Stephanie Cox is a defender for OL Reign of the NWSL. As a member of the USWNT, Cox won gold at the 2008 Olympics. Following the 2015 season, she retired from the NWSL. Then, as an assistant coach for the Reign last season, she decided to lace up the cleats once more. Below, she spoke with Just Women’s Sports about her dual journey as a player and a coach, and what it’s been like to lead the Reign as they compete in the Challenge Cup bubble. 

How has life in the NWSL bubble been? What has surprised you about the whole bubble experiment? 

With OL Reign, we kind of had a unique experience. We were the only team in the tournament that had to go out of market for our preseason. Everyone was able to train at home, but because of Washington’s restrictions, we weren’t able to have full team training. So we ended up going to Montana. We’ve actually been on the road for six weeks now and have basically been in the bubble since the beginning. In Montana, things were looser. You were able to go out to eat and go to the grocery store. But I think that being in a hotel together in Montana and being away from kind of your own network, it kind of prepared us for this bubble experience. Everything you have to order in, everything has to get delivered. After the game the other day, in the middle of the day, I would have loved to stop and get ice cream with my daughters on the way back. So just not having that freedom has been just different. It’s not challenging, it has just been different.

How many daughters do you have and how has it been having them with you during this experience?

I have two daughters. Kaylee is seven and Grace is four. Fortunately, we’re at the Embassy Suites and our setup is great. We have several big meeting rooms that my girls can kind of go run around in, for better or worse. We brought scooters and bikes and all sorts of stuff. So we go out into the empty parking lot and go ride around, and they come to practice and games. They’re able to get outside and get some energy.

So we’re doing pretty good. We’re staying in a hotel that’s also open to the public, and we have the top two floors. One of the highlights definitely has been the hotel pool. They’re swimming all the time, but they know if someone else is in the pool area, that means that either we’re not going in, or yesterday when someone came in, we just stayed in the hot tub and then we kind of quickly left. It’s sad to me. I don’t want them to be scared of other people, but they’ve been trained to think like, “Oh no. Why are there other people?”

How has everyone been following the rules?

I think our team has been great. Really respectful of each other, not only our club, but just also of all the other teams. I think while we were in Montana, we got the news about Orlando having players test positive and them not being in the tournament. And that was really an eye opener for us. Like, okay, everyone needs to follow the rules.

The gameplay has been exceptional so far despite limited training. What do you think accounts for that?

I think that there’s just an energy and just an excitement and a gratitude to be on the field again. We’ve had a few months off going into this. A lot of players don’t have that kind of break usually. They go from our season to Australia and they come back again, or they’re in with the US team.

And I know when I decided to come back and play last year, I remember that first game and even just practice, I just had a big grin on my face because I loved getting to play again. And I think that you can see that joy for the game on the players’ faces in these games. And I really think that that contributes to the high level that you’re seeing across the board.

What has it been like playing without fans?

I was on the massage table yesterday for a quick flush after a game, and our massage therapist, awesome, Britney, she’s from Montana, and she just had so much energy. And we were talking about the game and I said, I felt like there were fans in that game. And she agreed. Just the intensity of it, the energy from our bench, the energy on the field. We went out there, we knew we had to win, we knew we had to put something out there on the field. And so I think sometimes when you get in the game, you’re just so intent on winning that header or winning that tackle or connecting a pass that it feels like there’s fans because you’re so dialed in. And lucky for me, at halftime, I get to look up in the stands and see my daughters and my friend, my nanny, Madison, and see my older daughter dancing to the music. It’s easy to spot them with their signs. For me, the most important fans are in the stands.

 Almost 600,000 viewers watched the opening game on CBS. What are your thoughts about what that means for the future of the league?

