The U.S. women’s national soccer team closed out the group stage of the Concacaf W Championship with a 1-0 win over Mexico on Monday. Kristie Mewis scored the lone goal in the 89th minute to send the U.S. into the knockout round as the top team in Group A. On Thursday, they’ll face Costa Rica in the semifinals.

The match against Mexico wasn’t a must-win for the USWNT, which had already qualified for the 2023 FIFA World Cup and clinched a spot in the semis with a 3-0 win over Haiti and 5-0 defeat of Jamaica.

But for Mexico, the game mattered. Coming into Monday’s match in last place in Group A, they needed a win to have a chance at finishing third in their group and advancing to the 10-team intercontinental World Cup qualifying round. The odds weren’t in their favor in the last 17 minutes after Jacqueline Ovalle was issued a red card for cleating Rose Lavelle’s ankle and Mexico went a player down. Regardless, they found dangerous attacking opportunities that put the American defense to the test.

Canada and Jamaica will meet in the other semifinal, also on Thursday. Canada finished first in Group B with three wins over Costa Rica, Panama and Trinidad and Tobago.

All semifinalists have qualified for the World Cup. Now, the four teams will compete for the Concacaf trophy and a guaranteed spot in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Can the USWNT finish the job? Here are our main takeaways from the group stage.

Naomi Girma and Midge Purce need to go to the World Cup

The USWNT has brought in a lot of new players this year, all of whom have impressed at one point or another and proven capable of contributing to a World Cup title. While players like Emily Fox and Alana Cook have consistently been on the pitch, two others haven’t got the start every time but have stood out when they’ve had the chance.

Naomi Girma has thrived at reading plays and delivering long balls into the attack, such as her precise, over-the-top assist to Sophia Smith in the July 7 match against Jamaica. Throughout the tournament, she’s also prevented teams from penetrating into the attacking third by reading and intercepting passes. On Monday against Mexico, she was tasked with shutting down one-v-ones and clearing balls out of the box. The center back duo has been one of the USWNT’s steadiest units at Concacaf so far, with Girma joined by Cook and Becky Sauerbrunn in a two-player rotation. They haven’t conceded a goal yet.

Forward Midge Purce started her first game of the tournament on Monday, and she didn’t let it go to waste. After scoring in the opener against Haiti, Purce tried for another against Mexico, but it rang off the post. She isn’t afraid to take players on one-v-one and she makes her presence felt end to end, most notably when she dribbled from the half to Mexico’s endline and sent a perfect low cross to the foot of Lindsey Horan in the box for a shot that the goalkeeper saved.

A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE USWNT. 😲

Midge Purce's impressive run to feed an open Lindsey Horan goes right into the arms of Itzel González. 👀 pic.twitter.com/bAEfO3i7aw

— Attacking Third (@AttackingThird) July 12, 2022

What has to be better

The USWNT, at times, has lacked creativity. Against Mexico, they passed back more often than usual, even when they had space in front of them to draw opponents in. Mexico’s physical defense was difficult to break down, but getting through low blocks isn’t a new problem for the U.S.

It became most troubling when Mexico went down a player to the red card and the USWNT still struggled to find the back of the net. Mexico often found themselves in the USWNT’s defensive third in the final 10 minutes.

There are likely a number of factors contributing to the USWNT’s difficulties up front, but the lineup rotations have been puzzling. At the beginning of Concacaf, head coach Vlatko Andonovski indicated that the starting lineup would remain similar throughout the tournament, but it has proceeded to change every game. With a roster as deep as the USWNT’s, it can be important to give multiple players a chance to warm up to the competitive environment, but constant changes can also have an adverse effect on chemistry. Rose Lavelle, one of the team’s most creative players in the midfield, was taken out of the starting XI Monday, at a time when they could have really used her.

The XI to close out Group A. 🇺🇸

— U.S. Soccer WNT (@USWNT) July 12, 2022

Can the USWNT win Concacaf?

The USWNT squad in its current form is not ready to win a World Cup, as Andonovski said himself Monday night. They have a lot of work left to do when it comes to tactics, but the individual talent on the roster runs deep, and it’s enough to find a way to win Concacaf.

Costa Rica will load their backline like they did against Canada, and the U.S. might struggle with it on Thursday. But a few quick passes in the box worked for Canada. The U.S. is definitely capable of that, too.

If the USWNT ends up facing Canada in the finals on Monday, it will be their toughest competition yet. Canada has been practicing a defensive formation with two players in the six position, and they also have two of the best center backs in the world in Kadeisha Buchanan and Vanessa Gilles. The USWNT should consider starting the midfield trio of Lavelle, Andi Sullivan and Ashley Sanchez for maximum creativity on the ball to break through Canada’s Olympic gold-winning defense.

Jessa Braun is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering the NWSL and USWNT. Follow her on Twitter @jessabraun.

The 2025 Wimbledon Championships wrapped its second round on Thursday, with the grass court Grand Slam seeing just 15 of the tournament's 32 seeded players advance to the Friday and Saturday's third round.

A full half of the WTA's Top 10 players did not survive the week, with 2024 Wimbledon finalist and world No. 5 Jasmine Paolini joining four first-round star exits by falling to unseeded Kamilla Rakhimova in a three-set, second-round battle on Wednesday.

At the same time, unseeded fan favorites like Japan's No. 53 Naomi Osaka and England's own No. 40 Emma Raducanu secured third-round spots at the London Slam, joining top surviving contenders like No. 4 Iga Świątek and defending Wimbledon champion No. 16 Barbora Krejčíková.

Notably, a full five US players managed to move ahead, tied for the largest national contingent still standing at the tournament.

