Another USWNT legend is hanging up her boots, as 2019 World Cup champion and 2024 Olympic gold medalist Crystal Dunn announced her retirement from professional soccer on Thursday.
"This decision has not come easily, but I am at peace and deeply fulfilled with all that I have accomplished," Dunn wrote in her Instagram retirement post. "I've achieved nearly everything I dreamed of in this sport and gave all I had to give. I'm ready to embrace the life that awaits me on the other side."
"I look forward to spending more time with my family and being a more present mom," she continued. "This was not a decision made lightly, but was one made with immense gratitude for everything I've experienced as a professional soccer player."
The 33-year-old won her two major trophies in her 160 caps with the USWNT as an outside back, though the breadth of her talents as a forward and midfielder saw Dunn pick up both the 2015 NWSL MVP and Golden Boot awards with her first pro club, the Washington Spirit.
Across her tenures with the North Carolina Courage and the Portland Thorns, Dunn also amassed three league championships (2018, 2019, 2022), and three NWSL Shields (2018, 2019, 2021).
Most recently competing in the NWSL for Gotham FC before capping her career with top-flight French club PSG, Dunn also retires as one of the USWNT's most prominent Black voices, with US Soccer calling her "a role model to many young players of color across the country who aspired to reach the highest levels of the game" in the federation's Thursday tribute.
"I've grown through challenges, celebrated incredible triumphs, and cherished every part of the journey," added Dunn.
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."
USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps is coming home, with 2026 NWSL expansion team Denver Summit FC announcing the signing of the star midfielder to a multi-year deal on Monday.
Heaps plans to join the squad in June, kicking off the second half of the NWSL season after finishing up her current campaign with French side OL Lyonnes.
"Lindsey has won at every level of the game," Denver head coach Nick Cushing said in the club's Monday morning statement. "Her leadership, talent, and professionalism will continue to raise the standard for Summit FC when she arrives this summer."
Homegrown in Colorado, Heaps has been leading the Lyonnes midfield since 2022, when the former PSG standout moved back to Europe after winning two NWSL Shields and one championship in her six seasons with the Portland Thorns.
She returns to the US after picking up one UEFA Champions League and three Division 1 Féminine titles with the French titans.
The 31-year-old has also been a consistent presence for the USWNT, winning the 2019 World Cup and the 2024 Olympic gold medal, among other trophies, across her 170 senior national team appearances.
"I'm incredibly excited to come home to Colorado and join Denver Summit FC," Heaps said. "This club represents something special, not just for the league, but for this community and for the next generation of players growing up here."
As the NWSL preseason rapidly approaches, the league's two incoming expansion teams announced key additions to their rosters over the last week as they pad out their inaugural squads.
On Tuesday, Denver Summit FC officially announced the signing of USYNT and CF Pachuca Femenil defender Ayo Oke for a reported $450,000 transfer fee — the most ever paid for an incoming US national.
The 22 year-old Cal and UCLA alum has been a mainstay in the USWNT youth pipeline since 2018, and became a Liga MX champion in her first-ever professional season last year.
"I'm excited to join Denver Summit FC and be part of building something new," said Oke in the club's announcement. "I'm ready to compete, grow, and help set the standard from day one."
Meanwhile on the East Coast, Boston Legacy FC has been more than keeping pace, bringing on Brazil national team defender Andressa "Kaká" Ferreira from top Brazilian side São Paulo, Colombian center back Jorelyn Carabalí from the WSL's Brighton & Hove Albion, Mexico international and former Club América left back Nicki Hernández, and Canada winger and NWSL free agent Bianca St-Georges — signing the quartet over the last six days.
With the NWSL expansion draft a thing of the past, Denver and Boston have been proactive in their acquisitions from the jump.
Denver has stocked up on NWSL veterans like Carson Pickett, Kaleigh Kurtz, Jordan Baggett, and first-ever signing Ally Watt — all of whom have earned at least one league championship — while Boston added reigning NWSL champ Ella Stevens while also targeting rising international stars like Brazil's Amanda Gutierres and Laís Araújo.
With the 2026 NWSL campaign looming, clubs only have a few weeks left to finalize their preseason rosters — with more than a few big-name free agents still in the mix.
Gotham FC's Emily Sonnett would like everyone to know that her longtime teammate and close friend Rose Lavelle is a very good defender.
"Cannot forget that," she told Just Women's Sports at Thursday's NWSL Championship Media Day. "Gotta write about that."
