The United States women’s national team’s younger generation of players are making their names known as they gear up for their first match since the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday.

With five players aged 25 and under, the USWNT roster hasn’t been this young since 2016 at the Rio Olympics. Included on the roster for Thursday’s friendly against Paraguay are Tierna Davidson, Catarina Macario, Sophia Smith, Andi Sullivan and Mallory Pugh.

USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski said he’s excited to have them back in camp.

“They’re making an impact for their [NWSL] teams and helping their teams be successful,” he said. “It’s what we need at this point in time. More energy, more enthusiasm to kick us off in preparation for the World Cup qualifiers.”

The current roster is deep, and the young players are right in the mix for significant playing time. Davidson and Macario were both on the roster for the Tokyo Olympics, while Sullivan, Smith and Pugh can play multiple positions.

“Cat is technically great. Soph will drive at you,” said forward Lynn Williams. “It’s a new freshness. They are new, but they’ve definitely been at camp and been in this environment for a while, so I’m excited to see what their future holds and what they’re going to bring to the team. They have a hunger and a desire to stay here and make a name for themselves, so I’m excited to see them do it.”

Smith, 21, has six caps so far with the USWNT, the fewest on the team. The Portland Thorns forward leads the NWSL in shots and ranks fifth in goals.

Pugh, 23, and Davidson, who turns 23 on Sunday, have already been around for a while. Davidson debuted for the USWNT in 2018 and was the youngest player on the 2019 World Cup team at the age of 20. Pugh made her first appearance in 2016 when she was 17.

“I don’t feel young,” said Pugh. “I think I’ve kind of had to remind myself I am young and I still have a lot of years ahead of me.”

Macario, on the other hand, still feels new. As one of two players on the roster who compete overseas, the midfielder has been adjusting to the different dynamic.

In France, where the 21-year-old has four goals in four games for Lyon, the atmosphere is a “lot more chill.”

“These women are just completely, very intense at all times,” she said of her USWNT teammates. “Of course, off the field we have some fun and some good laughs, but it’s kind of like you committed to a business trip.”

Macario later added, “It’s two different environments that I love.”

The five younger players should get plenty of opportunities in the upcoming friendlies as multiple teammates sit out with injuries, including Sam Mewis, Megan Rapinoe, Lindsey Horan and Julie Ertz.

Andonovski has no doubt Sullivan can excel in the defensive center-midfield position, where she plays for the Washington Spirit in the NWSL. The 25-year-old might very well have to step into that starting role with the national squad in the absence of Ertz.

“I think she’s going to come in and have no problem adjusting to what we’re trying to do,” the coach said. “In these two games, I’m pretty sure we’re going to see Andi on the field and we’re going to see her getting a lot of minutes.”

The U.S. enters the fall tour knowing they have a lot of work to do between now and the 2023 FIFA World Cup. Coming off of a World Cup title in 2019 and ranked No. 1 in FIFA, the USWNT went into the Olympics with a gold medal in mind and came away with bronze. The team was on a 44-game win streak before losing 3-0 to Sweden in the first Olympic group stage game and then to Canada in a semifinal shootout.

Forward Alex Morgan says each player is closing that chapter on their own timeline, especially when it’s grouped with the emotional implications of COVID-19. Being together at camp has been an effective way to reflect on the summer and move on as a team as they head into their fall friendlies with Paraguay this month and South Korea at the end of October.

Thursday marks the USWNT’s first-ever match against Paraguay. The two squads face each other again Tuesday.

“There’s not much information on Paraguay,” Morgan said, “but it’s more about us getting back together, looking forward towards 2023, which is the next big tournament for us.”

Squad set to take on Paraguay 💪

More roster info ≫ https://t.co/kG30gr0ion pic.twitter.com/K1dGkVPyRk

— U.S. Soccer WNT (@USWNT) September 9, 2021

More NWSL stars are jumping ship, as both the San Diego Wave and North Carolina Courage saw respective key players Delphine Cascarino and Denise O'Sullivan sign with WSL clubs over the last few days.

Former Wave forward Cascarino inked a deal through the 2029/30 season with the London City Lionesses on Monday, one day after San Diego announced they had mutually parted ways with the French international despite her contract running through 2026 with an option for the 2027 NWSL season.

"I'm really happy to be here," said the 28-year-old in a statement. "London City is the only independent women's club in the WSL, which excites me."

North Carolina midfielder and captain O'Sullivan made a similar move on Saturday, as the Ireland international signed with Liverpool following more than eight seasons and a club-record 186 appearances for the Courage.

