For the U.S. women’s national team, the 2023 NWSL season provided a perfect runway to the World Cup.

Most members of the team played for their NWSL clubs right up to the national team training camp, which kicked off this week in California.

How have the USWNT stars been performing for their club teams? Just Women’s Sports tracked their playing time ahead of this summer’s tournament.

Matchday #13: June 23-25

• Megan Rapinoe (calf) missed OL Reign’s last two games heading into USWNT training camp, but she called her injury “minor” despite the bad timing. She is not worried about the injury affecting her at the World Cup.
• Sophia Smith scored a hat trick in the Portland Thorns’ 4-2 win over the Washington Spirit. Those three goals pushed her into the lead in the Golden Boot race with 10 on the season. Yet while USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski is glad to see her in form, scoring at the club level “is totally different from doing it at an international level at a World Cup,” he noted.
• Only Rapinoe, Rose Lavelle (leg) and Lindsey Horan (Olympique Lyonnais) did not take the pitch in the final match weekend before World Cup training began. Of the 20 who did, most played a full 90 minutes or close to it; only Kelley O’Hara played less than 80 minutes. The 34-year-old defender started for Gotham FC but subbed out after 63 minutes in the 2-1 win against the Chicago Red Stars.

Matchday #12: June 17-18

• Racing Louisville midfielder Savannah DeMelo scored a goal, continuing her scorching start to the season just after a report emerged that she will have a spot on the World Cup roster. Portland Thorns forward Sophia Smith and Washington Spirit midfielder Ashley Sanchez also scored goals for their teams this weekend.
• Neither Rose Lavelle (leg) nor Megan Rapinoe (calf) appeared for OL Reign as they continue to deal with injuries. Lavelle has been out since April but has been training with the team, while Rapinoe’s recovery is only expected to take “a couple of weeks,” OL Reign coach Laura Harvey said.
• Alex Morgan returned for the San Diego Wave, while Kelley O’Hara played 45 minutes for Gotham FC as she works her way back from injury. Julie Ertz played a full 90 minutes for the second straight week for Angel City FC.
• Becky Sauerbrunn (foot) missed her second consecutive game for the Portland Thorns just after confirming that she will miss the World Cup due to the injury.

Matchday #11: June 9-11

• Alex Morgan missed the San Diego Wave’s 0-0 draw with Racing Louisville on Friday, but her absence was merely precautionary, head coach Casey Stoney said. “She came off the pitch with a tight calf… It was a long trip here. She’s got a World Cup ahead,” Stoney said. “So it wasn’t a matter of she wasn’t fit to play. It was precautionary. We just didn’t want to push her.” She also called out Louisville’s pitch quality, calling it “notoriously” poor. (Morgan did venture out Saturday to catch Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour stop in Detroit.)
• Becky Sauerbrunn returned from a foot injury last week for the Portland Thorns, playing 24 minutes as a substitute in her first action since April 22, but she missed Sunday’s 3-1 loss to the Orlando Pride.
• Megan Rapinoe played just six minutes in OL Reign’s 2-1 win against the Kansas City Current before exiting with her own apparent calf injury. While head coach Laura Harvey described Rapinoe as “OK,” she also said she did not know “the severity of it.”
• Rose Lavelle (leg) has missed OL Reign’s last 12 matches across all competitions, and Harvey has said the 28-year-old midfielder likely will not return to NWSL action before the World Cup.
• Kelley O’Hara (ankle) returned for the first time since May 14, coming on as a substitute in the 73rd minute of Gotham FC’s 1-1 draw with the Houston Dash. In true O’Hara fashion, she received a yellow card for a tackle 11 minutes later. Our soccer analyst Claire Watkins has O’Hara on the bubble for a World Cup spot in her latest mock roster.
• In a matchup of the USWNT’s top two goalkeepers, Casey Murphy came out on top, as her North Carolina Courage beat Alyssa Naeher and the Chicago Red Stars 5-0. Yet the score doesn’t tell the whole story. Murphy did not face a single shot on target, while Naeher faced eight shots on target (and made three saves), though she allowed five goals.

Matchday #10: June 3-5

• Christen Press is inching toward a return, as she teased in a photo posted to her Instagram, which showed her in cleats giving two thumbs up. The 34-year-old forward has not played since tearing her ACL last June, but she still wants to join the USWNT at the World Cup, as she told ESPN. “I think that her running form is looking superb and again, we are just making sure that we track the return to play and are able to tick the boxes in a very controlled and methodical manner,” Angel City FC coach Freya Coombe said.
• Becky Sauerbrunn returned from a foot injury for the Portland Thorns, playing 24 minutes as a substitute in Saturday’s 2-0 win against OL Reign. She had not played since April 22.
• Kelley O’Hara (ankle) has not played since May 14, while Midge Purce (hip) has not played since April 19. Both are close to returning, Gotham FC coach Juan Carlos Amorós said after Sunday’s game, though he did not provide a timeline.

