Tennis star Ons Jabeur is joining the North Carolina Courage as a minority owner, the club announced Friday.

In doing so, Jabeur joins a long list of athletes who have invested in NWSL clubs, including Naomi Osaka, Patrick Mahomes, Serena Williams and Sue Bird.

These stars are putting their money into a booming league. The 2022 NWSL final drew 915,000 viewers, a 71% increase from the 2021 final. And franchise valuations have skyrocketed: The Washington Spirit sold for $35 million in February; Gotham FC were valued at $40 million in August; and the Portland Thorns were valued at $60 million ahead of their upcoming sale.

Just Women’s Sports highlights some of the NWSL’s top athlete investors during the 2023 season.

Angel City FC

The Los Angeles-based club features a long roster of investors, including NFL quarterback Matthew Stafford, his wife Kelly and their daughters.

“We fell in love with attending an Angel City game last season and wanted our daughters to experience something so important and powerful first-hand,” Matthew and Kelly Stafford said in a news release.

The list of investors includes many former U.S. women’s national team players, including Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Abby Wambach, Shannon Boxx, Rachel Buehler, Lauren Cheney Holiday, Lorrie Fair Allen, Ronnie Fair Sullins, Joy Fawcett, Shannon MacMillan, Angela Hucles Mangano and Saskia Webber.

Retired tennis players Serena Williams, Billie Jean King and Ilana Kloss, two-time WNBA champion Candace Parker, former USMNT player Cobi Jones, former NHL defender P.K. Subban, U.S. Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn, U.S. Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson East and former NFL long snapper Andrew East also are investors.

Chicago Red Stars

Chicago Cubs co-owner Laura Ricketts and her investor group have reached an agreement to buy the Red Stars.

The group includes Angela Barnes, chief legal officer of IDEO; Debra Cafaro, chairman and CEO of Ventas and a partner in the Pittsburgh Penguins ownership group; Jessica Droste Yagan, CEO of Impact Engine; Jennifer Pritzker, president and CEO of TAWANI Enterprises; and Sidney Dillard, a partner at Chicago’s Loop Capital.

Houston Dash

NBA star James Harden joined the ownership group for the Dash and their MLS counterpart, the Houston Dynamo, in July 2019. While the 2018 NBA MVP and 10-time All-Star plays for the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2022-23 season, he played for the Houston Rockets from 2012-21.

Gotham FC

The New York City-area team pulled in several big-name investors in 2022, among them former USWNT and Gotham forward Carli Lloyd, four-time WNBA champion Sue Bird, two-time NBA champion Kevin Durant and two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning.

Kansas City Current

Patrick Mahomes will join his wife Brittany and Current co-owners Angie and Chris Long as an investor in the club, which enters 2023 looking to build on its 2022 NWSL championship appearance.

“I am excited to join another championship-caliber club as it continues to make history,” the 2018 NFL MVP and 2020 Super Bowl MVP said in a statement.

North Carolina Courage

Naomi Osaka invested in the Courage in 2021. The 25-year-old tennis star is a four-time major singles champion and topped Forbes’ list of the highest-paid female athletes in the world with $51.1 million in earnings in 2022. Fellow tennis star Ons Jabeur joined Osaka as an investor in the Courage in August 2023.

“Soccer and female empowerment are my main passions outside of tennis,” Jabeur said. “When Naomi took an equity stake in the Courage, I asked her if she would give me a starting position as a striker, but she said no… so I did the next best thing and become an owner. The Courage are the perfect club for me in terms of shared values and ambitions, both on and off the field.”

OL Reign

Former NBA point guard Tony Parker, who played for the San Antonio Spurs from 2001-18 and for the Charlotte Hornets from 2018-19, holds a minority stake in the Seattle-based club.

Washington Spirit

Former USWNT goalkeeper Briana Scurry and U.S. Olympic gymnast Dominique Dawes joined the Spirit as minority investors in 2021.

The Washington Spirit’s controversial 1-0 win against Angel City headlined this week’s NWSL action.

The lone goal in the match came on a penalty kick during stoppage time. After a handball was called against Angel City defender M.A. Vignola — and then confirmed by VAR — Washington Spirit forward Ashley Hatch converted the penalty.

Following the game, the referee addressed the handball, noting that “although the ball struck the body of the defender first, there was a secondary motion of the arm.” The referee also noted that Vignola’s body was “unnaturally bigger” because of her arm being raised “at/above the shoulder,” which gave her an advantage.

Angel City head coach Freya Coombe, though, took issue with the call.

“I’m still confused as to why that that would be a penalty shout and, yeah, the positioning of the arm,” Coombe said. “I don’t know where we are expected to put one’s arm when the elbow’s tucked into the sides and you’re turning your back as you’re clearing a ball.”

Spirit head coach Mark Parsons, on the other hand, defended the referee’s decision.

