The USWNT’s SheBelieves Cup roster dropped on Tuesday, with some familiar faces back in the lineup.

For the first time in two years, Catarina Macario is back with the USWNT after tearing her ACL in 2022. She joins Mallory Swanson, who is back in the lineup for the first time since tearing her patellar tendon a year ago. It comes after she joined the USWNT last camp as a training player.

“We're thrilled to welcome back Mal and Cat and continue to incorporate some less experienced players into the mix,” interim coach Twil Kilgore said.

They’re joined by first-time call-ups in 16-year-old Ajax midfielder Lily Yohannes and 21-year-old Paris Saint-Germain defender Eva Gaetino. Both players started for their respective teams in the most recent UEFA Champions League quarter final matches.

Of the 23-player roster, six play professionally in Europe. Seventeen of the 23 play in the NWSL. It’s a departure from last year’s World Cup roster, in which 22 of the 23 players on the USWNT roster played in the NWSL. 

Yohannes is the youngest player to receive a call-up to the USWNT since Sophia Smith – then 16 – joined the team in April 2017. It also comes days after Netherlands coach Andries Jonker said that she had expressed interest in playing for the Netherlands and that she had begun the process of acquiring Dutch citizenship. 

At the time Hayes, who was coaching Chelsea in the team’s quarter final match against Ajax, said that she wouldn’t try to recruit Yohannes to the USWNT, but called her a “tremendous talent.”

"Her final pass is exceptional," Hayes said of Yohannes. "She's got the ability, especially in tight areas she can get out of pressure really well. But her vision, the quality of her execution is really, really high. Sometimes I don't believe she's 16 years of age because she plays with such maturity, but a wonderful talent."

Also among the team’s forwards is Alex Morgan, who was only called into the Gold Cup camp after Mia Fishel tore her ACL. Midge Purce, Alana Cook, Rose Lavelle and Lynn Williams are all absent from the roster due to injuries. 

USWNT 2024 SheBelieves Cup Roster

Goalkeepers (3): Jane Campbell (Houston Dash), Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars)

Defenders (8): Abby Dahlkemper (San Diego Wave FC), Crystal Dunn (NJ/NY Gotham FC), Tierna Davidson (NY/NJ Gotham FC), Emily Fox (Arsenal FC), Eva Gaetino (Paris Saint-Germain), Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave FC), Casey Krueger (Washington Spirit), Jenna Nighswonger (NY/NJ Gotham FC)

Midfielders (6): Korbin Albert (Paris Saint-Germain), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns FC), Lindsey Horan (Olympique Lyon, FRA), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns FC), Emily Sonnett (NJ/NY Gotham FC), Lily Yohannes (AFC Ajax)

Forwards (6): Catarina Macario (Chelsea FC), Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave FC), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Jaedyn Shaw (San Diego Wave FC), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns FC), Mallory Swanson (Chicago Red Stars)

The U.S. women’s national team (USWNT) will play Mexico in July in a pre-Olympics warm up. 

The team announced the match on Friday. It will take place on July 13 at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. It’ll be the team’s second-to-last match before they leave for the Paris Olympic Games. 

The USWNT learned of its Olympics group stage opponents earlier this week, with Germany, Australia and the winner of Zambia/Morocco joining the Americans in Group B. 

It’s expected to be just the third match in charge for Emma Hayes, who will take over the helm of the USWNT after the conclusion of her season with Chelsea. 

The game is also a rematch following last month’s Gold Cup group stage showdown, which Mexico won 2-0. It was only the team’s second victory in 43 meetings between the two sides. The USWNT rebounded to win the Gold Cup, beating Brazil 1-0 in the final. 

The USWNT is expected to play one other home game after that match, although the exact date, venue and opponent have yet to be announced. 

U.S. Soccer will honor the 1999 World Cup-winning team at the match with a pregame celebration and reunion of the team’s players. This summer marks the 25th anniversary of the USWNT’s World Cup win on home soil, and second of four World Cup titles. 