Matchday #9: May 26-28

• Julie Ertz returned to the Angel City FC lineup for the first time since May 13, playing 12 minutes in Wednesday’s Challenge Cup match against the Portland Thorns. Becky Sauerbrunn (foot) missed the same match but participated fully in the Thorns’ training the next day.
• Cassie Miller got another start in net over AD Franch for the Kansas City Current. Franch has played in just five matches across the regular season and the Challenge Cup in 2023.
• Olympique Lyonnais midfielder Catarina Macario “won’t be physically ready for selection” to the USWNT as she continues to recover from an ACL tear.

Matchday #8: May 20-21

• Rose Lavelle (leg), Becky Sauerbrunn (foot) and Midge Purce (hip) remain on the injured list. Lavelle has missed OL Reign’s last eight matches across all competitions, while Sauerbrunn has missed the Portland Thorns’ last four matches and Purce has missed Gotham’s last six.
• Kelley O’Hara and Julie Ertz were available as substitutes for Gotham FC and Angel City FC, respectively, but did not play. Taylor Kornieck made her first appearance since April 19 for the San Diego Wave, playing four minutes off the bench.
• Olympique Lyonnais midfielder Catarina Macario has not played yet this season as she recovers from an ACL tear, and just one match remains in the Division 1 Féminine season.
• Alyssa Naeher again struggled in goal for the Chicago Red Stars in a 4-0 loss against the Thorns, while Cassie Miller got the start over AD Franch for the Kansas City Current.
• Alex Morgan, Ashley Hatch, Lynn Williams and Crystal Dunn are tied for the lead in the NWSL Golden Boot race with five each. Dunn plays as an attacking midfielder for the Thorns but as a defender for the USWNT.

Matchday #7: May 12-14

• Rose Lavelle has missed OL Reign’s last five regular-season matches and their last seven in a row across all competitions with a knee injury. While she is training with the team and she is “on the mend,” she is still working her way back to game form, head coach Laura Harvey said.
• Becky Sauerbrunn (foot), Taylor Kornieck (abdomen) and Midge Purce (hip) all remain sidelined with their own injuries, as they have for the last several weeks.
• The USWNT goalkeeping corps did not have a stellar week, with Alyssa Naeher and AD Franch each responsible for own goals. Naeher allowed three goals total in a loss to Racing Louisville, which leaves the Chicago Red Stars alone at the bottom of the league table, while Franch allowed two goals in her first appearance for the Kansas City Current in a month.

Matchday #6: May 6-7

• Rose Lavelle has missed OL Reign’s last four regular-season matches and their last six in a row across all competitions with a knee injury, one which head coach Laura Harvey admitted has turned out to be more serious than initially thought. The injury will keep Lavelle out for “a couple more weeks,” Harvey said last Wednesday.
• AD Franch sat out her fourth match in a row across all competitions for the Kansas City Current. But while fellow goalkeeper Cassie Miller had the hot hand entering Sunday, she allowed three goals in a loss to Angel City, which could open the door for Franch to reclaim the starting spot.
• Becky Sauerbrunn (foot) has missed two weeks in a row. Still, the USWNT captain and Portland Thorns defender should have her name inked on the World Cup roster.
• Taylor Kornieck (abdomen) and Midge Purce (hip) each have been sidelined for the last three weeks. While neither should remain out for long, they’re losing out on opportunities to prove themselves to Andonovski.
• Julie Ertz missed Angel’s City’s Challenge Cup match Wednesday and its regular-season match Sunday with excused absences related to a charity project in Philadelphia, but she will return to training this week, head coach Freya Coombe said.

Matchday #5: April 28-30

• AD Franch has not played in the Current’s last three matches across all competitions, sitting in favor of Cassie Miller, who has not allowed a goal in that span. While Franch has been supportive of Miller, the time on the bench could hurt her standing in the USWNT goalkeeper pool.
• Rose Lavelle (leg) missed her third game in a row with a lingering injury, but head coach Laura Harvey was unconcerned after her team’s 2-2 draw with Racing Louisville. “A couple more weeks and then she’ll be OK,” Harvey said.
• Taylor Kornieck (abdomen) and Midge Purce (hip) each have missed the last two weeks of competition, and Becky Sauerbrunn was sidelined with a foot injury for the Thorns’ 3-3 draw with Angel City FC.
• San Diego Wave striker Alex Morgan missed her team’s 3-1 loss against the Orlando Pride with a thigh injury. When asked if Morgan would be available for the upcoming week, head coach Casey Stoney said: “We’ll have to take our time this week and see how she recovers, but I hope so.”
• Lindsey Horan and Catarina Macario play for Lyon in France’s Division 1 Féminine, which has not taken the pitch since April 16. The only two players on this list not in the NWSL, Horan is a regular starter for Lyon, but Macario has missed the entire season with an ACL tear.

