The LPGA is hitting the green in teams on Wednesday night, as some of the top golfers on Tour link up to represent their countries at the 2025 International Crown in South Korea.
This fifth edition of the match-play tournament will see seven teams from the USA, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Sweden, and China, as well as a mixed World Team taking on the reigning champion squad out of Thailand this week.
Comprised of the four top-ranked LPGA players from each nation, countries earn a team spot in the biennial International Crown based on the combined rankings of their best quartet of golfers — with those overall aggregates also determining tournament seeding.
The US topped all teams to snag this year's No. 1 seed, though the squad suffered a significant availability blow earlier this month when world No. 2 Nelly Korda withdrew from the 2025 International Crown due to injury.
No. 28 Yealimi Noh will compete in Korda's place, with the 24-year-old joining No. 10 Angel Yin, No. 16 Lauren Coughlin, and No. 33 Lilia Vu on Team USA.
Led by another 24-year-old, LPGA Tour debutant No. 6 Miyu Yamashita, No. 2 seed Japan appears to be the team to beat, with the World Team's fourth-ranked Lydia Ko (New Zeland) and fifth-ranked Charley Hull (England) upping the stakes for the No. 7 seed squad.
How to watch the 2025 International Crown
The four-day 2025 International Crown will tee off at 10 PM ET on Wednesday night, with live coverage of each day of competition airing on the Golf Channel.
Flag football has gone global, as the emerging sport takes center stage this week at The World Games 2025 in Chengdu, China.
Eight top national flag football teams will kick off their tournament campaigns beginning on Wednesday night, all aiming for Sunday's championship final.
Reigning champions Mexico will look to defend their 2022 title against the 2024 IFAF World Championships-winning USA as well as 2024 bronze medalists Japan.
Meanwhile, squads from Austria, China, Canada, Great Britain, and Italy will look to upend the three tournament titans.
Fueled primarily by women's sports athletes, the sport is on the upswing, rising from its debut at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, Alabama, to secure a spot at the 2028 LA Olympics amid growing media exposure as well as backing by the NFL and the NCAA.
"[The sport] started rolling faster after World Games [2022]," Mexico captain and quarterback Diana Flores said at an IFAF press conference this week. "It was a very important moment for the flag football community… the first time flag football was showcased on a platform as big as the World Games, a multi-sport competition where the most elite athletes go and represent their countries."
"It took a quick spiral from the World Games Birmingham to the media exposure we got to the support our organization has given us," echoed USA star quarterback Vanita Krouch. "To be here paving the way, being these trailblazers and pioneers, it's a huge honor."
How to watch flag football at The World Games 2025
The USA and Canada will kick off The World Games 2025 flag football preliminaries at 9 PM ET on Wednesday.
Knockout rounds begin when the quarterfinals take the field 8:30 PM ET on Friday, with Saturday's 11:30 PM ET bronze-medal game and Sunday's 12:50 AM ET final determining this year's podium.
The tournament will stream live on The World Games website.
The USWNT held fast to the world No. 1 spot in Thursday’s updated FIFA rankings, dropping 18 points since their 2024 Olympic gold medal-winning run but still sitting 49 points ahead of No. 2 Spain.
Also maintaining their elite rankings were No. 3 Germany and No. 4 England, who each trail their predecessor by a mere six points.
Japan earned the Top 10's biggest boost, fueled by a 2025 SheBelieves Cup championship run that included a rare defeat of the US. As a result, the Nadeshiko leapt from No. 8 to No. 5, overtaking No. 6 Sweden, No. 7 Canada, and No. 8 Brazil in the process.
Japan's jump made them the only team in FIFA's Top 75 to rise more than two spots.
US Soccer officially intends to bid on 2031 World Cup
While the world No. 1 USWNT doesn't have any major tournaments to build toward this year, US Soccer is cementing future plans to bring the sport's biggest competition back to the US.
The national federation formally confirmed its intent to submit a bid to host the 2031 World Cup on Wednesday evening, bolstered by FIFA’s motion earlier that day which dictates that the 2031 tournament must be played either in North America or Africa.