“We just saw one replay in the stadium, and I mean the hand was up,” Parsons said. “I haven’t seen a great look. They missed some handballs around the middle of the pitch, kept bouncing off hands and they weren’t calling it. … We’ve been educated on the rules. It’s hard for defenders to defend with their hands by their side, you can’t run as well. But we know, we know the rules.”

With the win, the Spirit moved into first place in the NWSL standings. Check out the complete NWSL standings here, and the results from all six of this week’s NWSL games below.

NWSL Results and Scores: Friday, May 12

Racing Louisville 3, Chicago Red Stars 0

Racing Louisville won its first game of the 2023 NWSL regular season Friday night, defeating the Chicago Red Stars at Lynn Family Stadium. Savannah DeMelo and Wang Shuang both converted penalties in the first half, while Parker Goins added a third tally in the 89th minute. The 3-0 victory is Racing Louisville’s largest margin of victory since joining the NWSL in 2021.

Houston Dash 2, Portland Thorns 1

The Portland Thorns lost their first game of the regular season Friday night, falling 2-1 to the Houston Dash. Portland got on the board first with a goal in the 34th minute from Rocky Rodríguez, but the Dash came back with two goals of their own in the second half (Joelle Anderson, Ebony Salmon).

NWSL Results: Saturday, May 13

Angel City FC 0,  Washington Spirit 1

The Washington Spirit kept their undefeated streak alive with their 1-0 win against Angel City FC. The Spirit have four wins and three draws so far in the regular season, good for 15 points in the standings.

NWSL Results: Sunday, May 14

North Carolina Courage 1, OL Reign 0

The Courage were bolstered by Tyler Lussi’s lone goal of the game Sunday to take a 1-0 win over OL Reign and move up to sixth place in league standings.

NJ/NY Gotham FC 0, Orlando Pride 0

There wasn’t a goal to be found Sunday in the match between Gotham and Orlando.  Gotham FC now sits third in the standings, while Orlando remains in 10th.

Kansas City Current 0, San Diego Wave FC 2

An AD Franch own goal (assisted by Alex Morgan) and a tally by Belle Briede helped lift San Diego Wave over the Current. San Diego now sits fifth in the league, while 2022 NWSL runner-up Kansas City has slipped to 11th.

Former NWSL coach Craig Harrington received a two-year suspension from the league in January for his inappropriate conduct and sexual comments toward players.

Just weeks later, he was hired by a Chicago youth club as the director of coaching, The Athletic reported Friday.

While Harrington has since been fired by the youth club, that he was hired at all exposes the continued cracks in the systems meant to ensure player safety at all levels of soccer, even in the wake of the NWSL’s wide-reaching misconduct investigations.

The NWSL’s misconduct report outlined misconduct allegations against Harrington, who served as head coach of the Utah Royals in 2020, and as an assistant coach for the Chicago Red Stars in the previous two seasons.

In the report, two NWSL players recalled an instance at a bar in which an intoxicated Harrington made sexual advances toward them and said, “I need to have sex with someone tonight who’s not my wife.” He also made comments on more than one occasion about players’ looks and bodies, the report stated.

The former coach denied such allegations, stating that he “never made comments about players’ physical attractiveness and never sexualized players.” The NWSL and NWSLPA joint investigative team, however, “did not find his denials to be credible when viewed against the accounts of multiple other witnesses,” according to the report.

The NWSL handed down a two-year suspension for Harrington, which banned him from coaching in the league until at least January 2025.

Soon after the suspension, youth club Chicago Empire FC hired Harrington “as an independent contractor” in late January. In the hiring process, the club obtained a “clean NCSI (National Center for Safety Initiatives) background check and certification of his U.S. Center for SafeSport training,” as well as confirmation that his coaching licenses were in good standing with the U.S. Soccer Federation and the Illinois Youth Soccer Association, director of operations Matt Tunis told The Athletic.

On April 25, Empire FC received notice from the Illinois Youth Soccer Association that Harrington’s membership had been suspended, at which point the club terminated his contract, Tunis said.

“At no time since February has Mr. Harrington been listed on either the SafeSport or U.S. Soccer risk management list of ineligible, suspended or disciplined individuals,” Tunis continued in his statement to The Athletic. “Nonetheless, Chicago Empire FC’s top priority is the safety and well-being of its players and staff.”

However, U.S. Soccer confirmed to The Athletic that Harrington was added to the federation’s risk management list following the NWSL’s announcement of his suspension in January.

Chicago Red Stars general manager Michelle Lomnicki knew of Harrington’s role with youth club Chicago Empire FC. The club fired her Friday for failing to inform club leadership of the information.

The Chicago Red Stars have fired general manager Michelle Lomnicki for neglecting to inform the team of a suspended NWSL coach’s employment by a local youth club.

Lomnicki knew of the Harrington’s employment at a Chicago youth soccer club as director of coaching, The Athletic reported Friday.

Harrington, who worked as an assistant coach for the Red Stars from 2018-19 and as the head coach for the Utah Royals in 2020, is serving a two-year NWSL suspension for inappropriate conduct and sexual comments made to players. He was fired from his role with the youth club in April.

