We know, we know—no one will ever agree on who the best player in the world is. But Sam Mewis is making the case that she has to be included whenever we have the conversation.

Players like Marta and Christine Sinclair are legends of the game, and at one point, they both had a claim to be the best in the world. But while both are still performing at a high level, they’re no longer at their peak. 

Over the last couple of years, several players have vied to assume their title of the best in the world. 

Olympique Lyonnais Féminin are the most successful club team of the past decade. It’s hard to argue that players such as Wendie Renard, Amandine Henry, and Dzsenifer Marozsán aren’t in contention for the best in the world as long as they continue to dominate for Lyon. 

In the FAWSL, Chelsea’s Pernille Harder and Sam Kerr and Arsenal’s Vivianne Miedema have consistently made cases for themselves, as well as Manchester City stars such as Lucy Bronze and Steph Houghton, who have been integral for England as well. 

However, a fantastic 2019 and an even better 2020 has seen Mewis skyrocket into the conversation. On the second episode of JWS’ The Soccer Show, David Copeland-Smith described her ascension:

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Looking ahead to 2021, the 28-year-old is just entering her prime, and she will likely make a case for herself as one of the best by the end of the year. According to ESPN, she’s already there:

50 of the best players in the game right now 🤩

Welcome to ESPN's first ever ranking of the best women's players in world football: https://t.co/AshRxGFel5 pic.twitter.com/mJmVgnVTtM

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) March 23, 2021

Mewis’ skillset is what has propelled her to stardom; there simply aren’t many players like her around. 

In the modern game, multi-dimensional players are far more important than in decades prior. Gone are the days where the ten outfield players had one specific role on the pitch. Now, players are expected to be as versatile as possible. The more diverse set of skills a player has, the more valuable they become. 

The evolution of the midfielders’ role is an example of this. A box-to-box midfielder often has the duties of both an attacking midfielder and a defensive one. In possession, they’ll be high up the pitch supporting the forward players, and out of possession, they’ll be situated in front of the defensive line. 

A box-to-box midfielder gives a manager and their team the best of both worlds. And that’s what Mewis is: an excellent box-to-box midfielder, whose goals and assists are only an added bonus. She can defend well, head the ball away from danger, create chances, and dribble out of tight spaces.

As such an all-around player, it was almost too easy for her when she left North Carolina Courage to go to Manchester City. New country, new league, but no problem for Mewis. 

She adapted to her new club’s playing style as quick as ever, and has shown her worth with big performances in both the FAWSL and the Champions League. Early in the season, her goals in both the semi-final and the final of the FA Cup helped secure the trophy for Man City. 

Coming off of the FIFA Women’s World Cup win, a win which Mewis was integral to, she played in eight out of nine matches for the USWNT in 2020. Her performances in these 8 matches led to her being named the U.S Soccer Female Player of the Year for 2020. Her great form continued in 2021 with her first ever hat trick in a win against Columbia.

USA 4-0 Colombia

Sam Mewis scores a hat trick as @USWNT start an Olympic year with the W 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/3aWZreL6af

— B/R Football (@brfootball) January 19, 2021

Mewis’ Manchester City are currently second in the league, with a possible title decider coming up against Chelsea on April 25th. The club have also made it through to the Quarter-Finals of the Champions League. They’re currently down 0-3 to Barcelona after the first leg on March 24th. City have to hope that Mewis is in top form if they have any chance of a comeback. 

For the USWNT, the next major tournament is the upcoming Olympics, and barring any injuries, Mewis will likely be one of the first on Vlatko Andonovski’s list. 

Should Mewis continue her fantastic performances (there is no current evidence to suggest she’s slowing down) and add some more trophies to her collection, the “best in the world” title could become glued to her name. 

The grass court chaos of Wimbledon didn't disappoint this week, as the unpredictable surface claimed more than one surprise victim in the 2025 Grand Slam's first round.

A full 10 of the London tournament's 32 seeded players fell in the competition's first round, including four of the WTA's Top 10: World No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 6 Qinwen Zheng, and No. 9 Paula Badosa.

"I should just play no tournaments, get no wins, then roll into Wimbledon, and maybe I'll have better results," US star Pegula joked after her two-set Tuesday loss to Italy's No. 116 Elisabetta Cocciaretto, referencing her recent wins.

Gauff's short Wimbledon outing also represented a new challenge for the 21-year-old standout, as the top-ranked US tennis player struggled to bounce back after winning the 2025 French Open last month.

"I feel like mentally I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards," Gauff told ESPN. "So I didn’t feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it."

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The upsets continued as Wimbledon entered its second round on Wednesday morning, claiming several more seeded players like world No. 5 Jasmine Paolini and No. 15 Diana Shnaider, though both No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and unseeded fan favorite Naomi Osaka cruised into the Slam's third round on two-set wins.

