How the USWNT’s World Cup roster would look today. Plus: 16 NWSL keys to watch
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The new cast of the Netflix movie “The 99ers” met up with their real-life counterparts at the SheBelieves Cup over the weekend. The result was something really special. Read to the end to find out which 2019 World Cup winner still has a ball from 1999 signed by Brandi Chastain.
In today’s Full Time:
🔮 U.S. roster predictions
📰 Five Iran players defect
👀 2026 NWSL season preview
But first, let’s start with the USWNT winning another SheBelieves Cup …
World Cup Squad: USWNT wins SheBelieves Cup
It was redemption for the U.S. women’s national team Saturday when forward Alyssa Thompson sent home a very spicy shot into the upper corner of Colombia’s goal in the 82nd minute — all the Americans needed to secure a 1-0 win and earn an eighth SheBelieves Cup title.
Remember when we told you about Emily Sonnett being the tournament’s most epic player? Well, she’s been part of all eight of those victories.
This is the second trophy overall under head coach Emma Hayes, after the team’s gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics. While SheBelieves is a friendly tournament with much lower stakes, it did provide insight into what Hayes is thinking ahead of a crucial World Cup qualifying year, with her core roster taking shape.
“If we think about the Olympics, we’d talk about a (U.S.) team that was really resilient and difficult to beat and (we’d talk about) the Triple Espresso,” Hayes said Saturday from Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, N.J. “Now, we talk about all the other players.”
While the forward trio of Trinity Rodman, Mallory Swanson and Sophia Wilson led the team to victory at the Olympics, they have not played together since due to injuries and pregnancies.
In their place, players including Thompson, Jaedyn Shaw, Ally Sentnor and Emma Sears, and even newer additions like Jameese Joseph, have found their stride.
“The depth might have been there,“ Hayes said of 2024, “but it hadn’t been developed.”
Next up for the U.S. are three matches in April against world No. 8 Japan, which won the SheBelieves Cup last year. Hayes said Japan is on “another level” from last week’s opponents, a welcome challenge as her team tests itself on the world stage.
Now just six international windows remain before Hayes must name her World Cup roster. It begs the question …
Who made a World Cup case?
This exercise is complicated. The Athletic’s writers attempted to decode Hayes’ thinking based on news conferences, interviews and recent lineups to surmise who might be on the plane to Brazil come next year.
With the countdown to World Cup kickoff down to 473 days, and on the heels of the SheBelieves Cup title, it feels like an important time to draft another roster.
While Rodman’s injury seems to be *a lot* less intense than it initially appeared, injuries across the starting line have caused a slight wrinkle in our prediction process, especially the one Catarina Macario is managing. But there are some signs of hope, too: Wilson stepped back onto the field for the Portland Thorns in a preseason tuneup at Providence Park on Saturday night for the first time since her maternity leave, and defender Tierna Davidson is also available for competition with Gotham FC after a year away because of an ACL injury.
Here’s who Melanie Anzidei and Tamerra Griffin think would be headed to Brazil if Hayes had to choose today:
Sears, 25, got an extra vote of confidence from her coach before last week’s game in Columbus, Ohio, the forward’s hometown: “If the World Cup was tomorrow, you’d be one of the first players coming from the bench in my opinion,” Hayes said. “She’s a fighter, and she’s not going away.”
We’ll be tracking the ebbs and flows of the roster from here until June 2027.
NWSL is Back: Sixteen things to look forward to in 2026
The 2026 NWSL season returns this weekend, and with the addition of Boston Legacy and Denver Summit, it’s literally going to be bigger than ever. Though the season will fall in the same window (March to November), this year will feature a record 16 teams playing across 248 games.
It will feature rivalry weeks, Decision Day and a new neutral site for the Challenge Cup — key dates here. Here are 16 things I’m eyeing in 2026:
1) The (hopeful) return of Triple Espresso, and I’m not the only one; 2 and 3) the debuts of the Legacy and Summit; 4) an attendance record at Denver’s home opener; 5) soccer Saturdays; 6) Friday night games; and 7) even a few midseason matches.
8) The evolution of San Diego Wave from the French Connection to the new home of Joga Bonita; 9) Sydney Leroux’s return to a younger Angel City squad that is now without former captain Ali Riley on the pitch; and 10) the continued influx of LigaMX Feminil stars like Kiana Palacios at the Utah Royals. I’m also interested to see how Croix Bethune finds her way next to a healthy Temwa Chewinga or Michelle Cooper in Kansas City, though we might have to wait a little for that (that’s 11).
I’m looking forward to seeing how new European coaches Robert Vilahamn from Tottenham, Filipa Patão from Benfica and Mak Lind from BK Häcken will fare in Portland, Boston and North Carolina (12, 13, 14). (I’m also keeping my eyes on Nick Cushing in Denver and Chris Armas in Kansas City as they test their knowledge from MLS in NWSL). More so, I’m interested to see if any more women get a chance at a top job if things don’t work out for any team (15).
But most of all, I’m just happy to have the NWSL back. That’s 16!
How to watch
The NWSL enters the third year of its current broadcast deal with the addition of a new partner, streaming service Victory+. Prime Video will continue to air Friday night games, ION will air 10 Saturday night doubleheaders and seven Saturday night triple-headers, and CBS and ABC/ESPN will continue to occupy afternoon slots on Saturdays and Sundays, while Victory+ has 57 games but none on Saturday.
Victory+, known for its NHL partnership, will also provide alternate broadcasts to select games, featuring World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist Kelley O’Hara and women’s sports influencer Coach Jackie J. The content will be free with a Victory+ account.
Here are a few games to keep an eye on this weekend (all times Eastern):
📺 Washington Spirit vs. Portland Thorns
Friday at 8 p.m. on Prime Video
This could see the return of Wilson to NWSL after a year away — and against Rodman — if all are healthy.
📺 Boston Legacy vs. Gotham FC
Saturday at 12:30 p.m. on ABC/ESPN
What better welcome to the league than playing the reigning NWSL champions, right? Plus, New Kids on the Block is performing at halftime! This game has the right stuff …
📺 Orlando Pride vs. Seattle Reign
Sunday at 4 p.m. on Victory+
With the postponement of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, we could very well see Pride forward Barbra Banda’s return to the regular season against a young and hungry Seattle team.
First Looks
Afraid to go home: The Iran women’s national team has been through a lot during this year’s Asian Cup — and not much has had to do with the World Cup spots on the line. The team was playing in Australia while war raged on at home. After being labeled “wartime traitors” for not singing the national anthem during their opening game and losing all three games of the group stage, five players have defected and are being cared for in a safe house operated by the Australian Federal Police.
Postponed: Regarding WAFCON’s postponement less than two weeks before its start date, Simon Hughes writes how a lack of clarity ultimately hurts the players the most.
Midwest mindset: Columbus played host to the SheBelieves Cup last week, and a loud crowd gave us a glimpse of what could be. Tamerra breaks down what we know about the potential for an 18th NWSL team to land in the Ohio capital, including plans for purpose-built facilities.
And finally: The U.S. honored former midfielder Tobin Heath ahead of the game Saturday. In a moment that gave us chills, Heath brought a ball she had signed by Chastain in 1999 with the message “Dream!” and showed it to Chastain. Heath followed in the 99ers’ light and won two World Cups with the U.S. and will be inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame later this year. Talk about a full-circle moment.
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This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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