Led by 2025 Australian Open champion No. 8 Madison Keys, the US group also includes No. 10 Emma Navarro and No. 12 Amanda Anisimova, as well as unseeded players No. 54 Danielle Collins and No. 55 Hailey Baptiste.

With matches against Świątek and No. 7 Mirra Andreeva, respectively, Collins and Baptiste have a tough third round ahead — though Navarro's battle against the 2024 champ Krejčíková arguably headlines Saturday's slate.

How to watch Wimbledon this weekend

While world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka is still holding strong in the dwindling field, this year's Wimbledon play is proving that the London Slam is anyone's to take, as the grass court humbles even the sport's top stars.

Expect the twists and turns to continue as tennis's best battle for spots in Sunday's Round of 16.

Round-of-32 Wimbledon play kicks off at 6 AM ET on Friday, with live continuous coverage of the tournament airing on ESPN.

The 2025 European Championship is officially underway, as Euro action kicked off with a group-stage upset on Wednesday.

Though the 2025 UEFA tournament's opener was a sweltering affair amid a European heat wave, world No. 26 Finland prevailed, earning a 1-0 upset win over No. 14 Iceland in Group A.

Finnish winger Katariina Kosola played hero, curling in the winning goal in the match's 70th minute — just 12 minutes after Iceland midfielder Hildur Antonsdóttir picked up the competition's first red card.

"The result is important for our confidence," Kosola said after Finland's first major tournament win since the 2009 Euro. "It was the kind of goal I have been practicing a lot."

"It's terrible to lose and we feel frustrated," said Iceland head coach Thorsteinn Halldórsson. "It is an even group and we knew Finland were good, but our first half wasn't good enough."

Elsewhere, No. 16 Norway closed out Wednesday's slate on top of Group A, taking three points by defeating host No. 23 Switzerland in day's second match.

Led by captain and 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Ada Hegerberg — who pulled the match even with a second-half strike — Norway battled to a 2-1 comeback win, despite the Swiss side outshooting and out-possessing the Norwegians.

How to watch this week's 2025 Euro action

Group B steals the 2025 Euro spotlight on Thursday.

While No. 13 Italy snagged a 1-0 opening win over No. 20 Belgium to kick off the day, 2023 World Cup champions and tournament favorite No. 2 Spain will face No. 22 Portugal at 3 PM ET.

Friday's Group C slate will pit No. 12 Denmark against No. 6 Sweden at 12 PM ET, before No. 3 Germany contends with No. 27 Poland at 3 PM ET.

Closing out the first group-stage matches will be arguably the toughest draw of the 2025 Euro pool.

Saturday's Group D slate features major tournament debutants No. 30 Wales against the No. 11 Netherlands at 12 PM ET, with No. 10 France taking on defending champions No. 5 England to cap the day at 3 PM ET.

Live coverage of 2025 Euro matches will air across Fox Sports platforms.

The world No. 1 USWNT ruled the pitch on Wednesday night, shutting out North American rivals No. 8 Canada 3-0 to finish the international window on a high note.

Catching the Canada backline sleeping, US midfielder Sam Coffey opened the scoring at the 17-minute mark before 19-year-old Claire Hutton claimed her first-ever USWNT goal by heading in a Rose Lavelle corner kick in the game's 36th minute.

Houston Dash forward Yazmeen Ryan then padded the US tally in the waning minutes of the match, finding the back of the net just eight minutes after subbing onto the field.

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Despite fielding a young roster, the US overpowered a veteran-heavy Canada side in almost every category, topping their Northern neighbors in shots, shots on target, possession, and — most notably — set pieces.

Canada ultimately couldn't match the game's mental pace or physical battle, as the USWNT scored all three goals off dead ball situations — a free kick, a corner kick, and a throw-in.

"It's not about the opponent," US head coach Emma Hayes said after the match. "It's about what we do, and I felt that was extremely dominant."

With Wednesday's contributions, the USWNT finishes the summer window with 11 goals scored across the three friendlies — and zero goals conceded.

The US now enters an extended break before reconvening for another as-yet-unannounced friendly series in October — but players will be expected to perform in the meantime.

"I said to the players in the end in the huddle, if you want to compete to win the biggest things, it's not what you do here that matters," said Hayes. "It's what you do when you go back to your club."

The 2025 WNBA regular season returns on Thursday night, with teams at the top of the league standings looking to prove their mettle against close competition across the long holiday weekend.

The No. 5 Seattle Storm have arguably the toughest weekend assignments, taking on the No. 4 Atlanta Dream on Friday before tackling the No. 3 New York Liberty on Sunday.

Four middle-of-the-pack teams will look to close in on a double-digit season win tally while the league's frontrunners strive to maintain their advantage in this weekend's slate:

• No. 7 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 8 Indiana Fever, Thursday at 7 PM ET (Prime): Though still without star Caitlin Clark, the Fever hope to harness their 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup victory momentum against an Aces side tied with Indiana with an 8-8 season record.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 4 Atlanta Dream, Thursday at 7:30 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): Seattle will look to make strides against a strong Atlanta side while putting last Sunday's stinging 84-57 loss to up-and-comer Golden State in their rearview.

• No. 6 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, Saturday at 8 PM ET (WNBA League Pass): The rising Valkyries must face a Lynx side hunting redemption, as the league-leaders look to bounce back from their stifling Tuesday Commissioner's Cup upset loss.

• No. 5 Seattle Storm vs. No. 3 New York Liberty, Sunday at 1 PM ET (CBS): With injured Liberty center Jonquel Jones still sidelined, the Seattle Storm will have a chance to steal a weekend game against the reigning champs, as New York struggles to re-find their footing.

With the 2025 WNBA All-Star break looming, early top performers must keep standards high if they want to hold the line when the season crosses the midway point.