"We are excited by the opportunity to welcome teams and fans, inspire the next generation, and grow the game regionally and globally," US Soccer announced on social media.
Though a formal bid submission is still to come, the US is already a frontrunner for hosting the competition. FIFA will decide on the 2031 World Cup host nation at the governing body's 76th Congress in 2026.
FIFA's other main decision-making group, the FIFA Council, could soon see incumbent US Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone join its 37-member ranks, as the former USWNT star is currently running unopposed for the North American seat previously held by ex-Mexico Football Federation president Yon de Luisa.
The US hasn’t held a FIFA Council seat since ex-USSF president Sunil Gulati’s position expired in 2021.
Cone’s likely March 15th election — plus the USWNT’s No. 1 ranking and planned 2031 World Cup hosting bid — gives US Soccer a valuable foothold in the global game.
The USWNT suffered their first loss under manager Emma Hayes on Wednesday, falling 2-1 to No. 8 Japan and ceding the SheBelieves Cup title for the first time since 2019.
Only needing a draw to lift the trophy thanks to a goal differential, Japan's Yūka Momiki opened scoring almost immediately. Momiki capitalized on a scramble in the USWNT penalty area to give the Nadeshiko a 1-0 lead in the game's second minute.
With that goal, Japan became the only team to ever score in the first two minutes of a match against the USWNT twice, after first doing so at the 2024 SheBelieves Cup.
The 14th minute saw the USWNT draw level behind attacker Ally Sentnor’s second tournament goal, before Japan defender Tōko Koga slotted in game-winner shortly after subbing into the second half.
After leading Japan to their first-ever SheBelieves Cup title, Utah Royals forward Mina Tanaka's four goals earned her the tournament's Best Player award.
In her post-game remarks, Hayes called the tournament winners "without question one of the best teams in the world, with players that are extremely well played-in together."
Hayes's strategy remains unshaken by first USWNT loss
While the US walked away defeated, Hayes remains adamant that prioritizing player pool evaluation and showcasing less experienced players over winning at all costs will pay off in the long run.
"You’re comparing Hasegawa to a 17-year-old for us," Hayes told broadcaster TBS after the match, referencing 28-year-old world-renowned Japan and Manchester City defensive midfielder Yui Hasegawa. "Let’s have some perspective. I think it’s important to be calm in this moment."
"It's okay to be disappointed — I told the players that," she added. "It’s really important to remember moments like this and the learnings that we take from it… [You] learn the most important things when you play a top-class opponent. I’d rather do that now than much later."
The USWNT is now 15-1-2 under Hayes, who officially took the reins in May 2024. Unlike her early rosters, who immediately — and successfully — contended for Olympic gold, Hayes is now executing on her public commitment to develop young players.
Any loss stings for the world’s No. 1 team, but Hayes's strategy should reap longterm gains. To her point, it's better to test tomorrow's players now, rather than bank on them instantaneously leveling up on the 2027 World Cup pitch.
The world No. 1 USWNT is gearing up for the year’s toughest matchup to date, taking on No. 8 Japan in in pursuit of their eighth SheBelieves Cup title in Wednesday’s tournament final.
The US needs a win to lift the trophy, while a surging Japan can secure their first-ever SheBelieves Cup with a draw thanks to a steep goal differential advantage.
"It’s just the perfect game, it’s just what you want," USWNT head coach Emma Hayes said after Sunday’s win over Australia. "Japan, you can see on current form, scoring lots of goals, the quality of their play is so, so high."
Offense-heavy Japan to meet fresh-faced USWNT
Japan’s roster is led by Utah Royals forward and 2025 SheBelieves Golden Boot leader Mina Tanaka, who’s registered four goals and three assists over the Nadeshiko's first two tournament games — matches in which Japan dominantly outscored their opponents 8-1.
As for the USWNT, fans should expect more heavy roster rotation, following the history Hayes made against the Matildas by swapping out the team's entire starting lineup from their first-match victory over Colombia.
While the US is undoubtedly shooting for hardware, Hayes hasn’t lost sight of her plan to give less experienced players opportunities to develop against elite teams in a year without a major international tournament.