A World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist with the US women's national team, the respect that Lavelle almost instantly garners from the opposition creates significant space for her Gotham teammates. And since joining the team in 2024, she's taken well to the club's high-pressing, quick-transition style.
"She takes up a lot of attention," said Sonnett. "The way that she leads silently on the field, like a ghost — you don't know when she's going to get [the ball] and do something brave, and then, bam, she's there."
Gotham teammates spotlight Lavelle’s two-way brilliance
Lavelle has been a constant during Gotham’s unlikely championship run, both a locker room leader and a Fellow Gotham and USWNT star Midge Purce would also like everyone to know about Lavelle's prowess on both sides of the ball.
"It's hard to describe when you play with someone who's that good, it's just special," she said. "She can do special things on and off the ball — something she doesn't get a ton of credit for."
She's such a force, in fact, that Purce wasn't aware of the one achievement that's eluded Lavelle throughout her illustrious career — winning an NWSL title.
"Rosie, I didn't realize!" Purce exclaimed upon learning she's never won a league championship — despite being on the Gotham squad that took down Lavelle's Seattle (née OL) Reign in the 2023 NWSL Final. "She deserves the world."
From Breakers to Gotham: Rose Lavelle's winding NWSL journey
Lavelle needs little introduction to a soccer audience. A perennial winner on the international stage and a midfield maestro with the ball at her feet, the 30-year-old is a fixture of the global women's game. But her NWSL career has been a bit more nuanced.
A Wisconsin standout with serious USWNT interest right out of college, Lavelle signed her first professional contract with the now-defunct Boston Breakers in 2018, entering a league almost unrecognizable to today's thriving NWSL ecosystem.
Boston folded the following year, sending Lavelle to Washington during a dark competitive period for the Spirit. She was later somewhat unceremoniously traded to Seattle in 2021, while playing overseas with the WSL's Manchester City. That Reign team went on to fall to none other than Gotham FC in the 2023 NWSL Championship — with Lavelle scoring Seattle's only goal.
In 2024, Lavelle got to make her own choices. She jumped ship, signing with the NY/NJ club that so silenced Seattle the previous season as part of a flashy free agency class.
How Lavelle battled injury and reclaimed her NWSL influence
Regardless of tonight's outcome, Lavelle's greatest triumph this season might simply be taking the pitch for a full 90 minutes. The 30-year-old has struggled with injuries throughout her professional career, but bouncing back from offseason ankle surgery was especially taxing. Her prolonged recovery impacted her ability to make a difference on the field, as she watched Gotham's form waver early in 2025.
"It was a pretty big surgery," Lavelle said, acknowledging that she's had to adjust her role within the team to maintain a presence off the pitch.
So she found ways to stay involved. She shared opinions in team meetings, staying connected with teammates in order to forge a seamless transition once she could handle more significant playing time.
"She supported me for the first half of the season, when she wasn't even on the field," said rookie midfielder Sarah Schupansky. "And she didn't only support me, she supported the whole team."
Lavelle admitted that even now she doesn't feel 100%. But she also has a veteran's perspective on the bigger picture. "I still have to give myself the grace of acknowledging that it's going to be an up and down journey," she said.
"Being able to play with Rose, obviously, with the national team, has been incredible," Sonnett remarked. "But seeing the way that she's been able to train in NWSL, seeing that grit — I know she's battled through injury. [But] being able to see her train, I learn a lot from her."
Chasing the one women's soccer trophy that’s eluded her
Having won all there is to win at the international level, Lavelle's legacy doesn't ride on a single title. But her teammates would love to help check off that particular box on behalf of their locker room leader.
"I adore playing with her, and I adore her off the field," said Purce. "I definitely want to see her lift that trophy — she's going to be just fantastic."
As for Lavelle herself, the game is the fun part. And raising a trophy at the end of 90 minutes is just a benefit of the greater goal.
"This is what you play for," said Lavelle.
"This season is so long and hard. But then you get to these moments and this is the fun part, win or go home. We're all just fighting for each other, amped up, playing every single day."
Just Women’s Sports (JWS), the leading multimedia platform dedicated exclusively to women's sports, today announced the continuation of its partnership with the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) for the fourth consecutive year as an official digital media partner.
Just Women’s Sports has secured the rights to distribute official NWSL game highlights for the ongoing season as the league returns from its summer break and the playoff push begins.
From its launch, JWS has been a go-to platform for NWSL fans. Last year, the platform drove 172 million social impressions across its NWSL content, while also hosting a live show at the NWSL Championship as well as the official NWSL Championship Weekend party.
