated careers.

While 29-year-old OL Lyonnes forward Tabitha participated in this week's WAFCON qualifying round, 27-year-old Kansas City Current striker Temwa sat out after the 2024 NWSL MVP suffered an adductor strain in her club's 1-0 upset loss to the Houston Dash on October 18th.

"It means more opportunities and great exposure to both older and upcoming players. It is a continental platform to bring football dreams alive," Tabitha told BBC Sport Africa this week.

The 2026 WAFCON tournament will see the Chawinga sisters and Malawi contend with powerhouses like host nation Morocco and reigning 10-time champion Nigeria when the continental competition kicks off on March 17th.

The Kansas City Current and San Diego Wave are leveling up, with the NWSL teams set to represent the US in the first-ever North American edition of the seven-a-side tournament World Sevens Football (W7F).

Kicking off December 5th in Fort Lauderdale, the NWSL clubs will join Northern Super League side AFC Toronto, Brazilian powerhouse Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, and Colombian contender Deportivo Cali — as well as Liga MX titans Club América and Tigres UANL — on the W7F tournament pitch.

W7F will announce the eighth and final team to join the competition at a later date.

Armed with a $5 million prize pool, December's W7F competition follows a successful May 2025 debut of the soccer venture in Portugal.

"Our team thrives on intensity, creativity, and competition, which fit perfectly with the 7v7 style of play," said Kansas City assistant coach Milan Ivanovic. "This tournament is an incredible opportunity for our players to test themselves against some of the world's best in a dynamic, fast-paced environment."

"We're proud to represent Kansas City and the NWSL on the international stage and to continue pushing the women's game forward," added Ivanovic.

How to watch December's W7F tournament

There will be four competition sessions in the upcoming W7F event, with two days of group play before the semifinals, third-place, and championship matches take place on December 7th.

All W7F matches will stream live on DAZN.

Angel City co-founder Alexis Ohanian stirred the pot this week, divulging the circumstances behind the NWSL club's 2024 sale on Front Office Sports podcast "Portfolio Players" on Tuesday — and calling the original ownership model of the 2022 expansion team "a terrible idea."

Ohanian said he regretted relinquishing control to three of his co-founders — actor Natalie Portman, venture capitalist Kara Nortman, and current club CEO Julie Uhrman — claiming they invested "no money" themselves.

"I was [the] founding control owner in the eyes of the league, so it's my ass on the line," Ohanian continued, adding that last year's $250 million sale of Angel City directly stemmed from the celebrity-driven investment group's unsustainable startup-like ownership structure. "That works great in tech. In sports, it's a terrible idea."

Following a clash between Ohanian and his fellow ACFC owners on the team's operational and financial future, Disney CEO Bob Iger and USC dean Willow Bay stepped in to purchase the team, aligning board control with stakeholder interest.

"I think the best outcome here is, you got Bob and Willow, they have board control, and it's good," he said. "It's a rebuild."

Angel City did not immediately respond to Ohanian's interview, with Portman and Uhrman remaining on the club's board of directors while Nortman is a non-voting investor.