"This is the perfect game for where we are at, to learn a lot about ourselves," she told reporters ahead of Wednesday’s clash.
"I am certain we will have to suffer, because the way they dominate the ball, the way they progress up the pitch, with their rotations, with their dynamic advantages. I’m looking forward to watching."
The new-look national team has managed a perfect record so far this year, but contending with a highly clinical Japan side will take the competition to new heights — and make Wednesday's tournament title truly anyone’s to grab.
How to watch USWNT vs. Japan at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup final
The USWNT will kick off against Japan from San Diego's Snapdragon Stadium at 10:30 PM ET on Wednesday, with live coverage on TBS, Max, and Peacock.
The USWNT remains unbeaten in 2025 after holding off Australia 2-1 to secure their second SheBelieves Cup win on Sunday.
Veteran forward Lynn Biyendolo (née Williams) opened scoring less than one minute into the match, giving the relatively inexperienced US starting roster an early edge. Sealing the win was second-half substitute Michelle Cooper, who notched her first-ever international goal in just her second USWNT cap.
However, the US weathered continuous pressure from the Matildas, with late sub Michelle Heyman exploiting a defensive hole in transition to head in an 80th-minute goal — Australia's only shot on target all match.
"We played a high quality team, a very experienced team, so for our players to produce a result like that is a really healthy indicator of our program and the talent pool that we have available to us," USWNT head coach Emma Hayes said after the game.
11 fresh USWNT faces tapped for SheBelieves matchup
The US swapped out their entire starting XI from Thursday’s opening win over Colombia in Sunday's match — the first time the team has rotated all 11 players between games since 2000.
As the team’s new-look roster continues to take shape, 19-year-old midfielder Claire Hutton earned her first USWNT cap and start in the victory. Meanwhile, fellow 19-year-old Gisele Thompson, who snagged her first senior team minutes as a late substitute last Thursday, banked her first USWNT start.
Hutton is now the 15th player to make her USWNT debut since Hayes was handed the squad's reins in May 2024, putting the manager's commitment to developing roster depth on full display. To that end, Sunday's initial lineup also boasted six starters with less than five senior team caps.
How to watch USWNT vs. Japan in the 2025 SheBelieves Cup final
The 10th edition of the SheBelieves Cup will wrap up on Wednesday, when the world No. 1 USWNT will take on No. 8 Japan in a winner-take-all final.
With the Nadeshiko's explosive offense giving them a significant advantage over the US in goal differential, the USWNT must defeat Japan to lift their eighth all-time SheBelieves Cup — a draw would grant Japan a first-ever trophy in the annual tournament.
Wednesday's final will kick off at San Diego's Snapdragon Stadium at 10:30 PM ET, with live coverage across TBS, Max, and Peacock.
The USWNT hit the ground running on Thursday, taking down Colombia 2-0 to kick off the 2025 SheBelieves Cup with a bang.
Catarina Macario opened the scoring in the 33rd minute with her first international goal in almost three years, before 21-year-old Ally Sentnor put the game out of reach at the 60-minute mark with her first-ever international tally.
"Everybody is super happy, super proud, and I'm sure everybody back at Chelsea is too," US head coach Emma Hayes said of Macario’s strike, as the forward continues her long return from injury.
USWNT rookies show out
Hayes’s decision to feature less experienced players in the match paid off, with the winning side bolstered by numerous first caps, starts, and a screamer of a goal for the world No. 1 team.
In just her third cap and first start for the senior national team, Sentnor's efforts earned her praise from Hayes, who called the young attacker's performance "tenacious on both sides of the wall."
Also excelling in her first USWNT start was 17-year-old Lily Yohannes, who lofted the ball forward in pursuit of Macario’s opening goal and stood out as the most creative passer within a US midfield that completed over 500 passes.
"She's really switched on and someone who understands the importance of doing everything for the team and for that I really admire her," Hayes said after the match.