This is an opportunity for us to solidify the league. I played in a previous league in the WPS that folded, and so it’s so exciting to see the NWSL last so many seasons. As players, we want to continue to raise the standards higher and higher. I think that the exposure that we’re getting, the timing that we have now, when there aren’t any other women’s sports going on right now, is crucial. People are looking for something to watch. And yeah, it was a little scary being the first league to start playing, like, okay, what are we doing? But I think this bubble, you’re only having to monitor eight teams. I feel safe. We’re getting tested before every game. And I mean, my girls have gotten tested six times, so they’re making sure that just the environment is safe and all the protocols are being met. So I think that, yeah, this tournament is massive for this league and with sponsors, with viewers. And even though I don’t think our season will continue past the tournament, I think the success of the Challenge Cup is something super positive that we can take out of this crazy year of 2020.

 OL Reign has a defense first mentality. Is that the game plan for the rest of the tournament?

I think you want to get your defense right first. You don’t want to give up easy goals. And so that’s definitely been an emphasis. And I think to contrast that, I think the defense is kind of the easiest part. Offense and scoring goals is really the harder part. And I will give credit to our attackers as a defender. You have to be so precise and really make the most of your moments. I think our coaching staff and Farid [Benstiti, head coach] have been happy with the amount of chances that we’ve had attacking. We just haven’t finished those chances consistently. So during practice we’re just chipping away at these different patterns and opportunities so that we can capitalize on them in the future.

I wanted to ask you specifically about your story, which is super unique. After playing professionally for a few years, you semi-retired and during that time, you coached for a bit with the OL Reign. Now you are obviously back playing again. Can you just walk us through how this all unfolded? 

So I turned pro in 2008 and was with the Olympic team that year. The US team won the gold medal in Beijing. That was right after I graduated. I played professionally in the WPS for LA, and then two years in Boston. And then the league folded. And in 2012, I was with the US team, but I got cut from the London Olympic team. I ended up getting pregnant with my daughter, Kaylee. And then the following season is when the NWSL started.

I remember going to one of the games when she was a month old. During that time that I was pregnant, I knew I wanted to come back. So I talked to the coaches and worked really hard to come back. I was back with the team training about three months postpartum and then ended up playing in about five games at the end of the season. It was crazy to go out to train or have a game and then nurse her at halftime or something. It was just bizarre, a whole different world, which seems so far away now that she’s seven.

I ended up making the US team that fall. I got a contract again and then played the following season, and had a good 2014 with the Reign. But then I was cut from the US team, and without the national team in the picture I just decided that I was heading toward the end of my career. My husband encouraged me to play one more season with the Reign. So I played the 2015 season, but wanted to have another baby. I ended up getting pregnant, and in our championship game, I was 11 weeks pregnant with Grace.

I got to start and play the game and felt great and then had another healthy baby in April. I started assisting the Reign staff. I also started coaching my local high school team, Gig Harbor. With the Reign, I was just coaching part-time because the drive was more than an hour from my house. After one year, I was just coaching the high school team because of the commute. But then when Reign moved to Tacoma, which is just 15 minutes from my house, Bill, our owner, called me and said, “I know the drive was an issue. Would you be interested in coming back again?”

I was like, oh my goodness, heck yeah. I was so nervous when I initially turned down coaching full time with the Reign. I was like, am I burning a bridge here? Who turns down a professional job to coach a high school team? But really, coaching the high school team was huge for me and it just gave me more confidence to assert myself with the Reign.

Throughout this whole journey, I’ve just been so blessed to work for an organization that trusts me and that meets me where I’m at. I remember when I said, well, I actually want to come back and play. This was midway through last season, and I was coaching at the time. Our owner, Bill, was like, “Okay, you can play for as little or as long as you want. And then you can go back to coaching for as far as I’m concerned.” Who gives you the freedom just to do what you want to do?

Last season, I was having so much fun on the coaching staff. But when I realized I wanted to play again, I think I was a bit scared. I wanted to get back out there but I wasn’t sure if I could do it.  I read this book by Brené Brown, and it was like, “Don’t let fear hold you back.” And I’m like, why am I going to let the fear of failure stop me from trying to play? So I got out there and with the team and I just had a ball. And now, here I am, after three and a half years off. And I know this is where I want to be.

