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Fresh off transformative summer, women’s soccer enters age of ambition

Ellen White of England celebrates with teammates during this year’s Euros. (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

For many of its formative years, women’s soccer has been held up as primarily inspirational. Titles won for club and country have been lauded as part of the fight for the next generation of young girls who need to see athletes in women’s sports achieve great things before they push progress along themselves. Even as interest in the present generation of players has risen year after year, the pulse of the sport from the top has been firmly focused on what comes next.

This summer, fans across the world got a glimpse instead at what is happening right now, as record crowds poured in to watch international soccer tournaments on four different continents.

The “little girls of the future” narrative has played out for a long time, and it still got its fair amount of shine during the four major tournaments that concluded with the Euros final on July 31. For the young ones among the 87,192 fans that packed Wembley Stadium for that game, they witnessed an ending for the ages. In a battle between two well-matched sides, England won their first major trophy on home soil, 2-1 in extra time, over a young, disciplined Germany team, and celebrations erupted nationwide.

In the weeks since, England’s Euros win has been compared to the USWNT’s World Cup championship in 1999, with the potential to usher in a brand new era of support for the women’s game. There are certainly some similarities between the two tournaments: home teams, big crowds, media coverage, and a ripped jersey celebration to cap the whole thing off.

But Brandi Chastain, ‘99 penalty kick legend, told Just Women’s Sports just this year that her iconic moment didn’t have the ripple effect off the field that it could have. ​

“You’re winning big tournaments like the World Cup, and yet you’re anonymous,” she said. “You know that you need to continue to push forward, and you feel that your own group is not taking you as seriously or holding your value the same as they hold someone else’s.”

Such is the cost of inspirational platitudes, when those in charge aren’t ready to fully invest in a future that matches the high expectations of those already striving for perfection on the field. Twenty-three years after the USWNT’s moment, similar emotions have emerged in England, which has a long history of suppressing potential. Women’s football was outlawed in the country that invented the sport from 1921-70. Even now, only 63 percent of girls can play football in PE in England. The scars of institutional neglect still show, even in victory.

Those advocating for women’s football have known this for years, but inspiration is not enough. If there’s one thing the 2022 summer of international soccer has shown us, however, it’s that the age of inspiration might actually be behind us.

Now, it’s time to enter the age of ambition.

Ambition can come in many forms: professional standards, long-term investment, smart hiring and talent identification. It requires real vision and respect toward a sporting sector that is no longer emerging, but has shown quantifiable evidence that it has already arrived. TV ratings for the Euros final were through the roof in multiple countries, hitting 17.4 million in the UK, 17.9 million in Germany, and almost breaking a million viewers in the U.S. The English FA marketed the Women’s Euros at the ground level, and both traditional and new media outlets covered it, giving the final result the weight it deserved at face value.

On the field, that ambition played out in many ways, including in the context of the right coaching hire. England had been building the depth of their program for years, helped in large part by the growing competitive cauldron of the Women’s Super League. But the years spent with Phil Neville as manager from 2018-21 never set the team on the trajectory that matched the expectations being placed on them. Neville was not a student of the women’s game when he was hired, nor did it seem like he tactically understood the elements of cohesion and chemistry required to peak at the right time.

When the pandemic delayed the Euros by a year, Neville stepped away from the team to take a job in MLS, and the FA hired the best woman for the job: Sarina Wiegman. Wiegman led the Netherlands to the 2017 Euros title and the final of the 2019 World Cup, and she proved to be the right manager for a deep England squad that showed 100 percent buy-in. In every match, even when facing moments of adversity, the Lionesses showed a confidence that we’d never seen from them on this big a stage before.

Other nations full of footballing talent have not always had that same sense of urgency. Most dramatically, Nigeria had to boycott training prior to their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations third-place game against Zambia in order to be paid wages they’d been promised. Coaches Jorge Vilda in Spain and Corinne Diacre in France received contract extensions through 2024, despite questions surrounding the management of their squads. Mexico’s World Cup qualifying failure at home led to a round of firings, but Concacaf’s lack of desire to properly market the women’s game went far beyond the host country, leaving a massive opportunity on the table.

It would also be remiss to act like the positive sea change is only occurring in Europe.

The WAFCON tournament in Morocco proved a rousing success for the host nation, as they qualified for the World Cup for the first time in a runners-up performance to South Africa. Copa America Femenina host Colombia has also made their return to the world stage, in a similarly successful run to second place against perennial winners Brazil. Brazil, more than three years removed from Marta’s teary-eyed plea to the next generation at the 2019 World Cup, is successfully going through their own generational shift.