The Red Stars terminated Lomnicki just four months after her promotion to general manager in January.

“Yesterday the Board of the Chicago Red Stars ended Michelle Lomnicki’s employment immediately after learning about a lapse in judgment to not share important information with club leadership,” the team said in a statement.

According to a Red Stars source, the club did not know about Harrington’s role until they were contacted by The Athletic. The Red Stars felt the trust between the club and Lomnicki had been broken.

Lomnicki is connected to Chicago Empire FC, the club that employed Harrington, through her husband Wes Lomnicki, who is Empire FC’s sporting director.

The now-former Red Stars general manager also was listed as a female technical and performance consultant for Empire FC until early May. But in a statement to The Athletic, Lomnicki said that she had “ceased all youth contracting or club coaching as of January 2023,” when she was promoted to general manager of the Red Stars.

“My performance consultant role with Chicago Empire involved being a reference for girls in the club as they dealt with items such as competitive anxiety or college recruiting,” she continued. “I had no role in any hiring decisions for the club.”

Chicago Empire FC was the “first-ever youth affiliated club” of the Chicago Red Stars, according to an April 2019 announcement that has since been deleted from its website.

The affiliation had ended in November 2021, a spokesperson for the Red Stars told The Athletic. But the youth club’s website still had references to the Red Stars as of May 1, 2023.

Before Lomnicki became general manager for the Red Stars in January 2023, she worked as associate general manager since January 2022, and before that as the club’s director of youth camps and clinics since 2020. She also played for the Red Stars for their first three years in the NWSL, from 2013-15, and also in 2009 when the team was part of the WPS.

Time has flown. With five games already played in the 2023 NWSL regular season, we’re nearing the quarter mark of the domestic soccer calendar.

Now that fans have had a chance to see a month’s worth of performances from each team, we took a look at how clubs are picking up points, and who’s trending in the right (or wrong) direction with a fresh edition of power rankings.

1. Portland Thorns

Standings: 1st (3-0-2)

Portland holds the top spot in both the league standings and in the power rankings after a quarter of the regular season. The Thorns needed a shocking equalizer from goalkeeper Bella Bixby this weekend to stay undefeated in league play, but the “whatever-it-takes” mentality from the 2022 reigning champions has made them difficult to beat in the early going of the season.

2. OL Reign

Standings: 2nd (3-1-1)

The Reign also needed a furious comeback to draw Racing Louisville 2-2 last weekend, but most importantly they’re finding ways to score goals when necessary. The Reign dropped five goals on the Red Stars in their fourth match of the season, and they still have a number of important contributors working their way back from injury.

3. Washington Spirit

Standings: 4th (2-0-3)

The Spirit have been turning in consistent performances as new head coach Mark Parsons balances long-term projects with win-now results. Washington is still undefeated in regular season play, opening the year with a solid win over the Reign and proceeding to accumulate three draws in five games, most recently in a strong attacking performance against Chicago. The Spirit aren’t a finished project yet, but they look much steadier after a tough 2022.

4. San Diego Wave

Standings: 3rd (3-2-0)

San Diego looks as sharp as ever but has suffered two losses in its last three games, dropping them to fourth in this week’s power rankings. The Wave have had no problem scoring goals, but their end-to-end style of soccer sometimes leaves them vulnerable on the counterattack, as in their most recent 3-1 loss to last-place Orlando this past weekend.

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Lynn Williams has scored five goals in seven games across all competitions for Gotham. (Vincent Carchietta/USA TODAY Sports)

5. Gotham FC

Standings: 5th (3-2-0)

Gotham isn’t immune to a rough defensive performance, but last year’s NWSL basement dwellers look like a team ready to compete in the playoffs in 2023. Lynn Williams has proved to be an excellent pick-up on the team’s frontline, especially as Midge Purce has struggled with injuries early in the season. The return of midfielder Allie Long has similarly provided a boost, with Gotham picking up key points early in the season.

6. Kansas City Current

Standings: 7th (2-3-0)

Don’t look now, but after an 0-3 start and the dismissal of head coach Matt Potter, the Current are on the rise. Kansas City has rattled off two straight regular season wins behind the excellent play of Debinha, who is growing into her role with her new club with every passing game. The Current are also benefiting from the growth of rookie defenders Gabrielle Robinson and Croix Soto, as they take more risks to spring Hailie Mace out wide and get the attack cooking.

7. Houston Dash

Standings: 6th (1-1-3)

The Dash have looked like a solid playoff contender through the first five games of the season, but they occasionally play like they’re saving their best performances for the future. Houston’s attacking three of María Sánchez, Diana Ordoñez and Ebony Salmon are still gelling, though their underlying stats indicate that the goals are coming soon.

