Injuries and extended absences have taken a toll on the U.S. women’s national team as the reigning world champions prepare for the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

As head coach Vlatko Andonovski continues to evaluate players before naming a final roster next summer, we take a look at recent USWNT mainstays on the outside looking in and where they stand in the run-up to the biggest tournament in women’s soccer. At the top of our list: Sam Mewis.

Position: Midfielder
Total caps: 83
Most recent USWNT appearance: Aug. 5, 2021 vs. Australia (Tokyo Olympics)

What is her track record with the USWNT?

The midfielder received her first call-up to the national team in 2014. By 2016, she was selected as an alternate for the Olympic team, and by 2018, she had established herself as a mainstay on the roster.

Mewis started five of the USWNT’s seven matches at the 2019 World Cup. She recorded two assists at the tournament, but her contributions went beyond the score sheet. Her 43 recoveries ranked second only to teammate Crystal Dunn, who had 45.

She figured heavily in the lineup again at the Tokyo Olympics.

What is keeping her off the roster?

Mewis underwent arthroscopic surgery on her right knee in August 2021. At the time, she was expected to be out for up to eight weeks. More than 17 months later, she remains on the sidelines.

In January, she had another surgery on the same knee, she announced on Jan. 30.

The 30-year-old midfielder was traded to the NWSL’s Kansas City Current ahead of the 2022 season, but she only played in two preseason Challenge Cup matches in March 2022. The Current placed her on the season-ending injury list in August with a “long-standing progressive injury to her right leg suffered prior to her arrival in Kansas City.”

While she was named to the USWNT roster last March ahead of friendlies against Uzbekistan, she later was ruled out due to her continuing recovery from “a knee issue,” per U.S. Soccer.

When will she be back?

When Mewis announced her latest knee surgery, she also revealed she does not have a timeline for her return to soccer.

While the exact nature of Mewis’ injury and the timeline for her recovery remain unknown, these factors almost certainly will preclude her from participating in the 2023 World Cup.

“At this point I don’t want to guess what the time is or if she is going to be back at all,” Andonovski said ahead of the team’s two January friendlies against New Zealand. “With Sam, it’s a long-term injury and at this point, you know, we probably would not go into details for that.”

What other players are missing from the USWNT roster?

• Where is… Tierna Davidson?
• Where is… Julie Ertz?
• Where is… Tobin Heath?
• Where is… Catarina Macario?
• Where is… Christen Press?

NWSL veteran Sofia Huerta is expanding her investment portfolio, with the Seattle Reign defender joining the ownership group of incoming USL Super League side Athletic Club Boise this week.

"I wasn't sure something like this would ever happen in Boise — so when the opportunity came, it was an easy decision," the Idaho product said in Tuesday's USL press release. "This community is how I got where I am today."

"Soccer has given me so much, and this club is building something that will give those opportunities to others," the 32-year-old continued. "The foundation Athletic Club Boise is laying — with the men's team in 2026 and the women's Gainbridge Super League team in 2027 — makes me proud to invest in the future of soccer here at home."

"Sofia represents exactly what we want this club to be — talented, ambitious, and deeply connected to the Northwest," added the incoming club's fellow co-owner Kasey Keller.

Huerta is now the first NWSL player to directly invest in the growing USL Super League, which serves as a top-flight US pro league alongside the NWSL.

That said, some of Huerta's Reign teammates have already crossed league lines, with Lauren Barnes, Jess Fishlock, and Olivia Van der Jagt buying into the semi-pro USL W League's Seattle-based team, Salmon Bay FC, last year.

Notre Dame basketball star Hannah Hidalgo took the mic this week, telling reporters at Tuesday's ACC Media Day that she's eager to erase the memory of last season's March Madness crash-out.

"Knowing how much talent we had last year and underachieving like we did was something that was heartbreaking," the junior guard said, explaining that the one-time No. 1 Fighting Irish lost focus ahead of their Sweet 16 tournament exit.

Hidalgo, whose 23.8 points per game made her the fifth most prolific scorer in the NCAA last season, also vowed to step up as a leader this year in light of Notre Dame losing standouts Sonia Citron and Maddy Westbeld to the WNBA and fellow star guard Olivia Miles in a transfer to TCU.

"I know how to get the best out of my teammates, I know the steps that I need to take and the things that I need to do," said Hidalgo, dismissing questions about her rumored rift with Miles. "One of the most important things is building that relationship and that connection with my teammates off the court. It's bigger than basketball."

"I know the weight of [the spotlight] is heavy," Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey said of Hidalgo's role. "But I feel like she has done a great job of surrounding herself with the right network."

OL Lyonnes scored some UEFA Champions League revenge on Tuesday, upending reigning UWCL champs Arsenal 2-1 in the powerhouse pair's 2025/26 league phase opener in London.

In a rematch of last season's Champions League semifinal, Haiti international Melchie Dumornay sealed the OL Lyonnes result with a first-half brace for the French titans, quickly countering Arsenal forward Alessia Russo's seventh-minute strike.

"Errors happen from time to time, but if they happen too often, of course, there's something there," noted Arsenal head coach Renée Slegers, referencing the defensive mistakes that led to both OL Lyonnes goals. "Sometimes it's intangible or hard to put your finger on because it's a mixture of things."

"We won't get too high [or] too low in this situation," the Gunners manager continued, adding "the team went through hard times last year as well, and then we ended the season on a high with an amazing achievement in the Champions League."

OL Lyonnes weren't the only opening-day league phase victors, as Juventus took down Benfica 2-1 while 2024/25 runners-up Barcelona demolished Bundesliga side Bayern Munich 7-1 behind a pair of braces from attackers Ewa Pajor and Clàudia Pina.

Unlike previous iterations, the 2025/26 Champions League format does not include first-round rematches, with each team facing six different opponents before advancing to the knockouts.

How to watch 2025/26 Champions League games

UWCL league phase opening matches conclude with five games on Wednesday, with WSL winners Chelsea FC kicking off the action against Dutch side FC Twente at 12:45 PM ET.

All 2025/26 Champions League matches will air live on Paramount+.

Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier was back on stage this week, opening up about her viral exit interview blasting WNBA leadership to former US Vice President Kamala Harris at the "A Day of Unreasonable Conversation" summit in LA on Monday.

"For so long, we tried to have these conversations and move the needle," she said. "And I saw nothing was changing."

"I think I just got to the point where I was fed up [with WNBA leadership]," Collier told Harris. "Whether I was going to get annihilated for this, or people were gonna support me, I felt like what I was doing was right."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

Collier also doubled down on her position, publicly cancelling a meeting with Cathy Engelbert after the WNBA commissioner denied Collier's account of a past conversation regarding Caitlin Clark and rookie compensation.

"For [Engelbert] to start her speech saying she has the utmost respect for me and for the players, and then to turn around and call me a liar three minutes later... I think it just speaks to that lack of accountability and so I really have nothing further to say [to her]," Collier told Axios on Monday, confirming the meeting's cancellation.

While both Engelbert and NBA commissioner Adam Silver have committed to repairing relationships between players and league leadership, Collier's recent outspokenness shows just how much ground there is to cover.