In the United States, the new level of ambition worldwide is sometimes framed as a threat, but as NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman told reporters in Chicago this past weekend, it’s also an opportunity. She attended the final knockout rounds of the Euros and also participated in the World Leagues Forum — the first iteration of a women’s professional league counterpart to the annual men’s summit.

“[The Euros] reminded me of how I felt watching the Angel City home opener, where people were really there to watch the soccer, and people were really there because the sport was taking over,” Berman said. “And the fact that it was women’s soccer was just a bonus. It really wasn’t about a social statement or anything like that. It was really more like, this is the sport at its best globally.”

For two days in London, each league presented to the group what they currently consider their unique value proposition. They also shared best practices and, as Berman put it, “really [had] a discussion about how we can work in tandem to make this a global movement.” The NWSL has unique challenges and strengths in the global market as a non-men’s league-affiliated property, and the best approach for the four-time World Cup-winning nation has to be to meet the rising tide head on.

With the established success of Barcelona and Real Madrid, growing interest in the German Frauen Bundesliga, Lyon and PSG’s dominance in France, and a whole host of English WSL clubs poised to pounce on the Euros momentum, the NWSL has to have a clearer vision than what we saw in the league’s first 10 years. Internationally, the USWNT should always invite the opportunity to play other teams at their best. We’ve seen that this month with the scheduling of a friendly against England at Wembley in October, which was clearly in the works before the final Euros whistle blew.

More than anything, this summer presented enough evidence that if there was ever a time for a new golden era of the sport, it’s not for the girls of the future — it’s actually right now. Players have been ready for this opportunity for a long time, as have fans. It’s time for the rest of the world to catch up.

Claire Watkins is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering soccer and the NWSL. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

WNBA Teams Make Big-Name Cuts Ahead of 2025 Season Tip-Off

Atlanta Dream player Haley Jones looks on during a 2024 WNBA game.
The Atlanta Dream waived third-year guard Haley Jones on Wednesday. (Paras Griffin/Getty Images)

Big-name roster cuts dominated the WNBA headlines on Wednesday, with teams scrambling to meet the league's size and salary cap requirements before Friday's 2025 season tip-off.

The Golden State Valkyries, Minnesota Lynx, Atlanta Dream, Washington Mystics, and Dallas Wings announced finalized rosters, leaving a handful of teams still weighing their options as the clock ticks down.

Expansion side Golden State caused the most Wednesday commotion, dropping 2025 WNBA Draft Cinderella story Kaitlyn Chen (UConn) and 2023 No. 8 overall draft pick Laeticia Amihere (South Carolina), among other cuts, after initially waiving this year's No. 17 overall pick Shyanne Sellers (Maryland) last week.

With this year's No. 5 overall pick Justė Jocytė (Lithuania) choosing to remain overseas for this summer's EuroBasket, the Valkyries will now make their WNBA debut without a single 2025 draftee.

2023 WNBA Draft Class takes a hit

The hits kept coming for the 2023 WNBA Draft class, as Atlanta's No. 6 overall pick Haley Jones (Stanford) and Minnesota's No. 7 selectee Grace Berger (Indiana) joined Amihere on the league's cutting room floor on Wednesday — leaving only five 2023 first-rounders currently on WNBA rosters.

On the flip side, the Connecticut Sun dropped 30-year-old guard Diamond DeShields on Thursday morning — just three months after signing the 2021 WNBA champion.

Ultimately, rookies, mid-career players, and veterans alike are on the chopping block this week, with teams showing little mercy for fan favorites as they hone in on what promises to be a highly competitive 2025 WNBA season.

NWSLPA Voices Player Safety Concerns, Demands NWSL Protocol Change

Utah's Alex Loera leads both Angel City and Royals players and staff in prayer for LA's Savy King on the field after an NWSL match.
Last weekend’s Angel City vs. Utah Royals match continued after ACFC’s Savy King needed life-saving care. (Harry How/NWSL via Getty Images)

The NWSL Players Association (NWSLPA) is advocating for an immediate change in protocol in the name of player safety, with the union voicing concerns about the handling of Angel City defender Savy King's mid-match medical event last Friday.

Following current league guidelines, the game between the LA club and the Utah Royals resumed play on Friday, picking up where they left off after King's on-pitch collapse required nearly 10 minutes of life-saving intervention from medical staff.

Amid a crowd of visibly distressed players and coaches, paramedics rushed King to an area hospital, with the 20-year-old later undergoing successful surgery to fix a previously undetected heart abnormality.

"These moments demand humanity, sound judgment, and restraint," the NWSLPA posted on Wednesday. "Any medical emergency that requires the administration of life-saving care should bring play to an end. The match should not have continued."

"Our members are elite, world-class competitors who have proven they can perform under unimaginable conditions. That does not mean they should have to," the statement continued.