Matchday #4: April 22-23

• Alyssa Naeher has started all four matches for the Chicago Red Stars so far this season, but the 35-year-old goalkeeper gave up five goals in Saturday’s 5-2 loss to OL Reign.
• AD Franch did not appear for the Kansas City Current in Sunday’s 2-0 win against the Orlando Pride; instead, Cassie Miller got the start (and the shutout). Franch had started the first three matches of the season for the Current, all losses.
• Kelley O’Hara played a full 90 minutes for Gotham FC for the first time this season. O’Hara joined Gotham in free agency in the offseason but has been recovering from a nagging hip injury.
• Julie Ertz returned to the NWSL for the first time since 2021, playing 71 minutes for Angel City FC.
• Rose Lavelle (leg), Taylor Kornieck (illness) and Midge Purce (hip) missed their team’s matches with short-term ailments.

Fever rookie Caitlin Clark rocketed to the upper tiers of Sportico's annual highest-paid women's sports athletes report on Wednesday, landing in 10th place with an estimated $11 million in yearly earnings.

With tournaments like the US Open guaranteeing equal purses across men's and women's events, tennis players dominated the findings, accounting for nine of the 15 entries. This includes first-place Coco Gauff, who, with $9.4 million in prizes plus $21 million in endorsements, tops the list for the second year in a row.

Skier Eileen Gu came in second, complementing her individual earnings with the list's highest-estimated endorsement profits at $22 million. Gymnast Simone Biles came in at No. 9 with an estimated $11.1 million in total income.

Golfers Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko also made the cut, mirroring the LPGA Tour's expanded purses.

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Report highlights endorsements in women's sports

The report underlines the continued importance of endorsements in the women's game — particularly within team sports, where many athletes rely on supplemental income to boost relatively small pro salaries.

However, 2024's estimated $221 million in total earnings is up 27% over last year, with 11 athletes making at least $10 million compared to six in 2023.

Sportico's 15 highest-paid women's sports athletes

1. Coco Gauff: $30.4 million
Prize money: $9.4 million | Endorsements: $21 million

2. Eileen Gu: $22.1 million
Prize money: $62,000 | Endorsements: $22 million

3. Iga Świątek: $21.4 million
Prize money: $8.4 million | Endorsements: $13 million

4. Zheng Qinwen: $20.6 million
Prize money: $5.6 million | Endorsements: $15 million

5. Aryna Sabalenka: $17.7 million
Prize money: $9.7 million | Endorsements: $8 million

6. Naomi Osaka: $15.9 million
Prize money: $870,000 | Endorsements: $15 million

7. Emma Raducanu: $14.7 million
Prize money: $671,000 | Endorsements: $14 million

8. Nelly Korda: $14.4 million
Prize money: $4.4 million | Endorsements: $10 million

9. Simone Biles: $11.1 million
Prize money: $135,000 | Endorsements: $11 million

10. Caitlin Clark: $11.1 million
Salary/bonus: $100,000 | Endorsements: $11 million

11. Jasmine Paolini: $10 million
Prize money: $6.5 million | Endorsements: $3.5 million

12. Jeeno Thitikul: $9.1 million
Prize money: $7.1 million | Endorsements: $2 million

13. Jessica Pegula: $8.2 million
Prize money: $4.2 million | Endorsements: $4 million

14. Elena Rybakina: $7.9 million
Prize money: $3.9 million | Endorsements: $4 million

15. Lydia Ko: $6.7 million
Prize money: $3.2 million | Endorsements: $3.5 million

The 2024 NCAA DI volleyball tournament officially kicks off on Thursday, when 64 teams will gear up to battle for postseason glory in this weekend's first and second rounds.

The college court's best have their sights set on competing in the December 22nd national championship match in Louisville, Kentucky.

Along with the 31 conference champions who automatically received postseason invites, the NCAA committee revealed its 33 selectees in Sunday's selection show. The top 32 teams are seeded one through eight in their respective bracket quadrants, and teams are guaranteed to only face non-conference opponents through the tournament's second round.

Leading the field with nine teams each are the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC, followed by the Big 12 with six squads selected.

The four teams who finished atop the national rankings — Pitt, Louisville, Nebraska, and Penn State — all earned No. 1 seeds.

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ACC powerhouses take aim at first national title

Sitting atop the rankings for most of the season, overall No. 1 seed Pitt showcases the ACC's immense depth, despite the conference having yet to produce a champion. The Panthers, who finished with Division I's best record at 29-1, have come achingly close over the last three seasons, falling short in the national semifinals each year.

Pitt's only loss this season came courtesy of ACC newcomer No. 2 SMU, a team they could face in the regional finals after landing in the same bracket quadrant.