"This will be a fun and inspirational weekend," U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone, who played on the 1999 Women's World Cup team, said in a statement.

"The fans will get the chance to show their support for the team before they head to France while also celebrating our 1999 Women's World Cup Team. This is a group of women who did so much for the sport and the impact of that team and tournament is still being felt 25 years later, especially as we bid for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup. I can't wait to see my teammates and friends."

The USWNT and Mexico have submitted a joint bid to host the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup, with the host set to be announced on May 17. Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands have submitted a joint bid, and Brazil has submitted a bid as well.

The draw for the Olympic group stage is set, with the USWNT set to play Germany, Australia and the winner of Morocco/Zambia in Group B. 

They’ll begin their Olympics campaign on July 25 in Nice against either Morocco or Zambia. The two African nations will face off in a two-leg playoff in April. It will be the USWNT’s first time playing against either team. 

The USWNT has met Australia 34 times, with the Matildas winning just one of those matchups. Germany sits one spot back of the fourth-ranked USWNT in the FIFA world rankings, and the two teams have met just once in the Olympics, a 2004 semifinal that the USWNT won. Currently, the USWNT holds a 23-5-7 record against the two-time World Cup champions. 

"The bottom line is we're just excited to have a path, to know who we're playing, for the most part," U.S. interim coach Twila Kilgore said. "We'll start working on specific game plans and things like that, but also just to know the logistical path [helps]. There's so much that goes into an Olympics with such a short turnaround and congested games. 

“For our administration to be able to start mapping that out and take bigger steps towards where we're headed is really, really important and exciting."

The USWNT is in search of its first gold medal since the 2012 Olympics in London, having earned bronze in 2021 in Tokyo. They’re also coming off of a disappointing World Cup campaign, with their round of 16 exit at last summer's tournament their worst-ever finish at a World Cup. 

Recently, they fell to No. 4 in FIFA’s rankings – the team's worst ranking ever. 

Despite a difficult group, the USWNT is still looking to make a deep run in the tournament. 

"We're not just looking at the group games," Kilgore said. "The idea is that you prepare to move beyond the group games, and the idea is to select the best group of players that will work the best together to accomplish a variety of different tactical tasks."

The three Olympic groups are as follows:

Emma Hayes may soon be taking over the U.S. women’s national team (USWNT), but on Tuesday she was all about Chelsea. 

Her team is playing Ajax in the UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter finals, and ahead of the teams’ first game Hayes was adamant that she’s not using it as a recruiting opportunity for Lily Yohannes.

Yohannes is a 16-year-old midfielder for Ajax, who was born in Virginia but moved to the Netherlands at 10 years old. She’s a possible USWNT prospect, having spent time in camp with the U-15 and U-16 teams.

But there’s also the possibility that she could at some point obtain Dutch citizenship, and Netherlands manager Andries Jonker has said he is confident that she would like to eventually play for his squad. She’s spent some time with the Netherland’s U-19 national team as well.

“It was a privilege to be in camp with the Under-19s, experiencing the environment, how everything works, meeting all the players, the coaches,” Yohannes told Pro Soccer Wire in December. “I really enjoyed it and it was a great experience.”

According to Jonkier, Yohannes “has indicated that she would like to play for the Netherlands,” he told NOS. 

“That procedure is now underway and all possible steps are being taken,” he said. “Together we can see that she is doing remarkable and very beautiful things.”

Hayes, for her part, had nothing but high praise for the young midfielder.

“Her final pass is exceptional. She’s got the ability, especially in tight areas she can get out of pressure really well," she told the media this week. "But her vision, the quality of her execution is really, really high. Sometimes I don’t believe she’s 16 years of age because she plays with such maturity, but a wonderful talent.”

The first leg of the UEFA Women’s Champions League quarter finals featured a number of strong performances from U.S. players, including Catarina Macario and Lindsey Horan. 