8. Angel City FC

Standings: 9th (1-2-2)

Sometimes it’s hard to tell exactly what version of Angel City you’re going to get on any given evening. With the addition of Julie Ertz to the midfield, and Alyssa Thompson looking very comfortable in attack, the team has the ability to go toe-to-toe with anyone. But they can also let results slip from their grasp, especially against deeper sides.

9. Racing Louisville

Standings: 10th (0-1-4)

Racing Louisville’s 2-2 draw against OL Reign this past weekend showcased the highs and lows of a team still figuring itself out. Savannah DeMelo has continued her excellent run of form in her second year, but a mistake also earned her a red card, allowing the Reign to come storming back with Louisville down a player. Racing Louisville is making the right strides, but the final piece could be a greater sense of discipline.

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USWNT defender Emily Fox leads a North Carolina team that has dealt with a series of strange twists. (Maria Lysaker/USA TODAY Sports)

10. North Carolina Courage

Standings: 8th (2-3-0)

The Courage have looked competitive in every game they’ve played thus far, with all but one match decided by one goal or less. They’ve also had a very weird couple of weeks with weather delays, picking up a quick win over Houston on Friday after the match was abandoned following 52 minutes of play. North Carolina has a talented squad, but their rhythm has been disrupted through the first month of the season.

11. Orlando Pride

Standings: 12th (1-4-0)

The Pride have had a rough go of it in the early days of the 2023 NWSL season, but they put all their attacking woes behind them with a 3-1 win over top-four side San Diego last weekend. Orlando’s depth and defensive switches at key points in games have been issues thus far. But the ideas are there when everything is clicking, and they’ll feel a little bit of weight off their shoulders after picking up their first win.

12. Chicago Red Stars

Standings: 11th (1-3-1)

It’d be easy to blame Chicago’s struggles on the loss of Mallory Swanson to a knee injury, and she is missed every time they take the pitch. But the surprise has been the Red Stars’ issues on defense, with the team giving up two or more goals in every game outside of their most recent draw with the Spirit. The team’s three-back system has been strained with new midfield personnel in front of them, begging the question of whether the Red Stars need to adjust their formation to avoid a longer skid.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. — As Mexico’s first-ever match against the Chicago Red Stars neared the hour mark on Saturday, Diana Ordoñez saw the ball in the back of the net before the Red Stars could even react. Taking two steps in front of the penalty area, Ordoñez found acres of space with which to line up a golazo from distance, giving Mexico their fourth goal in an eventual 5-2 win, on a day when the best of the sport were on display.

The MexTour has been a wildly successful endeavor on the men’s side for years, as the Mexico men’s national team connects with fans in the U.S. who might not have the opportunity to travel and watch them in their home country. The men’s team most recently visited Chicago last June for a pre-World Cup friendly against Ecuador in front of 60,000 people at Soldier Field, solidifying the team as one of the most popular in the city and arguably the entire country.

The women’s national team is working on building that kind of following in the inaugural year of MexTour W after a few rocky years on the international stage. Mexico has missed the last two Women’s World Cups with performances during Concacaf qualifying tournaments that don’t reflect the growth in talent in the region in recent years. But Saturday was all about the future, as Mexico drew more than 6,000 fans out to SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, the Red Stars’ home venue.

“When I heard Mexico was coming to play, I was like man, this crowd is going to be rowdy. So I was excited,” said Chicago defender and acting captain Arin Wright, happily sporting a Mexico jersey after the match ended.

The Red Stars were undoubtedly the away team in their home stadium on Saturday, with boos accompanying yellow card challenges and raucous cheers for every Mexico goal-scoring opportunity.

The crowd didn’t leave empty-handed. Mexico found spaces in and around a short-handed Red Stars defense to score five total goals, including a number of strikes from distance complemented by quality footwork in the penalty area. Ordoñez and Maria Sanchez led the charge, each scoring against Chicago just a week after doing the same for the Houston Dash in the NWSL.

“I felt like it was a great day for people that are football people,” said Red Stars head coach Christ Petrucelli. “It’s probably the first time we’ve ever been booed in our own stadium. But it’s OK, it was part of the fun.”

After a number of years when Mexican talent fell outside the NWSL talent pipeline, the door to more overlap between the U.S. and Mexico is appearing to open. Sanchez, Ordoñez, Katie Johnson and Scarlett Camberos are the highest-profile Mexican-American players to rise through the NCAA system and eventually find their way to the NWSL, while American talent is increasingly finding a home in Liga MX Femenil. Most notably, UCLA product and USWNT prospect Mia Fishel is on a goal-scoring tear for Tigres Femenil.

“I think there should be more Mexican players in our league,” Wright said after the game. “I mean, watching this game right there, it shows that they can keep up and that they bring a lot of different talent that we don’t have here in this league. And I think our league could thrive having a little bit more of their technical ability.”

Red Stars midfielder Jill Aguilera, who plays for the Puerto Rico national team, agrees that more opportunities for cross-competition are only good for the region. Saturday’s game was a quick turnaround for Aguilera, as Puerto Rico will play their own version of a club friendly against Liga MX Femenil side Tijuana in California early this week.

