Taylor Smith felt helpless.

In a short period of time, the soccer star suffered an ACL tear, was cut from the U.S. women’s national team and went through a break-up.

Smith joined Snacks co-hosts Sam Mewis and Lynn Williams on Snacks for Mental Health Day last week to chronicle that period of her life and her ongoing battle with depression in hopes of helping others who find themselves in similar situations.

“Anything that could go wrong went so wrong,” she told them. “I had such a hard time coping with it. When I was in it I felt so frustrated, but now I look back and see that I needed to have more empathy for myself.

“I genuinely felt that there was nothing in this world that was going to make me happy.”

Eventually, Smith felt that she couldn’t cope anymore. The trauma and mental health issues she’d battled since childhood took over her mind, and Smith attempted to take her own life.

Smith ended up in the hospital and continued to struggle with suicidal thoughts. And while they haven’t gone away completely, through therapy, Smith has learned how to cope with the depression that’s controlled her for so long.

“I felt like I was in survival mode for 25 years,” the 28-year-old forward said. “It was just exhausting, and you can’t thrive when you are in that state of mind.”

These days, Smith is thriving. She’s learned to take time for herself and carve out a routine that brings her joy. She loves walking her dogs, journaling and chatting with friends. When Smith was deep in her depression, she says that she neglected her relationships.

“You can only treat people as good as you feel,” she said.

Now, she feels good, and because of that, Smith has been able to pour more energy into her relationships with her friends and with herself.

“I wasn’t healthy so I didn’t want to open up and be vulnerable,” she said. “My coping mechanism was to isolate and be super self-sufficient.”

As Smith has learned to open up, she’s also found peace on the soccer field once more. After being cut by the USWNT, Smith was in what she calls “a bad situation” with the North Carolina Courage, a team coached by Paul Riley despite his firing from the Portland Thorns following an investigation into abusive conduct.

Now, she’s found a home for the next three seasons.

Gotham FC announced on Monday that it had re-signed Smith to a three-year contract, keeping her in New York/New Jersey through the 2025 season. Acquired off of waivers in June, Smith went on to play 18 games for Gotham, recording two goals and one assist in 15 starts.

CLUB NEWS: We have re-signed forward/defender @taylornsmith11_ to a three-year contract through the 2025 season.

📰: https://t.co/nOMNKfwCnQ pic.twitter.com/gdMXuAkSHx

— NJ/NY Gotham FC (@GothamFC) October 17, 2022

“From the first day I arrived this summer, I’ve enjoyed every second of being a part of Gotham FC,” Smith said in a press release. “I feel valued here and cannot wait to continue to make a positive impact. I wholeheartedly believe we will build off our last performance and make everyone proud next year. The team, the fans, the city and community are second to none, and I feel so honored to be able to call this home the next three years.”

One of the newest WNBA teams stepped out this week, as the Toronto Tempo unveiled their debut jerseys Tuesday ahead of their inaugural 2026 season.

"Today marks another meaningful milestone on our journey to bringing Canada's first WNBA team to life," Toronto CMO Whitney Bell said in Tuesday's release. "Every detail of these uniforms is intentional."

The designs feature the team's signature Borealis Blue and Tempo Bordeaux colors, with six speed lines down the sides mirroring the Tempo's logo.

"We've created a design that brings our brand to life and represents our city, our fans, and our team," said Bell. "We cannot wait for our players — and our fans — to wear them with pride."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

While the WNBA expects that Toronto will hit the court next season alongside fellow incoming franchise the Portland Fire, stagnant CBA negotiations have delayed both expansion drafts.

In the meantime, the teams are moving forward with staff hirings and the development of on- and off-court identities as they wait to build out their rosters.

How to purchase the inaugural Toronto Tempo jerseys

While there is no release date yet for the team's "Heroine" jersey, the Toronto Tempo's "Explorer" jersey will be available for purchase beginning in January.

Fans looking to snag a jersey can sign up to receive the latest drop dates at TorontoTempo.com.