Horan had an assist in the game-winning goal for Lyon, securing the team’s 2-1 comeback over Benfica. 

In her first Champions League game since the 2022 final, in which she tore her ACL while playing for Lyon, Macario notched an assist as a late-game sub in Chelsea’s 3-1 over Ajax. She’s now had three goal contributions in four appearances in her return to the field. 

All three of her contributions have come within 10 minutes of being subbed onto the field. 

“She’s gifted,” Chelsea manager Emma Hayes said after the match. But the team is still working her back to full minutes. 

“Cat, we’re building, building, building,” Hayes added. “With the way we build players, it’s not just 20 minutes, 30, 45, 60, 90,” she said. “Sometimes it’s 20 at a certain level, and 20 again, but it’s a higher intensity. And Arsenal, for me, even 20 minutes was a much higher intensity. I think tonight was of equal level purely because [it’s] the Champions League and the energy of the crowd, but you saw the quality of the cross.”

Even still, it might not be long before Macario is back to being in a starting lineup. 

“Cat is someone who is not 100 per cent yet, but she’s not far away from starting a game,” Hayes said. “People just think, ‘Oh, she’s over that injury,’ but then you start training and then your muscles are having to adapt, and you might get a little tightness in your hamstring and in your groin, and you might have to take the loading off again, and then you have to develop a resilience and a robustness in your body.”

Macario appears to have a sense of humor about it. Hayes is set to take over as the USWNT manager, and Macario is one of many looking to be considered for an Olympic spot this summer. Ahead of the match, Hayes said that Macario had added herself to a form for Olympic roster consideration, noting that she’d written, “Now all you have to do is pick me!”

For Hayes, the thinking is more on the future that Macario could have as a player. 

“I want to build Cat for the long term,” Hayes said. “That’s my most important thing for her. She deserves to have a career at the top level.”

The U.S. women’s national team (USWNT) has fallen to fourth in the latest FIFA rankings. It's the lowest ranking ever for the storied national program.

It comes after the team lost 2-0 to Mexico in the group stage of the Concacaf W Gold Cup. The team rebounded, beating both Canada and Brazil to win the W Gold Cup title.

The team’s previous low had been third in the rankings, which came after their historic round of 16 exit in last summer’s World Cup. The most recent FIFA rankings, released in December, had the USWNT back up to No. 2. 

World Cup champion Spain remains atop the rankings, having recently won the Nations League, while England moved up two spots to second. France held steady in third, having recently lost 2-0 to Spain in the Nations League final. 

Brazil is back into the top 10, while Canada also moved up a spot in the rankings. Korea Republic, which the USWNT will play in a pair of June friendlies, has dropped out of the top 10.

Vlatko Andonovski will return to the NWSL sidelines this weekend for the first time since 2019 when Kansas City takes on Portland. 

Ahead of that, Andonovski spoke with ESPN about his return to the league and his first time coaching since departing the USWNT last August. Andonovski coached the USWNT from 2019 up through the 2023 World Cup. He led the team to a Round of 16 exit, which was the team’s worst-ever finish at the tournament. 

To Andonovski, a return to the NWSL has meant a return to his element, as he’s found that the club game “suits him” more than the international game.

"It's something that is continuous -- that's the difference," Andonovski told ESPN. "Like, it's not, 'Oh, now let's take a break for two months. We'll see you in May.' Now we keep going. 'All right, we check this box but you got to check the next box.'”

It’s a return to Kansas City for Andonovski, who has lived there since 2000. He was the original coach of FC Kansas City, helping the team to two NWSL championships before it folded in 2017. He then coached Reign FC from 2018 until 2019 before taking the helm of the USWNT. 

Twice, Andonovski was named NWSL Coach of the Year, winning it in the league’s inaugural season in 2013 and again in 2019. 

He took a break from soccer following the World Cup, evaluating what he wanted to do next. It was during that time he says he realized “how much I cannot live without this game.” Andonovski says he entertained other offers, from head coaching in the USL to being an assistant coach in MLS, to other NWSL opportunities. 