“I played Mexico a year ago, somewhat close to today,” she said. “So I was definitely used to the crowd, I knew that it would feel somewhat like an away game. I expected that.”

While the Red Stars did their best to quiet the Mexico crowd, most emphatically with Julia Bianchi’s Olimpico goal off a corner kick, they were also open about their desire to see many of the fans return, perhaps sporting their club colors next time around. The Red Stars’ home outside of Chicago’s city limits has long been a topic of conversation, as the team attempts to connect with the vibrant community northeast of the quiet suburb where they play.

“I think that we struggle a bit, everyone knows, to get fans out here to SeatGeek. So we were really excited to have them come in and have our players really experience that atmosphere that Mexico can bring,” said Wright.

“Overall, we’re just grateful to have as many people as we did out here, and the more we can get fans like this to our regular season games, the better for everyone,” echoed Aguilera.

Wright believes the way to draw crowds back is to continue being active with outreach, and the scheduling of international friendlies is an easy way to make the Red Stars a relevant part of the footballing conversation in the greater Chicagoland community.

“Chicago is a melting pot. It’s so diverse, it has so many different cultures,” she says. “So can we get more games against other countries? That’s how you get more fans is more visibility, and reaching different countries and different fan bases.”

Despite the result, the Red Stars relished the opportunity to be a part of the global game, and Wright is eager for more opportunities.

“The players are gonna be happy to do it,” she said. “Ask us to go to Mexico, twist our arm, we’ll be there.”

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

The NWSL season kicked off this weekend, and many teams debuted new kits (or new spins on their existing kits) ahead of their opening matches.

While this year’s new batch of kits display a disappointing lack of color, teams did show off intriguing (and polarizing) creative choices. But which team did it best? Just Women’s Sports lays out our 2023 kit rankings.

12. Washington Spirit

The Washington Spirit are in the process of rebranding, and that includes the team’s new kits for the 2023 season.

While the iridescent logo is cool, all-black and all-white kits leave much to be desired. And while black-and-white wardrobes are all the rage in fashion, we’ll miss the color that the Spirit always brought to the field.

The only thing that could possibly improve the Spirit’s ranking is a cherry blossom-inspired kit, which has long been a wish of editor Kate Yanchulis.

11. San Diego Wave FC

San Diego did not move up a spot in this year’s rankings simply because its new kit isn’t exactly new. The Wave have gotten rid of the detailing last year’s kit had on the sleeve and got for a straight navy home kit. The away kit is all white, which is certainly a choice.

While both kits feature cool detailing in the texture, a lack of color differentiation makes it difficult to see. Once again, the Wave failed to live up to the potential of their crest, which is disappointing as they have one of the best colorways in the league.

10. North Carolina Courage

Very little has changed from last year’s kits, save for the fact that the Courage have now gone with an all-white away colorway with a “ghosted” crest that features a light blue outline. While they’re now on the very short list of colorful NWSL teams, the refresh still leaves something to be desired.

9. Houston Dash

The Dash get a point for their new Estrella Kit, which is a vibrant orange color, especially in a year when teams are turning to black-and-white colorways. But unfortunately, the orange kit doesn’t stand out as much as one might like.

The design is a bit bland, although the orange accents on black shorts are a nice touch. And while orange is the Dash’s color, it wouldn’t hurt to be a little bit more adventurous, would it?

8. Kansas City Current

Kansas City offered up a refresh on its secondary kit with the “Ice Kit,” which is a white jersey paired with teal shorts and socks. It’s fresh, colorful and brings something different to the NWSL lineup with the teal shorts. But the white jerseys are exactly that: white, without much added excitement.

7. Orlando Pride

The Orlando Pride get bumped up in this year’s rankings due to their revamp of their Luna Kit. While not a fully new kit, the numbers on the backs of the jerseys have been updated to black so that fans can more easily identify players on the field.

Also, the Pride get major prop points for changing to dark shorts to make the kits more comfortable for players during their periods. While it’s a small change, it’s a huge moment for inclusivity and accessibility. Plus, the black, gray and white look sleek.

6. OL Reign

OL Reign revealed their new “Purpose” kit, which features two-toned blue psychedelic-style print and red accents. The change is fitting for the Reign, and it offers a refreshing update to their home kit.

Plus, the video reveal was one of the better ones we’ve seen this season.

5. Gotham FC

Gotham get style points simply for the fact that they didn’t reveal their new kit for this year, EA Sports did, via NWSL gameplay announcement. And while this kit maintains black elements, Gotham’s trademark Sky Blue is sprinkled throughout in a fun way.

Overall, this kit is fun and includes color – something that a lot of other kits seem to be lacking this season. Plus, we get to see Kelley O’Hara and Lynn Williams play in it. Sounds like a win.

4. Portland Thorns FC

What can I say? I’m a 2000s kid who was raised on Ed Hardy. You either hate this kit or you love it, and I love it. Not only does it pay homage to the Thorns and their city, but it brings something different to this year’s kit lineup.