Tennis star Aryna Sabalenka has done it again, with the world No. 1 taking home the WTA Player of the Year award for a second straight season on Monday — becoming just the seventh woman to earn the honor back-to-back.

Sabalenka won Player of the Year in dominant fashion, garnering nearly 80% of the media vote after leading the 2025 WTA Tour in wins, titles, and finals appearances — all while racking up a record $15 million in prize money.

The 27-year-old spent the entire year as the sport's No. 1 player, all while reaching three of the four Grand Slam finals en route to winning the 2025 US Open.

After an elite season, US rising star Amanda Anisimova won the WTA Most Improved Player honor for reaching a career-first two Grand Slam finals while jumping from No. 34 to No. 4 in the rankings.

Following her own breakout 2025 campaign, 19-year-old Canadian talent No. 18 Vicky Mboko took home Newcomer of the Year, with Swiss No. 11 Belinda Bencic earning Comeback Player of the Year after returning from pregnancy in stellar form.

The world's top duo of Czechia's Katerina Siniakova and US standout Taylor Townsend also capped their 2025 season with hardware, earning the sport's Doubles Team of the Year.

The UWCL's first-ever league phase wraps on Wednesday, when all 18 2025/26 Champions League clubs will square off in a simultaneous afternoon kick-off finale.

Top finishers No. 1 Barcelona and No. 2 OL Lyonnes already secured automatic spots in the quarterfinals, with similarly unbeaten No. 3 Chelsea looking to claim their spot with a result on Wednesday.

The fourth guaranteed pathway will be tougher fight, however, as just three points separate No. 4 Juventus and No. 11 Atletico Madrid on the Champions League table.

While the top four teams will advance directly into the March quarterfinals, clubs finishing fifth through 12th will instead move on to the European competition's first-ever knockout playoffs in February to determine the final quartet of quarterfinalists.

No. 4 Bayern Munich, No. 5 Real Madrid, No. 6 Juventus, No. 7 Wolfsburg, No. 8 Arsenal, No. 9 Manchester United, and No. 10 Paris FC have all netted enough points to at least make the playoffs, leave three teams — Atlético de Madrid, No. 12 Oud-Heverlee Leuven, and No. 13 Vålerenga — battling the final two spots.

Amid Wednesday's high-stakes matchups, Wolfsburg will look to break into the upper ranks against Chelsea, Juventus will try to hold off Manchester United, and 2024/25 champs Arsenal will shoot for a result against Oud-Heverlee Leuven.

How to watch Wednesday's 2025/26 Champions League action

Wednesday's final UWCL league-phase matches will be cutthroat battles for tournament seeding.

The action kicks off at 3 PM ET, with live coverage on Paramount+.

The stars of last summer's Euro ruled the 2025 FIFA Best Awards on Tuesday, as international players for world No. 1 Spain and No. 4 England shut out the competition at the annual ceremony in Qatar.

Spain and Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmatí won her third straight Best Women's Player of the Year award, after finishing as a runner up at both the 2024/25 UEFA Women's Champions League and this year's Euros.

"I'm grateful to have the award, it's for all the players all the coaches and the fans, thanks very much," Bonmatí told the crowd, as the reigning three-time Ballon d'Or winner continues to recover from a broken leg.

The 2025 Euro tournament also influenced the 2025 FIFA Women's Best XI, with the lineup exclusively featuring Spain and England standouts.

Joining Bonmatí on the FIFA roster were Spain teammates Irene Paredes, Ona Batlle, Patri Guijarro, Clàudia Pina, Mariona Caldentey, and Alexia Putellas, with Euro champion Lionesses Lucy Bronze, Leah Williamson, Alessia Russo, and Hannah Hampton rounding out the field.

Hampton also picked up Goalkeeper of the Year honors, with England boss Sarina Wiegman snagging the 2025 Coach of the Year award.

Months after a controversial 2025 Ballon d'Or ballot, FIFA took a similarly narrow Euro-centric view of success at the individual level for this year's Best Awards.