But the opportunity to stay home was too good to pass up.

"It's almost like they're so proud of what I've done or the successes that I've had for the city that they're not just supporting but they're also protective," Andonovski said of local fans supporting him after the World Cup.

Now, he’ll take on another challenge in a league that has changed dramatically since he was last on its sidelines, with a surge of investment and international talent. But his coaching, he says, has evolved as well. And he’s excited to showcase what he can do.

"I don't need to prove anything to anyone except myself," he said. "I can do this. I want to do well for certain people or groups of people, but I have nothing to prove. I was in the league [and I was] fairly successful. I got the job with the national team not because I was doing poorly -- it's because I was doing well. I'm here again because somebody believes that I can do it well. Nothing to prove. I'm just looking forward to doing anything possible to repay the trust that people put in me.”

Read the full article on ESPN.

The U.S. women’s national team are the inaugural W Gold Cup champions after a 1-0 win over Brazil. 

Lindsey Horan was the game’s lone goalscorer, capitalizing on a well-placed header to put the USWNT up just before the half.

The win ensures that the USWNT ends a rollercoaster tournament on a high, bouncing back from a tough group stage loss to Mexico. And for interim coach Twila Kilgore, it’s a good indicator of where things are headed. 

"This is a group that's moving forward together, that still wants more time together. It's time to go back to club [seasons] for them and do those things, but we genuinely enjoy being together and feel like we're just getting started," Kilgore said. "This is a group that's just getting started.

"We've regrouped, we've set new goals, we've set a new style of play. We're working towards something together, and it's a very public process, and that's just not easy. I'm just so proud of them, and I'm just so happy."

Youth talent was on display in this tournament for the USWNT, with 19-year-old Jaedyn Shaw being named player of the tournament and winning the tournament’s Golden Ball. Alyssa Naeher won the Golden Glove for best keeper of the tournament. 

Canada’s Adriana Leon took home the Golden Boot, having finished with the most goals, while teenager Olivia Smith earned the Best Young Player award.

The USWNT gutted out a win on Wednesday night over Canada, but the real story of the night was the game’s playing conditions. 

The first half of the game featured a pitch that was borderline unplayable, with rain creating significant puddles on the pitch. At points, it was impossible for the ball to move, and players could be seen wringing out their jerseys, while others slid across the pitch in an attempt to make a tackle.

Jaedyn Shaw's opening goal for the US was essentially assisted by a puddle.

A number of the game’s biggest stars called for the match to be postponed due to the playing conditions. 

“Call the game. Don’t wait another minute,” wrote Lauren Holiday, while Sam Mewis questioned why players were being put in potentially unsafe situations.

Similarly, Julie Foudy called it “insane” and noted that "if ball can't roll, they typically call match."

San Diego Wave head coach Casey Stoney called the pitch “dangerous” and called on Concacaf to “make the right call for player safety.” Three of her players – Alex Morgan, Jaedyn Shaw and Naomi Girma – started in the match for the USWNT. The NWSL season is set to kick off on March 16. 

Postgame, both coaches and players discussed the conditions of the match. 

"It's obvious that the game was unplayable," Canada coach Bev Priestman said. "We put in a lot of work in a game plan and within minute one, it's thrown out the window. … What I feel most concerned about is the players’ [safety] … I think the pitch, it changed the game."

Even still, Priestman acknowledged that the waterlogged pitch impacted both sides. 

"I'm not going to make excuses as to was it fair, was it unfair," Priestman said. "We played the game in front of us. Both teams had to play on the conditions, and it was who could adapt the most."

USWNT captain Lindsey Horan was visibly upset by the conditions, at one point even approaching the referee in the first half to talk about the pitch. But the two sides played on, and postgame Horan criticized the conditions while also applauding her team’s effort. 