First stop, NWSL championship. Next stop, MTV.

3. Angel City FC

When considering last year’s away kit, this year’s seems decidedly less exciting. But the pops of pink help. The team once again opting to hone in on their home city of LA, this time by showcasing it on the front of the kit, is a cool touch. The Volemos on the back of the kit, accompanied by a gray to white ombré, is different from other teams’ kits.

The gray shorts to go along with the jersey isn’t the most exciting choice. Pink or black shorts might have elevated and helped to counteract the blandness of the gray color on the jersey.

2. Racing Louisville FC

Since their inception, Racing Louisville has not missed on a kit release. The mint kit was a joyous addition to the NWSL lineup, following home kits that were one of the best expansion kits the league has ever seen.

They once again hit the mark with the Houndstooth Kit, meant to honor Penny Chenery, the owner of Secretariat, 50 years after the colt’s Triple Crown run.

It’s fitting for Louisville, which is home to the Kentucky Derby, and is meant as a “celebration of pioneering women.” While the fleur-de-lis kit will always hold a special place amongst the NWSL kit ranks, this refresh means a lot and looks good. It also breaks up the trend of black jerseys that has plagued the league this season, with Racing opting to go all-purple with a mint logo.

1. Chicago Red Stars

The Chicago Red Stars stay winning with the kit game, releasing their new “Foundation” kit, which once again pays homage to the city of Chicago and its architecture. These might not just be the best uniforms in the NWSL, but also top the list when it comes to Chicago teams as well.

Not to mention, the kit is meant to signify the club’s new beginning as they work toward new ownership.

“The stars represent the bedrock of the foundational framework being laid as we prepare to enter a new chapter for the club,” the Red Stars wrote in a statement.

Other teams should take note of the ways in which the Red Stars lean into their city’s unique features. (Although, to be fair, no city does it quite like Chicago, which is probably why the Cubs’ City Connect jerseys were such a disappointment.) Home to some of the best architectural elements in the world, that the Red Stars continuously look to the skies and the city for their kit inspiration keeps them at the top of the league in this year’s rankings.

The San Diego Wave kicked off the 2023 NWSL season in dramatic fashion.  Competing in front more than 30,000 fans at Snapdragon Stadium, Alex Morgan converted a penalty in the 89th minute to secure a 3-2 win against the Chicago Red Stars.

The Wave’s home crowd of 30,854 broke the record for largest NWSL home opener, previously set by the Orlando Pride (23,403) in 2016.

“30,000 in the stands just kept us going,” Morgan said while walking a post-game victory lap. “Just to win in our first game, feel good going into the season, there’s no better feeling. Hopefully we get 30,000 fans next game.”

The Chicago Red Stars got on the board first with an 18th minute goal from Yuki Nagasato, but the Wave equalized quickly thanks to this Amirah Ali header (video below).

The two teams headed to halftime tied 2-2 after 18-year-old Jaedyn Shaw scored for the Wave off a corner kick. Mallory Swanson (née Pugh) then equalized for the Red Stars on a penalty (video below).

The second half was scoreless until Red Stars defender Arin Wright was called for a handball and San Diego was awarded a penalty. Alex Morgan tucked the ball just inside the left post, just out of the reach of USWNT teammate Alyssa Naeher.

Every NWSL offseason comes with player movement, but the months leading up to the 2023 season reflected a new era of player choice. The league’s first free-agency period saw many top players leaving for new environments and teams making a few surprising moves themselves.

Almost every NWSL roster will look different in 2023, with the potential for dramatic returns as teams meet for the first time in the regular season.

Don’t look now, but revenge season might be upon us. Here are the games to circle on your calendar.

March 25: Kansas City Current at North Carolina Courage

The first game of the NWSL regular season wastes no time in getting into one of the most dramatic narratives of the offseason. The Kansas City Current were the big winners of the league’s free-agency period and feature heavily on this list as players take on their former teams.

First up, two-time NWSL champion Debinha returns to the home of the North Carolina Courage in her first game after a high-profile move to Kansas City. Courage head coach Sean Nahas said at the 2023 draft that they had made serious overtures to the Brazilian superstar to try to convince her to stay with her club of five years, and her playmaking ability will surely be missed in North Carolina.

The Current come into the season with high expectations. Debinha appeared to pick up a knock in preseason that might limit her availability for this game. Regardless, the opening match against her former teammates (and current Brazil teammate Kerolin) will be a battle that sets the tone for Kansas City’s ceiling in 2023.

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Emily Sonnett was a part of Washington's 2021 NWSL championship run. (Ira L. Black/Getty Images)

March 26: OL Reign at Washington Spirit

OL Reign travels to Washington D.C. on opening weekend, with a few chips on their shoulder to shake off. The Spirit famously ended the Reign’s postseason dreams in 2021 before going on to win the club’s first NWSL Championship. Prior to that, Rose Lavelle found her NWSL rights abruptly sent to Seattle from Washington while playing for Manchester City, a move she said surprised her at the time.