Just Women’s Sports’ studio show Sports Are Fun! is hosted by NWSL alum and two-time NWSL champion Kelley O’Hara, with guests including Gotham FC star Midge Purce and recent NWSL vets Merritt Mathias and Darien Jenkins.
"Throughout the NWSL’s partnership with Just Women’s Sports, our joint efforts in amplifying and elevating female athletes while inspiring fans have been a major driver in the growth of women’s sports," said NWSL director of media partnerships Servi Barrientos. "The sky is the limit as we continue to build on this momentum to reach fans in new ways and elevate our league."
"Covering the NWSL is core to our mission at Just Women’s Sports," said JWS founder and CEO Haley Rosen.
"The league’s growth has been incredible, and there’s still so much more to go. Being able to share these highlights with our next-gen audience is key to serving our fans and growing this league."
Legendary USWNT attacker Tobin Heath officially announced her retirement from soccer on Thursday, nearly three years after playing her final professional match.
"Over New Year's, I actually came to the full acceptance that I wasn't going to be playing," the 37-year-old explained on her podcast, The RE-CAP Show.
In her 13 years with the senior national team, Heath — widely regarded as one of the most technical players in US history — earned two World Cup titles (2015, 2019) and three Olympic medals (gold in 2008 and 2012, and bronze in 2021).
Across her 181 USWNT caps, the 2016 US Soccer Athlete of the Year logged 36 goals and 42 assists, making her final appearance for the States on October 26th, 2021.
At the club level, Heath spent seven seasons with the Portland Thorns, helping the team to NWSL Championships in 2013 and 2017, as well as the 2016 NWSL Shield.
While her career also included European stints with the Première Ligue's PSG as well as WSL sides Manchester United and Arsenal, Heath ended her pro run with the 2022 NWSL Shield-winning Seattle Reign, playing what would be her final soccer match on August 14th of that year.
Injury ends Heath's soccer career
The end of Heath's career is not what the creative, nutmegging winger anticipated.
"I thought I was literally going to be peeled off the field," Heath told The Athletic on Wednesday.
However, a 2022 serious left knee injury left Heath unable to play soccer — even at a casual level — ultimately forcing her retirement.
"I tried f---ing everything to get back, I spent tens of thousands of dollars and [had] two surgeries, one crazy surgery," Heath said on her podcast. "And the whole time I believed I was going to get back."
"Football is a 360-degree sport, and I can't do it," she told The Athletic. "So that part is the hardest part. The actual playing of soccer is gone."
Heath still working to lift up women's soccer in retirement
Despite coming to terms with the end of her on-pitch career, Heath isn't leaving the world of soccer anytime soon, helping lead the newly launched World Sevens Football and joining FIFA's technical study group for the men's Club World Cup.
Elevating football — particularly the women's game — is a pursuit that began for Heath with the Portland Thorns.
"[Portland] showed what women's sports could be," she explained. "I was dreaming of the world that I wanted to create."
The 2019 World Cup run then solidified that mission, with the USWNT adding a fourth star to their crest while also facing a pressure-cooker of expectations amid political tension and a contentious fight for equal pay.
"You can't feel what we felt...and not believe that you're doing something so f---ing important for the world," said Heath.
"You feel that responsibility — and that's what it is — and you want to keep carrying that responsibility as far forward as you can."
The NWSL announced more details around November 22nd's second annual Skills Challenge on Thursday, including competition rules and eight participating athletes.
Beginning at 6 PM ET the evening before November 23rd's 2024 NWSL Championship match, two teams of league stars will compete in a trio of skills contests. The winning squad will split a $30,000 check from sponsor CarMax — up from $25,000 last year.
Retired NWSL and USWNT icon Sam Mewis will host the event.
Three events await Skills Challenge contenders
The 2024 edition of the Skills Challenge returns two events — Player Shootouts and the Crossbar Challenge — while replacing last year's 2-on-2 TeqBall competition with a new contest called the Gauntlet.
Meant to highlight athletes' agility and dribbling skills, the Gauntlet places a player within a starting circle surrounded by five mini-goals of various sizes. The smaller the goal, the more points it is worth.
The athlete will have 60 seconds to score as many points as possible, but must exit the circle to take a shot. At the same time, the other team's defenders will attempt to thwart scoring attempts, but they cannot enter the circle.