No. 8 Madison Keys now leads the US contingent, with fellow US contender No. 12 Amanda Anisimova joining the 2025 Australian Open champion in snagging their own two-set, second-round victories on Wednesday.

How to watch the 2025 Wimbledon Championships

Second-round play at the 2025 Wimbledon women's singles tournament continues on Thursday, as seven US players — including No. 10 Emma Navarro and No. 28 Sofia Kenin — look to advance to the competition's third round.

Live continuous coverage of the London Grand Slam airs on ESPN.

The world No. 1 USWNT will close out their summer international break against a familiar foe on Wednesday night, facing North American rival No. 8 Canada for the first time this year.

"It's never friendly, you know? It's always like a final," US midfielder Sam Coffey told media earlier this week. "We all know each other super well."

"I'm really excited to be a part of it again for our younger, newer players," she continued. "I think it's going to be a huge learning opportunity on what representing this crest means."

The Northern neighbors are the USWNT's most frequent opponent, with the US entering the pair's 67th meeting with a 53-4-9 all-time record against Canada.

Wednesday's matchup will also mark Canada's first US clash under new head coach Casey Stoney, who joined the team in January following her abrupt June 2024 dismissal by the NWSL's San Diego Wave FC.

As for US boss Emma Hayes, she'll be looking for yet another refreshed set of starters on Wednesday after swapping out all 11 players between the team's two friendlies against Ireland last week.

"It's a testament to players and staff alike that we can rotate to different groups like we did last game, and everybody's understanding [the tactics] to varying degrees," Hayes said on Tuesday.

With months to go before the next USWNT camp in October, Wednesday's showdown serves as the last chance for bubble players to prove their worth, all while the team aims to cap the summer window with a big win over their longtime rivals.

How to watch the USWNT vs. Canada on Wednesday

The USWNT will cap their three-friendly summer break against Canada at 7:30 PM ET in Washington, DC.

Live coverage of the clash will air on TNT.

The Indiana Fever lifted their first trophy since 2012 on Tuesday night, winning the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup with a 74-59 upset victory over reigning Cup champs Minnesota — all while injured star guard Caitlin Clark watched from the sidelines.

To snag the win, Indiana leaned on balanced scoring, with forward Natasha Howard's 16-point, 12-rebound double-double leading the Fever's five double-digit shooters.

At the same time, the Fever employed a shutdown defense, limiting the Lynx to their lowest point total of the season.

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Beyond the $500,000 payout, Tuesday's win gives the 8-8 Fever a momentum boost as the team continues contending with both high-profile departures and the limited availability of their floor general.

"We have a resilient group, you know?" Indiana head coach Stephanie White said after the game. "They're tough, mentally and physically, they pull for one another. I'm just really proud."

"It felt good to get a win under gut-check circumstances," echoed guard Kelsey Mitchell. "To have so much going on and still stay consistently for each other, it was beautiful. It felt really amazing."

As for the league-leading Lynx, the Commissioner's Cup loss won't impact Minnesota's regular-season WNBA standings — and they’ll hope to build on the learnings from last night's ego blow.

Minnesota also has a bit of history one their side, as the last two Commissioner's Cup runners-up went on to win the WNBA Championship in the same year.

"We have to take this game to heart and learn from the mistakes we made, the way we showed up, the way we prepared, and make sure we don't do it again," said Lynx center Alanna Smith.

How to watch the Indiana Fever, Minnesota Lynx this week

Neither 2025 Commissioner's Cup contender will have much time to reflect on Tuesday's game, as both Indiana and Minnesota will dive back into regular-season WNBA play on Thursday.

The Fever will host the Las Vegas Aces at 7 PM ET, airing on Prime, before the Washington Mystics visit the Lynx at 8 PM ET, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham turned heads on Tuesday, criticizing the latest WNBA expansion plans in light of ongoing WNBPA CBA negotiations.

Cunningham drew ire from some fans after expressing skepticism about the WNBA awarding expansion teams to Detroit and Cleveland over other possible cities, while also suggesting that the league might be growing too quickly.

"You want to listen to your players, too. Where do they want to play?" she told reporters ahead of Indiana's Commissioner's Cup win. "I'm not so sure what the thought process is there, but at the end of the day, you want to make sure that you're not expanding our league too fast."

"It's kind of a hard decision-making situation. But man, I don't know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland]."

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Elsewhere, Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally also voiced her expansion concerns on Tuesday, calling on the WNBA to keep player support at the forefront when adding expansion teams.

"We really have to put an emphasis on the players that are in our league right now," she told reporters. "Maybe focus on the teams that find excuses continuously to lack investment in their players before we focus on adding more to the grain of people that can't really be sustained."