The last-place WSL team reportedly shelled out a club-record transfer fee of approximately £300,000 to roster the 31-year-old two-time NWSL champion and three-time Shield-winner, who called Liverpool "a new challenge" that will see her "only a 40-minute flight away" from her family in Cork, Ireland.

Though the NWSL departures of Cascarino and O'Sullivan mark a kind of homecoming for the European standouts, they are just the latest to exit the US league, after USWNT star Sam Coffey joined WSL-leaders Manchester City last week.

"England — for men and women — is the country of football," noted Cascarino. "It's always been a goal of mine to play in this league."

New York Sirens forward Taylor Girard made PWHL history this week, earning a record four-game suspension for leaving the bench to join a line skirmish at the end of Sunday's 2-1 win over the Montréal Victoire.

The brawl occurred at the the final buzzer of the PWHL's record-breaking Takeover Tour stop in Washington, DC, with eight players — four Sirens and four from the Victoire — subsequently issued 10-minute misconducts in addition to Girard's infraction.

As the sole player not originally on the ice to join the skirmish, Girard was the only player to receive an additional 20-minute charge.

Even more, Girard's actions immediately triggered a four-game suspension, as the PWHL Rulebook dictates that exact punishment for "the first player to leave the players' bench illegally during an altercation or for the purpose of starting an altercation from either or both Teams."

View this post on Instagram

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

The four-game ban marks the longest punishment in PWHL history, doubling the two-game suspension that Seattle Torrent defender Aneta Tejralová received for an illegal check to the head last month.

With the PWHL on break after January 28th as 30% of the league's rosters compete in the 2026 Winter Olympics, the four-game suspension means that Girard — who sits second on New York's scoring sheet with five goals on the season — will not be available for the No. 2 Sirens until March 5th.

The WTGL is stocking up on golf stars, as TMRW Sports' newly announced offseason league begins to build its debut roster in partnership with the LPGA.

World No. 1 golfer Jeeno Thitikul (Thailand) signed on to participate in WTGL's inaugural season this week, alongside No. 5 Charley Hull (England), No. 6 Lydia Ko (New Zealand), No. 25 Brooke Henderson (Canada), and No. 79 Lexi Thompson (USA).

"WTGL will be a global stage to showcase LPGA stars, and this first wave of committed players represents that opportunity with some of the world's best," said TMRW Sports founder and CEO Mike McCarley in Monday's press release.

Set to launch next winter, the WTGL looks to build off the popular, second-year men's Tomorrow's Golf League (TGL), with the competition integrating both a physical and virtual golf environment inside Palm Beach Gardens at Florida's SoFi Center.

"These players will thrive in WTGL's competitive environment as fans will witness their skill and connect more deeply with their personalities through the unprecedented access the league delivers," said McCarley, noting that TGL golfers remain mic'd up throughout the team event.

The WTGL is also earning stamps of approval from several women's sports greats, as the Alex Morgan co-founded Trybe Ventures — an investment group that includes Morgan's fellow former USWNT stars Mia Hamm and Abby Wambach — became the new league's lead capital partner last week.

The WSL is cashing in on the women's game, with two UK clubs surpassing €25 million in annual revenue for the first time, according to the Deloitte Football Money League report on the 2024/25 season that dropped this week.

Reigning UWCL champions Arsenal topped the list for the first time after taking in €25.6 million last season, followed closely by WSL title-holders Chelsea FC's €25.4 million.

Meanwhile, Perennial European contender FC Barcelona (€22 million) dropped to third after leading the group in 2023/24, outpacing WSL titans No. 4 Manchester City (€12.9 million) and No. 5 Manchester United (€12.8 million).

Due to a lack of revenue data, the yearly study did not include major women's leagues in the US, Sweden, or Australia, giving the rankings a European bent as the total sum crossed the €150 million mark for the first time — a 35% increase over the previous season's Top-15 Money League clubs.

Commercial income was the biggest revenue driver for many top clubs, with sponsorship deals and brand partnerships leading the charge.

Arsenal also benefitted from increased revenue on the men's side, allowing the women's team to up its investment while avoiding running at a loss.

How to watch the top Deloitte Football Money League clubs in action

Deloitte Football Money League leader Arsenal will take on No. 5 Man United while revenue runners-up Chelsea will face the WSL-leading Man City in the 2025/26 Women's League Cup semifinals on Wednesday.

The concurrent clashes will kick off at 2 PM ET, streaming live on YouTube.