"A little bit of frustration for me, it's not a day that you can play football,” she said. “It’s really unfortunate but at the end of the day me and [Canada WNT captain] Jessie [Fleming] were just like we gotta move forward and we gotta play. It is what it is and we played on.”

Sophia Smith, who had a goal and converted on a penalty kick, said that the conditions in the first half were “a little bit unplayable.”

When asked whether or not the game should have continued, USWNT interim head coach Twila Kilgore said “probably not.”

“But those decisions aren't my decisions,” she continued, “and if the referees make those decisions and the game goes on, it's our job to figure out how to win.”

At the half, Concacaf issued a statement on the conditions saying: “It is solely at the discretion of the referee as to whether the field is safe and playable.”

But others, including Christina Unkel, who is a referee and CBS Sports contributor, refuted that idea. 

"Technically and practically, by law, it is always in the ultimate decision of the referee to make that decision," Unkel told CBS Sports' broadcast. "That being said, practically speaking, there is a match commissioner at each of these Concacaf matches, and as we saw within the first early minutes of this [W Gold Cup semi] game, the referee went and demonstrated that the ball was not in fact rolling when she went over to near the fourth official station, which is where the match commissioner stands.

"I want to be very, very clear: It was very clear from her demonstrative showing that she does not necessarily think this is a safe condition but is being told to continue this match by that match commissioner."

The U.S. women’s national team is into the W Gold Cup final after a waterlogged win in penalties over Canada. 

It was a hard-fought, gritty win as there were times when the ball couldn’t even move on the pitch due to the torrential rain unleashing onto Snapdragon Stadium. Calls for the game to be postponed came from all sides as the two teams played on. 

Jaedyn Shaw opened up the scoring, becoming the first USWNT player to score in each of her first four starts. She also joins Kristine Lilly as the only teenagers in USWNT history to score in multiple knockout round games at a competitive tournament.

“That game was pure comedy,” Shaw said afterward. “I think I was the first one that face planted a puddle so that was awesome.”

A late goal from Jordyn Huitema sent the game to extra time, where Sophia Smith notched her first goal of the year to give the USWNT the lead. 

"It's been an emotional ride for me personally since the World Cup, so this is just a big relief and I couldn't be more proud of our team,” Smith said postgame. "To miss a PK in the World Cup takes a toll on you mentally and then I feel like since then, I've just been trying to work my way back. 

“I obviously hadn't had a goal this tournament and as a forward, it's hard to not get that and help the team in that way. So I think that goal was just a relief of a lot of emotions."

But Canada wouldn't go away, converting a penalty committed by Naeher in the 127th minute to send it to penalties. 

Naeher wouldn’t be bested in penalties, however, allowing just one goal while scoring one herself from the spot. Lindsey Horan and Smith scored the other two PKs for the USWNT to give them the 3-1 edge. 

"Just stepping up in a huge moment to face a penalty at the end of the game like that and have to turn around and face a penalty shootout. It's not easy to make three saves ... and contribute to the goal tally," interim head coach Twila Kilgore said. "That just speaks volumes about her mentality.”

Her teammates echoed the sentiment, with Horan calling her performance “nothing new.”

"At the end of the day, she'll just be like, ‘This is my job and that's what I needed to do for the team,'" Horan said of Naeher on the broadcast after the match. "And she's gonna hate herself for like, not saving one of them, I don't know. But she always comes up big for us. That's Alyssa Naeher for you. So, so proud of her, but, nothing new."

For the USWNT, it marked back-to-back performances in which the team had to grind it out – albeit in different ways. A good sign for a team attempting to find its way back to its mentality. 

Smith called it a “gritty team performance,” while Horan applauded the team’s ability to play through the conditions. 

"That's back to that U.S. mentality that we've been talking about that we needed," Horan said. "It's not a game that you're gonna play football. I don't think there were more than a few completed passes on the ground, but getting a goal, the tie, getting another goal and then the PKs and Alyssa coming up massive.”

The USWNT will now play Brazil in the final on Sunday.