Alexia Putellas took the top spot on The Guardian’s 100 Best Footballers list for the second year in a row.

The 28-year-old Spanish star becomes the first player to top the list in consecutive years after finishing the 2021-22 domestic season with 18 goals and 15 assists.

Also for the second year in a row, no American player cracked the top 15 in the list. For 2022, the highest U.S. player is Catarina Macario, who comes in at No. 16. In 2021, Sam Mewis was the highest finisher at No. 20, but she has dropped off the list due to injury.

Macario leapt 71 spots from No. 87 in 2021. The 23-year-old scored 14 goals for Lyon en route to the Division 1 Féminine title, and she also scored nine goals en route to the Champions League title. Only an ACL injury she suffered in June kept her from a spot in the top 10, The Guardian noted.

NWSL MVP Sophia Smith entered for the first time at No. 21, making her the highest debut on this year’s list. Three judges had even put the Portland Thorns forward at No. 1 in the world.

Also from the U.S. women’s national team, Alex Morgan returned to the rankings at No. 18 after missing the list in 2021. In total, 10 USWNT players made the list. Lindsey Horan came in at No. 29, Rose Lavelle at No. 33, Mallory Pugh at No. 36, Trinity Rodman at No. 47, Naomi Girma at No. 66, Megan Rapinoe at No. 70 and Becky Sauerbrunn at No. 93.

The top 100 in full. With @OffsideRulePod https://t.co/VygYyIZ2h2 pic.twitter.com/1o7xHxspxm

— Guardian sport (@guardian_sport) December 25, 2022

One other American player made the cut, though she has not broken into the USWNT lineup: Mia Fishel placed at No. 88. The 21-year-old won the Liga MX Golden Boot with 17 goals in 2022, and USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski said she “is on our depth chart.”

Beth Mead came in second. She rocketed up from the 75th best player in the world in 2021 after she helped lead England to the Euros title this summer.

Australia’s Sam Kerr held strong at No. 3, while Spain’s Aitana Bonmatí jumped six spots to No. 4. Lena Oberdorf moved from No. 44 all the way up to No. 5, but Vivianne Miedema fell four spots to No. 6.

England stars Georgia Stanway (No. 26), Alessia Russo (No. 39) and Mary Earps (No. 48) all entered the rankings for the first time.

Former Chicago Sky guard Allie Quigley made her retirement official on Tuesday, announcing her exit from professional basketball in a piece for The Players Tribune, nearly three years after her final WNBA game in September 2022.

The 14-year league veteran spent the last decade of her career playing for her hometown team, helping lead the Sky to a WNBA championship in 2021 while also picking up three All-Star nods and two WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year awards.

With a career average of 10.9 points per game and 39.4% shooting from beyond the arc, Quigley also claimed four 3-Point Contest victories, winning in 2017, 2018, 2021, and 2022 to set a record that still stands across the WNBA and NBA.

Chicago's all-time leading scorer for years, Sky guard Courtney Vandersloot — Quigley's wife — usurped her crown just two weeks ago.

"I love knowing that I can look back on my career and say it was really, really good — but it was part of the beginning of something truly great," Quigley wrote.

Explaining that she "never actually meant to do an Irish goodbye," Quigley initially took time off to become a mom, a process that took longer than expected.

Alongside Vandersloot, Quigley welcomed their first child, daughter Jana Christine, on April 8th — an event that spurred her to officially announce her retirement.

"[A]s special as the Sky winning a championship felt, and as proud of a moment as that was, bringing a baby into the world is our accomplishment we're most proud of," said Quigley.

On Tuesday, 2024/25 UEFA Champions League winners Arsenal announced that the Gunners are making the 60,704-capacity Emirates Stadium their permanent home for all WSL matches on the heels of last season's successful nine-game run in the north London venue.

Arsenal dominated the WSL in attendance during their 2024/25 campaign with a total of 415,000 tickets sold, a 20% increase over the Gunners' 2023/24 season.

Even more, the club averaged crowds of over 34,000 fans for the team's nine matches hosted at the men's side's historic Highbury home.

Both Arsenal's and the league's season-high attendance came in February, when 56,784 fans packed Emirates for the Gunners' North London Derby match against Tottenham.

While all of Arsenal's 11 WSL home games will kick off at Emirates, the reigning European champs will open their UWCL defense at the significantly smaller, 4,500-capacity Meadow Park, with future Champions League matches moving to Highbury should the Gunners advance to the tournament's knockout rounds.

"For us, this is just the beginning, and bringing every WSL match to the Emirates is another step for more supporters to be part of this special journey," said Arsenal head coach Renée Slegers in a club statement. "We'll come back next season, with fire in our hearts, more determined, more ambitious, and more together than ever."

Women's teams are big business, with global sports business conference SPOBIS International reporting this week that average WNBA franchise valuations rose to $90 million in 2024, while NWSL clubs weighed in at $104 million — doubling their 2023 mark.

In May, the reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty sold shares at a $450 million valuation, qualifying them as the world's most valuable women's sports team.

SPOBIS's top five includes the WSL's Chelsea FC ($326 million) alongside NWSL side Angel City FC ($250 million), the WNBA's Dallas Wings ($208 million), the Kansas City Current ($182 million), and the Las Vegas Aces ($140 million).

US women's sports teams hold a key advantage in the race to the top of the valuations table, with WNBA and NWSL squads able operate independently from men's systems.

Having separated from their men's side last year, Chelsea FC was the only non-US team to make the list, bolstered by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian's $26.6 million purchase of a 10% stake in the 2024/25 WSL champs last month.

Other European teams in line for similar value boosts include OL Lyonnes and the London City Lionesses, both independently owned and operated by Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang.

With many factors contributing to a team's overall value — namely capital, media deals, viewership, ownership structures, and popularity — it's tough to predict the next big thing in women's sports, but these numbers point to a red-hot market across major pro leagues.

US Soccer is heading back to college, announcing Tuesday that the federation is launching a NextGen College Soccer Committee (NCS) to help solidify NCAA soccer's place in the national development system.

The NCS will "aim to integrate the college game more deeply into the broader US Soccer ecosystem, while ensuring it remains a strong, sustainable platform for student-athlete education, player development, and community engagement."

As professional soccer careers become more viable on the women's side, an increasing number of prospects are opting to sign directly with clubs out of high school rather than follow the traditional collegiate track.

Skipping college to go pro is common in other countries, where many clubs run their own academies for promising young players.

To "properly consider the development pathway and progression to college soccer," US Soccer is also working with pre-professional organizations like Elite Clubs National League, Girls Academy, and other US youth leagues.

Members of the NCS include Kansas City Current co-owner Angie Long, NWSL COO Sarah Jones Simmer, and former Duke standout and current MLS executive Ali Curtis.

With Tuesday's announcement, US Soccer appears to be acknowledging the challenges of maintaining NCAA soccer's appeal in the face of increasingly diverse pro opportunities — while also doubling down on the value of the college game.

"College soccer is integral to the fabric and future of our sport in this country," said US Soccer CEO JT Batson. "The individuals joining this group bring unique perspectives and expertise that will help us build a model where college soccer can thrive in a modern, connected system."