There are no expectations. There’s no pressure to make the national team. I’m playing because I love to play. I’m playing because I want to bring out the best of my teammates. I’m playing because I want to make this environment the best that it can possibly be. I want to make it excellent. I get to think about it in different ways, from a coach’s perspective, from an old player’s perspective, and from a mother’s perspective. It’s just so cool to have that experience and to get to bridge that gap a little between the coaches and the players, and to do that respectfully. And I think that maturity and time has taught me how to do that better and better. I’m just loving the role that I have with this group.

The New York Liberty dominated Indiana on Thursday night, winning by a whopping 36 points in the Fever's home opener. 

A sold-out crowd of 17,274 was in attendance to watch as star rookie Caitlin Clark finished the 102-66 defeat with nine points, seven rebounds, and six assists. It’s the first time since January 2021 — her freshman season at Iowa — that Clark's been held to single-digit scoring. 

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"The physicality is definitely up there... I'm easily pushed off screens," she told reporters after the loss. "The game seems a little fast for me right now. The more I play and the more comfortable I get, it's going to slow down a little bit. It will be easier for me to make reads, see things develop."

The Fever were outscored by a combined margin of 57 points in their first two games — the largest two-game point deficit in WNBA season-opening history, according to @ESPNStatsInfo.

"We've got to get to a level of toughness," Fever coach Christie Sides in her own postgame remarks. "When things are going south on us, we're not stopping the bleeding."

"I have great perspective on everything that happens," Clark added. "It was the same in my college career. There were some moments that were absolutely amazing. And there were some moments I was not happy with how I played and how my team performed. That's just life, that's just basketball."

Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, who herself experienced a rocky rookie season following a much-hyped college career, offered up some insight on the matter.

"In this league, there are tough defenses all centered around not letting you get the ball, trapping, not letting you score," Ionescu said. "There were many factors that played into what was a tough first season for me in the league, but it helps you be able to figure it out. You have to have those experiences."

But it was reigning league MVP Breanna Stewart that truly stole the show, racking up 31 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks on the night.

"In general, I just wanted to come out more aggressive coming off of last game," Stewart said after putting up the 24th 30-point game in her career.

Stewart she also commended the fans inside Indianapolis's packed Gainbridge Fieldhouse, noting that she hopes that level of support to continue across the WNBA.

"This is how you want every game to be and when it's a sell-out crowd, it gives you a similar playoff atmosphere feel," she said. "People want to be a part of this and the thing now is to continue to sustain it, continue to take the momentum that we have and turn it into something more."

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert admitted to a "faulty rollout" of the new charter travel initiative on Thursday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Ahead of Tuesday's season opener, it was announced that the only teams flying private this week would be Indiana and Minnesota. The announcement came mere days after the league made a new charter flight program for all WNBA teams public. At the time, they said it would be implemented "as soon as we have the planes."

But as two teams out of 12 chartered to their first games of the season, others like the Atlanta Dream and Chicago Sky were forced to fly commercial.

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A town hall meeting between Engelbert and the players was held in response to the confusion. Everything from the league's new media rights deal to private travel was covered in the meeting, with players submitting their questions ahead of time. Sky center Elizabeth Williams told Sun-Times reporter Annie Costabile afterwards that cross-country flights were prioritized.

"Flights that are across the country like [the Lynx] going to Seattle, crossing multiple time zones, or flights that usually require a connection, those were the priorities," Williams said. "That’s why New York didn’t go to DC with a charter, but Minny goes to Seattle."

What’s unclear under that metric is that the Atlanta Dream played the Los Angeles Sparks on Wednesday, which could technically be classified as a cross-country flight. 

On Tuesday, rookie forward Angel Reese shared a photo on her Instagram story lamenting the league's use of commercial flights.

"Just praying that this is one of the last commercial flights the Sky has to fly," Reese posted. The team still has at least three commercial flights awaiting them in the near future.