Reminiscent of penalty kicks (PKs), the Shootout's nine rounds will feature one player against the opposing team's goalkeeper. Unlike PKs in a match, goalkeepers have freedom of movement and are not limited to staying on the goal line. Similarly, the attacker can dribble away from the starting spot to shoot from anywhere on the pitch, as long as they do so within eight seconds.
Finally, in the Crossbar Challenge, the two Skills Challenge teams will take turns trying to hit the crossbar from the 18-yard line, with each hit adding one point to the team total.
After reaching five points, a team will double the distance from goal to 36 yards. The first team to hit the crossbar from there, while still alternating shots, wins the event.
Stars gear up to showcase their skills
Though full 2024 Skills Challenge rosters will be revealed in the coming days, the NWSL dropped eight contenders in Thursday's announcement.
The lone veteran from the 2023 competition is Houston forward Michelle Alozie, who will join Skills Challenge rookies Angelina (Orlando), Kate Del Fava (Utah), Savannah DeMelo (Louisville), Jaelin Howell (Seattle), Savy King (Bay), Kailen Sheridan (San Diego), and Morgan Weaver (Portland).
Should Orlando advance from this weekend's NWSL semifinals to November 23rd's NWSL Championship, Angelina will withdraw from the skills competition.
How to watch the 2024 NWSL Skills Challenge
The Friday event at the University of Kansas Health System Training Center is free and open to the public.
Those unable to attend in person can watch a full replay of the event on the afternoon of Sunday, November 24th, when the Skills Challenge will air nationwide on CBS.
Just Women's Sports announced today that women's sports superstars Kelley O’Hara and Lisa Leslie will be recording the season finale of their hit studio show Fast Friends live in Kansas City during NWSL Championship weekend.
Fast Friends is a rebrand of Leslie and O’Hara’s Olympic show, The Gold Standard, which ran throughout the Paris Olympics and concluded with Leslie and O’Hara taking a spontaneous trip to Paris to see the gold medal games in person.
'Fast Friends' live show tickets now available
The show features O’Hara and Leslie giving their takes on the biggest headlines in women's sports, from the WNBA Finals to the NWSL MVP race. Scheduled for Thursday, November 21st, the Fast Friends live show will look back at the year in women's sports before previewing the weekend's NWSL Championship match.
The show will feature surprise guests from the biggest names in soccer as well as special segments sponsored by Ally and EA SPORTS FC.
Tickets run $20 per person, with a limited number available for purchase via Eventbrite starting today. The taped show will be distributed across JWS channels in the lead-up to the Championship game.
'Fast Friends' headlines slate of Championship Weekend events
In addition to attending the live Fast Friends taping, fans can also catch Just Women's Sports at NWSL Fan Fest on the day of the Championship game, where they can show off their gameday fits and snap some photos at JWS' interactive photo-op.
Just Women’s Sports is also sending one lucky fan and their plus one to Kansas City for an unforgettable NWSL Championship weekend. The grand prize includes tickets to the game, seats at the live show, hotel accommodations, flight vouchers, and rideshare credits. Fans can try their luck by entering the giveaway now.
In addition to making a splash on the ground in Kansas City, JWS will make sure NWSL fans everywhere feel included in the fun by posting industry-leading social coverage throughout the weekend's festivities.
Kansas City's pioneering CPKC Stadium has been tapped to host the 2024 NWSL Championship, the league announced Wednesday morning.
The stadium opened earlier this year as the first venue to be built specifically for an NWSL team. So far this season, the unbeaten Current have been selling out the 11,500-seat capacity stadium for every home game.
It will mark the first time that Kansas City has hosted the NWSL Championship, and the Current's first-place perch in the league standings means they could very well feature in the match come November. The Current are one of just two teams to have not lost a game yet this season.
The 2024 Championship will take place on November 23rd — the latest-scheduled NWSL final in league history.
"CPKC Stadium epitomizes the explosive growth and investment we are witnessing in the NWSL, women’s soccer, and women’s sports around the world," NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said in a press release.
"It was a natural choice to stage the league’s marquee event in a venue that exemplifies the profound impact of infrastructure, investment, and community support on the continued development and success of our sport."
Considering the team's track record of selling out home matches, it’s almost guaranteed that this year's Championship game will sell out. Last year’s league final, held at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, set a Championship attendance record with 25,011 fans.
"The NWSL Championship is one of the premier global sporting events in the world," said Current co-founder and owner Chris Long. "We're absolutely thrilled that Kansas City and CPKC Stadium were chosen to host this prestigious event."