More recently, Washington unexpectedly sent another USWNT mainstay to the Pacific Northwest, completing a draft-day trade that dealt Emily Sonnett to OL Reign. The trade came about quickly, with new Spirit head coach Mark Parsons making a move to address what he referred to as a “structural” imbalance to his roster. This is the second time Parsons has traded Sonnett to a new team, first sending her to the Orlando Pride when he was the head coach of the Portland Thorns.

The Reign had a consistent partnership between Alana Cook and Sam Hiatt in the central defense in 2022, so it will be interesting to see how Sonnett is deployed. No matter, the potential revenge factor in this one is sky high.

April 15: Kansas City Current at Chicago Red Stars

There’s nothing like facing your former captain at home. Vanessa DiBernardo was a Chicago Red Star for eight years, and most recently their captain, before leaving for the Current in her first year of free agency. She was joined by former Chicago teammate Morgan Gautrat, who had played for the Red Stars for five years.

Both midfielders played in multiple NWSL finals with Chicago but decided to sign with a stacked Kansas City roster still in search of their first piece of hardware. The Red Stars team they left behind is now rebuilding around star striker Mallory Swanson after a tumultuous few years behind the scenes. Chicago will want to prove themselves against one of the deepest teams in the league and show what life looks like after the departure of a number of their veterans.

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Kansas City used the pick they acquired in the Lynn Williams trade to select Michelle Cooper at No. 2. (Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)

April 30: Gotham FC at Kansas City Current

Lynn Williams never registered regular-season minutes for the Current, but this matchup has the potential for revenge nonetheless. Kansas City traded Williams to Gotham FC right as she made her return to the field with the USWNT, after a serious hamstring issue kept her sidelined in 2022.

Relinquishing Williams likely freed up salary cap space for the Current’s stacked midfield and also for rookie Michelle Cooper, whose prowess at Duke made her a clear target for Kansas City with the No. 2 pick in the draft. Cooper is untested at the professional level, meaning this particular game could become a referendum on veteran experience over rookie ceiling.

Gotham will likely be in revenge mode as a team, looking to improve upon their league-worst finish in 2022 and showcase their own offseason moves. If Kansas City is the standard, Gotham will want to rise to meet it.

May 27: North Carolina Courage at Racing Louisville

The offseason’s other surprising trade also involved North Carolina, with the Courage sending Carson Pickett and longtime captain Abby Erceg to Louisville in exchange for rising USWNT outside back Emily Fox. In soccer terms, the trade made some sense for both teams, but the unceremonious end to Erceg’s time at the club where she won multiple championships wasn’t lost on the center back.

Both teams will be eager to show off how they’ve honed their roster in the offseason, with North Carolina attempting to rise back to the upper echelon of the NWSL and Racing Louisville pushing for their first-ever playoff spot. The addition of Erceg and Pickett radically changes the outlook of Louisville’s defense, and they’ll have extra motivation to keep the Courage off the scoresheet. At the other end of the field, Fox is working her way into an assured U.S. roster spot for the 2023 World Cup and will want to excel with the same freedom on the pitch that she had in Louisville.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.

With the release of Week 1 rosters, the NWSL offseason is almost behind us. The league’s 10th regular season kicks off with a doubleheader on Saturday and many teams looking different than when the 2022 season ended thanks to roster movement through trades, the draft and the NWSL’s first free-agency period.

The race for the Shield and the six playoff spots was tighter than ever in 2022. As the 2023 season begins, let’s evaluate where every team stands in the preseason power rankings now that rosters are nearly settled.

1. OL Reign

2022 regular-season finish: 1st

The Reign didn’t have to do much in the offseason after winning the NWSL Shield in 2022 and returning one of the most balanced rosters in the league. The midfield of Rose Lavelle, Jess Fishlock and Quinn remains one of the most formidable in the NWSL. The team also added more defensive depth with the acquisition of Emily Sonnett and attacking firepower with the trade for second-year forward Elyse Bennett.

The Reign’s biggest question mark comes during the World Cup period, when they lose multiple players to their national teams. But longtime manager Laura Harvey has proven to have a remarkably steady hand during a regular-season campaign.

2. San Diego Wave

2022 regular-season finish: 3rd

The Wave are poised for another excellent year after exceeding all expectations in their inaugural season. They balanced their midfield with the free-agency acquisition of Danny Colaprico, and they return a number of top internationals that will make them difficult to break down throughout the regular season.

San Diego will deal with World Cup absences, but the team’s depth has also improved, giving them the opportunity to stay in the Shield race until World Cup performers return.

3. Kansas City Current

2022 regular-season finish: 5th

The Current had arguably the most ambitious offseason in the NWSL, acquiring more midfield assets and a few defensive reinforcements. If new signee Debinha is ready and available for much of the season before the World Cup, Kansas City could be at the forefront of the Shield race by July.