Hayes also continued her efforts to mint new USWNT players with a trio of first caps in Thursday's match. While forward Michelle Cooper and defender Gisele Thompson snagged their first USWNT minutes as late substitutes, center-back Tara McKeown grabbed a starting spot, then capitalized on the opportunity by registering an assist to set up Sentnor's jaw-dropping goal.
Hayes has emphasized the need for the USWNT to develop its future, but Thursday’s performance showed that the future might be closer than originally expected — especially considering the big names missing from this window’s USWNT roster.
Sonnett celebrates 100th USWNT cap
Alongside all the noteworthy firsts, the USWNT also had the chance to celebrate its veteran leadership on Thursday.
Prior to the match, the team honored Emily Sonnett for her 100th cap before the versatile defender captained the squad as a starting center-back on the night.
Notably, Sonnett's USWNT tenure includes competing in all 10 iterations of the SheBelieves Cup — more than any other player.
USWNT to face Australia in second SheBelieves match
Now sitting in second in the SheBelieves Cup standings, the USWNT trails only Japan due to goal differential after the Nadeshiko toppled Australia 4-0 on Thursday afternoon.
The struggling Matildas, who failed to register a single shot on goal against Japan, must now face the seven-time SheBelieves champion USWNT in Arizona on Sunday — a team Australia has only defeated once in the pair's 35 all-time meetings.
The last time the teams met, the US defeated the Matildas 2-1 in the final group stage match of the 2024 Olympics to advance to the quarterfinals.
This time out, expect heavy roster rotation from Hayes's squad as players look to stay healthy for their club seasons, with some still ramping up to full fitness before the 2025 NWSL season.
How to watch the USWNT vs. Australia in the SheBelieves Cup
The USWNT kicks off against Australia in the 2025 SheBelieves Cup at 5 PM ET on Sunday, with live coverage on TBS, Max, and Peacock.
The 2025 SheBelieves Cup kicks off on Thursday, when head coach Emma Hayes’s refreshed USWNT roster will take on No. 21 Colombia at Houston’s Shell Energy Stadium.
The match is the first of three international friendlies that the world No. 1 USWNT will play during the annual tournament's 10th edition, with games against No. 15 Australia and No. 8 Japan set for Sunday and Wednesday, respectively.
SheBelieves to test young USWNT players
With a number of big-name veterans missing from the February roster and the road to the 2027 World Cup just beginning, Hayes is using the 2025 SheBelieves Cup to try out less experienced USWNT players against some of the world’s best contenders.
"The reality is we have top ability, that's clear, but we want to develop a combination of things: their personal resilience, which we do, and their learning mindset," Hayes told reporters earlier this week.
"We give them the opportunity, and that opportunity will either tell us that they're ready now, or they're ready later."
One guaranteed area of focus throughout the tournament will be goalkeeping, as the USWNT seeks a replacement for previous mainstay Alyssa Naeher, who hung up her boots at the end of 2024.
With Naeher and her 115 career appearances behind them, Hayes confirmed that both Jane Campbell and Mandy McGlynn are expected to earn starts during this window.
Campbell, the net-minder for the NWSL's Houston Dash, has eight caps with the USWNT, while Utah Royals keeper McGlynn earned her first and only appearance in the team's 3-0 win over Argentina last October.
"[Campbell and McGlynn] have to demonstrate they can make the important decisions under pressure — both sides of the ball," Hayes noted.
With Hayes firmly past the "must win" mode with which she began her USWNT tenure, her next challenge is to properly test this new next-gen roster’s resilience, as the slow and steady ramp-up to the Brazil-hosted 2027 World Cup outweighs immediate results.
How to watch the USWNT vs. Colombia in the SheBelieves Cup
The USWNT will kick off against Colombia at 8 PM ET on Thursday, with live coverage across TBS, Max, and Peacock.
The 2025 SheBelieves Cup field is officially set, as the world No. 1 USWNT's path to a sixth-straight victory in the annual tournament will feature matchups with 2024 Olympians No. 7 Japan, No. 15 Australia, and No. 21 Colombia.
After the Paris Olympic Games forced an abbreviated four-match, two-day format in 2024, this 10th edition will return to the tournament's original setup of three double-headers in February. Round-robin play will again determine the Cup champion via accumulated points, with goal differential serving as tiebreaker.