"Incidents of this severity must prioritize our collective humanity and should automatically trigger suspension of the match. The Players Association is committed to making this the standard in [the] NWSL."

NWSL player safety again takes center-pitch

As the NWSL braces for rapid expansion, the NWSLPA remains laser-focused on ensuring player safety never takes a backseat, both on and off the field.

That priority was mirrored in the league's own Wednesday post.

Shortly before the NWSLPA's statement hit feeds, the NWSL issued its own statement, saying "Player Safety is paramount to the NWSL. The seriousness of this incident requires a deliberate process that is careful and methodical. That process is underway and will include necessary revisions that prioritize the consideration of player, staff, and fan well-being."

The lack of an instant protocol change doesn't sit well with NWSLPA executive director Meghann Burke.

After reviewing the league's post, Burke told Front Office Sports "The reality is these decisions are made in real time. A decision needed to be made last Friday night.... Five days later, they still [haven't] decided whether or not this game should have been suspended." 

"This is a human issue. The right thing to do was to call this game. It doesn't take this long to realize that."

Alexis Ohanian Buys 10% Stake in WSL Champions Chelsea FC

Angel City lead founding investor Alexis Ohanian points to the team crest on his jacket during a 2022 NWSL event.
Alexis Ohanian reportedly paid £20 million for a 10% stake in Chelsea FC. (Jessica Rapfogel/Imagn Images)

Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian is Chelsea FC's newest owner, with the husband of tennis icon Serena Williams reportedly dropping £20 million ($26.6 million) on a 10% stake in the WSL champions earlier this week.

Ohanian is no stranger to investing in women's sports, from launching Angel City as the 2022 NWSL expansion club's majority owner to last year's founding of Athlos NYC, an annual women's track and field event with a $663,000 purse.

"I've bet big on women's sports before — and I'm doing it again," Ohanian posted on social media on Wednesday. "I'm proud to announce that I'm joining @ChelseaFCW as an investor and board member. I'm honored for the chance to help this iconic club become America's favorite @BarclaysWSL team and much, much more."

"These players are rewriting the game. Undefeated season. Eyes on the treble," said Ohanian about Chelsea FC's historic 2024/25 success. "But this isn't just about winning titles. It's about finally matching their talent with the resources, visibility, and respect they deserve."

Ohanian's investment comes amid soaring valuations for women's pro teams — with Chelsea's $257 million price tag ranking as the highest in all of women's soccer.

Calling Ohanian's buy-in "game-changing," Blues manager Sonia Bompastor told reporters on Thursday that "It's really important for the women's game but also for England to have someone to invest in a team like Chelsea."

"We want to be the leaders," she continued. "We want to be the team who shows to every other team how you need to perform and how you need to invest in the women's game."

Women's clubs still successful after splitting with men's teams

Ohanian's investment also indicates Chelsea's commitment to further distancing their women's team operations from their men's side, following last June's ownership move to place the women's squad under an independent subsidiary.

Though most European women's teams remain closely affiliated with their men's counterparts, severing ties is on the rise, with US billionaire Michele Kang assuming majority ownership over women's clubs Olympique Lyonnais and the newly promoted London City Lionesses in recent years.

With skyrocketing revenue — plus Kang's fleet proving that independence benefits women's teams — expect to see even more US investors eyeing women's sports opportunities abroad.

FIFA Sets $1 Billion Revenue Goal for Women’s World Cup

A 2023 World Cup match's attendence of 40,499 is displaying during the game.
The 2023 World Cup garnered $570 million in revenue. (Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images)

FIFA is setting a new goal for the Women's World Cup, with organization president Gianni Infantino stating this week that the governing body is aiming to generate $1 billion in revenue from the international championship tournament.

"Women's football and women in football are crucially important," Infantino said at the 2025 Saudi Arabia/US Investment Forum in Riyadh on Tuesday.

"It's growing as well, and exponentially, and we are targeting [growth] as well to have $1 billion revenue just with the Women's World Cup to reinvest in the women's game."

The public push to hit the billion-dollar mark comes after the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand became the first edition of the tournament to break even, generating a revenue total over $570 million.

The 2027 World Cup will take place in Brazil, becoming the first iteration ever held in South America, while the US — as the only bid on the table — has a near-guaranteed lock on hosting the 2031 edition.

As FIFA takes aim at its $1 billion target for the 2027 tournament, the 2031 World Cup could have a leg up in the revenue game, with FIFA expanding the competition's field from 32 to 48 teams just last week.

Consequently, that 16-team increase boosts the total matches from 64 in 2027 to 104 in the 2031, instantly creating 62.5% more inventory — a move that could help meet or potentially exceed FIFA's bold new revenue goal.

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