They will, however, have to contend with slight roster imbalance. Sweden international Hanna Glas will shore up the defense, but the team targeted the backline less than other areas in the offseason. The Current’s formation might help them compensate for getting their strongest signings on the pitch together, but it will be a delicate balance for head coach Matt Potter.

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Sophia Smith returns to Portland in 2023 after a breakout year for club and country. (Craig Mitchelldyer/USA TODAY Sports)

4. Portland Thorns

2022 regular-season finish: 2nd

The Thorns rival the Reign for steadiness in their roster construction with top performers at every position, led by 2022 NWSL MVP and Final MVP Sophia Smith. While the Thorns will lose a number of key contributors during the World Cup, their depth will be formidable, just as it was in 2019.

The only question lingering for the Thorns is the new coaching staff. After the departures of Mark Parsons and one-year manager Rhian Wilkinson, former assistant Mike Norris now leads the club. Even if he is a revelation in his first year, the inconsistency at the top might slow down the reigning champions.

5. Houston Dash

2022 regular-season finish: 4th

The Dash had a slightly less flashy offseason than their 2022 quarterfinal opponent, Kansas City, but they go into 2023 as solid as ever. New manager Sam Laity brought in record-breaking rookie scorer Diana Ordoñez from North Carolina to pair with rising England forward Ebony Salmon on the frontline, and the perennially underrated Katie Lind (neé Naughton) will continue to anchor Houston’s defense.

6. Orlando Pride

2022 regular-season finish: 10th

The Pride made a number of savvy business moves in the offseason and, as a result, could significantly improve upon their 10th-place finish in 2022. The team is going young, with No. 3 draft pick Emily Madril likely starting at center back and other rookies getting serious time in the attack during preseason. Under new permanent head coach Seb Hines, the Pride appear to be forging a new identity on the field, and they could surprise more than one opponent this year.

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No. 1 draft pick Alyssa Thompson scored in her Angel City preseason debut this month. (Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports)

7. Angel City FC

2022 regular-season finish: 8th

Angel City could be one of the biggest boom-or-bust projects in the NWSL. They still appear to be without star forwards Christen Press and Sydney Leroux, and their preseason friendly against Club América showed a lack of depth at outside back and in the defensive midfield. On the other hand, No. 1 draft pick Alyssa Thompson should be electric, center-back Sarah Gorden returns from an ACL tear, and other reinforcements during the season could create just the right mix in Los Angeles.

8. Chicago Red Stars

2022 regular-season finish: 6th

The player departures from Chicago at the beginning of the offseason were jarring, as the team lost the core of its midfield to free agency. To compensate, the Red Stars drafted well, picked up quality talent on the waiver wire and made a key addition with the signing of Brazil midfielder Julia Bianchi. Tierna Davidson and Casey Krueger should return to bolster the starting defense, and breakout star Mallory Swanson is good enough to push the team up the standings on her own.

9. Racing Louisville

2022 regular-season finish: 9th

Don’t be surprised if Racing Louisville is in the playoff hunt for the first time in team history in 2023. The additions of Carson Pickett and Abby Erceg immediately upgraded the defense, and former Tigres forward Uchenna Kenu has the ability to shine in the NWSL. New players join an already balanced midfield, and Racing will be losing fewer players to the World Cup than some other clubs.

10. Gotham FC

2022 regular-season finish: 12th

There’s no doubt that Gotham will be better in 2023 than they were in 2022, but to what extent depends on their ability to find enough cohesion to overtake the teams in front of them. Lynn Williams will be the key to new manager Juan Carlos Amorós’ style of play, and the additions of Yazmeen Ryan and rookie Jenna Nighswonger should greatly improve the team’s midfield. The Gotham of 2022 looked better than their record on paper showed, so progress may just be a matter of gelling on the field.

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Trinity Rodman scored four goals for the Spirit last season after winning 2021 Rookie of the Year. (Aaron Doster/USA TODAY Sports)

11. Washington Spirit

2022 regular-season finish: 11th

Washington’s attack is still one of the most talented in the NWSL, with Ashley Hatch and Trinity Rodman backed by key playmaker Ashley Sanchez. Those mainstays struggled in 2022 as managerial dysfunction and a punishing schedule set the Spirit adrift. New head coach Mark Parson made some bold moves in the offseason, but his approach to the draft and Washington’s defense makes it seem like the team is preparing to contend in 2024 rather than immediately.

12. North Carolina Courage

2022 regular-season finish: 7th

Never count out the Courage, but based on their offseason alone, they have a lot of work to do to contend for championships again. The loss of Debinha will loom large over the early part of the season, while new pick-up Emily Fox will need to do a lot of heavy lifting on defense to make up for the departures of Abby Erceg and Carson Pickett. North Carolina seemed to go against common wisdom with a hyper-specific draft approach, and now the pressure lies with head coach Sean Nahas to forge a new team.

Claire Watkins is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @ScoutRipley.