The 2025 tournament will kick off at Houston's Shell Energy Stadium on February 20th. The quartet will then battle at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on the 23rd before wrapping up the Cup at San Diego's Snapdragon Stadium on the 26th.
A history of USWNT SheBelieves dominance
While Australia and Colombia will make their SheBelieves Cup debuts, the 2025 competition will be Japan's third straight trip and fifth overall appearance in the US-hosted tournament.
Other than France's 2017 victory and England's 2019 title, the USWNT has won all other iterations for a total of seven trophies.
That streak, plus their astounding 71-2-15 combined all-time record against the three visitors — marred only by single 1-0 losses to Japan in 2012 and Australia in 2018 — make the US heavily favored to win an eighth SheBelieves Cup.
World-class contenders square off for SheBelieves
That said, it won't be easy, as every 2025 contender poses a challenge. Each has already played the USA this year, starting when Colombia fell 3-0 to the States in their Concacaf W Gold Cup quarterfinal in March.
Las Cafeteras didn't have to face the eventual gold medalists during the 2024 Olympics, unlike Australia and Japan. The USWNT knocked the Matildas out of the Paris tournament with a 2-1 win in group play, then narrowly escaped a tough Nadeshiko side in a 1-0 overtime quarterfinal thriller.
All three visiting teams will be gunning for a redemption win over the US come February. That high-stakes competition is something US head coach Emma Hayes welcomes.
"This will be my first SheBelieves Cup, but I’ve followed the tournament, and it always produces close games between top teams," the US boss said in Wednesday’s announcement.
"All four of these teams were in the last World Cup and Olympics, and all are in the building process to qualify for the next World Cup, so to get three games against talented teams and players in a format that replicates group play at a world championship is valuable in our process. All the games will be great tests for the teams and fun for all the fans."
The full 2025 SheBelieves Cup schedule for the USWNT
- Thursday, February 20th (Shell Energy Stadium, Houston, Texas)
- Japan vs. Australia, 5 PM ET
- USWNT vs. Colombia, 8 PM ET
- Sunday, February 23rd (State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona)
- Colombia vs. Japan, 2 PM ET
- USWNT vs. Australia, 5 PM ET
- Wednesday, February 26th (Snapdragon Stadium, San Diego, California)
- Australia vs. Colombia, 7:30 PM ET
- USWNT vs. Japan, 10:30 PM ET
How to watch the USWNT at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup
Tickets for all 2025 SheBelieves Cup dates and locations are currently available online.
For those unable to make the trip, all USWNT matches will air live on TBS, with the three non-US games will be available to stream on Max.
Team USA's U-20 World Cup run has come to an end after Wednesday's 1-0 semifinal loss to tournament favorites North Korea (DPRK).
The result marks the U-20 USWNT's best showing since their 2016's fourth-place finish, when they similarly fell to DPRK in the semis before the North Korean side advanced to win the Cup.
DPRK outshot the US 18-7 last night, but 17-year-old Choe Il-Son was the lone player to find the back of the net, securing the eventual game-winner in the 22nd minute. With five goals on the tournament so far, Choe is now in a three-way tie atop the competition's Golden Boot race.
Japan tops the Netherlands in second semifinal
While the US gave DPRK arguably their toughest match of the World Cup, Japan overwhelmed the Dutch with their attacking prowess last night, outshooting the Netherlands' 24-1 to notch the 2-0 win.
Notably, both goals by "the Young Nadeshiko" were scored by North Carolina Courage midfielder Manaka Matsukubo, the only NWSL player on Japan's roster.
Where to watch the U-20 World Cup final and third-place match
On Saturday, the US will battle the Netherlands for third-place hardware, with live coverage on Fox Soccer Plus.
Then on Sunday, the World Cup championship match will mirror March's U-20 Asian Cup final, where DPRK forced six-time champs Japan to relinquish the title for the first time since 2013. The final will air live on FS2.
Should DPRK emerge victorious on Sunday, they'll join the US and Germany as the only nations with three U-20 World Championships.