Similarly, Louisville has been a consistent contender for the conference, becoming the ACC's first-ever team to make the championship match in 2022. Last year, the Cardinals failed to advance to the Final Four for the first time since 2020, stumbling in a five-set quarterfinal thriller against conference rival Pitt.

Big Ten dynasties seek continued dominance

After battling through arguably the sport's toughest all-around conference, Big Ten behemoths Penn State and Nebraska will take aim at their eighth and sixth program titles, respectively. Only former Pac-12 team Stanford — now a No. 2 seed in their debut ACC season — boast more NCAA championships than the Nittany Lions or Huskers.

Both teams finished their 2024 regular season campaigns neck-and-neck, posting 29-2 overall records and going 19-1 in conference play to share the Big Ten title. Penn State holds the tournament edge, however, maintaining their streak as the only NCAA team to make all 44 championship brackets — one more than Nebraska.

Each faces an uphill battle in the 2024 championship field. The Huskers must contend with longtime rivals and 2021 champs No. 2 Wisconsin in their quadrant. Meanwhile, the Nittany Lions find themselves in the same quadrant as reigning back-to-back champion Texas, who grabbed a No. 3 seed after a rollercoaster season. 

How to watch the 2024 NCAA DI Volleyball Tournament

The first and second rounds of the NCAA volleyball tournament will take place at 16 campus sites between Thursday and Saturday.

No. 5 BYU will kick off the action against Loyola Chicago at 3:30 PM ET on Thursday, with all 32 first-round and 16 second-round matches airing across ESPN platforms.

The USWNT ended 2024 with an unlikely win, overcoming a Dutch shooting barrage to earn a 2-1 comeback victory in Tuesday's Euro trip closer.

The world No. 1 squad looked overrun for much of the first half as the No. 11 Netherlands outshot the US 14-1. Oranje rookie Veerle Buurman ultimately broke through with a 15th-minute goal off of a corner kick to give the Netherlands a well-earned lead.

That said, the USWNT held tight, equalizing in the 44th minute when Buurman headed in Tierna Davidson's free kick for an own goal.

Subs made all the difference in the game's second half, taking back enough control to mount an impressive US comeback. In just her fourth cap, forward Yazmeen Ryan produced her first international assist, finding her Gotham FC teammate Lynn Williams streaking into the penalty area to put away the 71st-minute sliding goal that allowed the US to gut out the win.

"I thought today we demonstrated by not being at our best, both in and out of possession, that finding a way to win is a sign of a great team," commented US boss Emma Hayes after the match.

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SWNT keeper Alyssa Naeher's epic final match against he Netherlands

Longtime starting goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher earned Player of the Match honors with six stunning saves in her final USWNT performance on Tuesday. The now-retired star finishes her international career with 89 wins, 69 clean sheets, and 112 starts in her 115 caps.

Reflecting on her final year in goal for the States, Naeher said after Tuesday's match, "I think part of why I've been able to play with so much extra joy and smiles and really enjoy it this year even more, is I really felt like it was the last the whole time."

A golden 2024 to fuel 2025 USWNT success

With Saturday's draw against No. 2 England and Tuesday's victory over the Netherlands, the USWNT ends 2024 on a 20-match unbeaten streak that included their 16th Concacaf title and fifth Olympic gold medal.

After taking the US reins in May, head coach Hayes caps the year with a 13-0-2 record, with eight of those wins coming against FIFA-ranked Top-15 teams.

The momentum Hayes has built sets the stage for continued success next year. The USWNT will kick off 2025 with a mid-January training camp to run concurrently with a "Futures Camp," designed to identify and develop young talent for the senior squad.

The first matches on the USWNT's 2025 schedule will come in February, when the team hosts No. 7 Japan, No. 15 Australia, and No. 21 Colombia in the 10th annual SheBelieves Cup.

On today's episode of The Late Sub, host Claire Watkins wraps up a banner year for the USWNT. She starts by diving into how Tuesday's dramatic 2-1 win over the Netherlands, discussing how it showcased just how far the team has come and what they’ll need to do to continue to grow in 2025.

Later, Watkins chats through the lessons learned from the USWNT midfield's recent performances, plus the differences in player form between their clubs and national team.

Finally, she dishes about Alyssa Naeher's epic final performance, underlining how much the starting goalkeeper will be missed as she officially retires from the USWNT.

The Late Sub with Claire Watkins brings you the latest news and freshest takes in women’s sports. This is the weekly rundown you’ve been missing, covering the USWNT, NWSL, WNBA, college hoops, and whatever else is popping off in women’s sports each week. Special guest appearances with the biggest names in women’s sports make The Late Sub a must-listen for every fan. Follow Claire on X/Twitter @ScoutRipley and subscribe to the Just Women’s Sports newsletter for more.

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