"Obviously, I think all teams should be able to get chartered," Reese told the Sun-Times. "But I know moving forward... going in the right direction, being able to have some teams [chartering] is cool. Within the next weeks, everybody will be flying charter, which will be really good."

On Thursday, Lindsay Schnell of USAToday Sports confirmed that the league intends to have all teams on charter flights by May 21st.

Brazil has been named the host for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, with FIFA announced early Friday. 

The decision came after a vote at the 74th FIFA Congress in Bangkok, with Brazil earning 119 votes to the joint European bid’s 78. 

This will be Brazil’s first time hosting the Women’s World Cup, with the country having hosted the men’s World Cup twice before in 1950 and 2014. It will also be the first Women’s World Cup held in South America. The tournament will follow the same 32-team format as the 2023 WWC in Australia and New Zealand.

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Brazil winning the bid was not entirely surprising after FIFA issued a report just last week, stating that the Brazilian bid had pulled ahead as host following technical inspection. After evaluation, Brazil was given a score of 4.0 out of 5, compared to the 3.7 awarded to the Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

Brazil ranked higher in a number of key areas, including stadiums, accommodations, fan zones, and transport infrastructure. Though considered to be a frontrunner, the US and Mexico withdrew their joint bid prior to the technical inspection period, saying they would instead focus their efforts on 2031.

On Friday, Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president Ednaldo Rodrigues called it a "victory." 

"We knew we would be celebrating a victory for South American women's soccer and for women," he told reporters. "You can be sure, with no vanity, we will accomplish the best World Cup for women."

"We are working on a transformation, not only for the country but for the continent," added bid team operational manager Valesca Araujo.

Brazil intends to use 10 of the venues utilized at the 2014 men’s World Cup, including holding the final in Rio de Janeiro on July 25th. The CBF's proposal outlines that the 2027 tournament run from June 24th through the end of July. Last summer’s World Cup began at the end of July and concluded on August 19th.

Another notable element of Brazil's newly unveiled plan to grow of the women’s game is that "all [men’s] clubs wishing to take part in high-level national and continental competitions must now provide a structure for a women’s team." While the definition of "structure" was not specifically identified, the country has set targets with CONMEBOL to help increase the number of women’s club teams in the country.

In last week's inspection findings, FIFA noted that selecting Brazil as the next WWC host could "have a tremendous impact on women's football in the region."

Chelsea did what they needed to do on Wednesday in order to make Saturday's slate of season-ending WSL fixtures interesting: Beat Tottenham.

The Blues are now number one in the league, with an edge over Manchester City on goal differential thanks to an eight-goal outing against Bristol City last week. 

Yesterday's result tees up a league finale for the books as Chelsea looks to send coach Emma Hayes off with another trophy to add to her cabinet. The Blues will play FA Cup winner Manchester City at Old Trafford on Saturday, while City is away at Aston Villa.

"We will be leaving nothing on the pitch, we will be giving everything and no matter what the result is," Chelsea midfielder Erin Cuthbert said after Wednesday's win. "At least we can look each other in the eye and say we gave everything."

It makes for a thrilling end to Chelsea's Emma Hayes era, as the decorated WSL coach will take over the USWNT in June. And it comes after Hayes all but conceded the title race early this month after Chelsea fell to Liverpool 4-3.

"I think the title is done," Hayes said at the time. "Of course, mathematically, it's not, but I think the title is done. Our job between now and the end of the season is to keep pushing until the end, but I think it will be very difficult.

"We will never give up. But the title is far from us; it's not in our hands. I think City are deserving, their consistency has put them in that position. Of course, we will go to the end, but I don't think the title will be going to us this year."

Be it mind games or Hayes truly thinking her team was that far off, her words lit something in Chelsea. Their following two performances showed the team’s determination to have a shot at some silverware.

As for Saturday's schedule, Hayes believes her team is facing the "tougher of the two games."

"It's a fitting finale for me, being my final game," she told BBC Sport. "As I said to the players if someone gives you a second chance in life, make sure you don't need a third one. We're in the position we want to be in, and we'll give it everything on Saturday no matter what."