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NWSL Challenge Cup: What We’ve Learned so Far

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After six games, we have a solid idea of what the tournament will look like, and it could not be more of a treat.

Notwithstanding fake crowd noise, which will always be contentious, the opening days have been a fantastic showing for the league. Beginning with 572,000 viewers on CBS for the opening matchup, the NWSL has basked in its spotlight.

With that spotlight, however, came contention. As the first league back, one of the biggest stories heading into the tournament was how teams would comport themselves during the national anthem. The Cup began on the right track with a unified message in support of Black Lives Matter. As games went on, more of the conversation turned to individual players and the choices they made. The league has since decided it will allow players to remain in the locker room during the national anthem. Needless to say, this will continue to be a story moving forward, as the individual actions continue to be treated as emblematic of a broader, national discussion.

Surprisingly, the rust that was expected for players that have only had limited time to train and few preseason opportunities in game-like situations never seemed to materialize. From the first game, fans have been shown world-class soccer. Every game has been competitive, and never before has the league displayed such widespread, high-level parity.
With a two day respite before games resume, let’s check in and see what we’ve learned from each team so far.


North Carolina Courage: There are wins that are perfect, like when North Carolina beat Portland 6-0 last year in Providence Park. Other wins fall into the category of “gritty not pretty,” which is how you’d have to describe the Courage’s opening match win over Portland in this Cup. Nonetheless, Paul Riley’s team still established itself as that team in their opening victory. This is a team that knows how to win and has all the pieces to do so, and the roommate connection between Lynn Williams and Sam Mewis for the game-winning goal was picture perfect.

North Carolina exhibited its pedigree once again on Wednesday as they took advantage of the Washington Spirit’s mistakes in possession, winning 2-0. Patience and pressure on the backline paid off, and being able to sub in Sam Mewis and Crystal Dunn at halftime is what a coach’s dreams are made of.

Moving ahead, the two-time defending champs are still the team to beat. Williams is an elite scorer, Debinha is involved in every build-up play, the defense is humming, and the midfield consistently asserting itself.

Portland Thorns: With just one point after two games, the Thorns may be disappointed in their showing thus far, but there is little reason to be. Certainly, the loss in stoppage time to North Carolina was heartbreaking. At the same time, it was a sign of good things to come. Bella Bixby had a fantastic debut in goal and was in position to make a stop on the winning score. Adjusting to Becky Sauerbrunn at center back was not immediate, but grew over the course of the game.

Against Chicago, Portland was certainly hoping for a breakthrough goal, but it only became more clear that their direct style of play was not going to work without a finisher up top. In the midfield, Lindsey Horan seems stranded without outlets. Even before she left the game with a bloodied shin, her frustration was showing. Christine Sinclair is alone and is no longer a singular force. For a team with the Thorns’ prestige, learning on the job is frowned upon. In this tournament, however, Portland would be wise to look at Chicago’s model to try out some new lineups, especially offensive pairings, to find the best fit. After all, through their first games they have shown that even with a depleted roster, the squad can still compete.

Washington Spirit: The youngest team in the tournament entered the Challenge Cup with a lot to prove. The broadcast has highlighted it well, but part of the Spirit’s ongoing culture shift has been to approach each game as a must-win. Rose Lavelle has proven she’s the key to any winning strategy, but she is not alone, as many other young players have stepped up. Aubrey Bledsoe has been a beast in the net, making several phenomenal saves, including the Save of the Match against Chicago.

Still, there is considerable room to grow for a side that has upped its level of play considerably. That was on display against North Carolina. The tactical decision to try and out-possess the Courage was the right one, and was even suggested by Haley Kopmeyer on Just Women’s Sports’ IG live with David Copeland Smith of Beast Mode Soccer ahead of the match. Nevertheless, the Spirit’s back line was not playing high enough up the pitch with or without possession, putting unnecessary strain on the midfield. When North Carolina brought in its reinforcements, the Spirit defense crumbled.

Chicago Red Stars: Their outlook on this tournament is perfect. With every team making it to the knockout round, there is little incentive to overexert in the seeding stage. The worst that can happen is an early meeting with one of the league’s top teams, but as the 2019 Runner-Up, Chicago believes it can match up with any team.

The quality of coaching was on full display as the Red Stars worked in an entirely different starting XI in the second game. In their first game, beside the noticeable absence of Tierna Davidson on the backline, Chicago played a solid game against Washington. The team will need to grow into its methodical style of play, but has the talent to do so. The moment between Casey Short and Julie Ertz drew a lot of national attention, and for good reason. Judging by the statement they put out as a pair, it’s clear this team is building deep cohesion through tough, honest, and necessary conversations.

Houston Dash: In case it wasn’t already known, Rachel Daly is legit. Copeland believes she should have had a hat trick against the Royals, and I would tend to agree.

That finishing ability is exactly what Houston needs from its top scorer. The entire complexion of the game changed with a first half stoppage time goal and a goal right out of the second half gates. The reverberations from Shea Groom’s strike are probably now just being felt in Houston.

There is a lot to clean up for the Dash, with the two set piece goals they allowed, one of which being the late-game equalizer. Still, their performance against the Royals both electrified fans and gave the team reasons to be optimistic about the chances of a deep tournament run.

Utah Royals: In the most exciting game of the tournament to this point, depending on your perspective, the Royals played either the hero or the villain. Mostly, the brilliant comeback says a lot about the team’s mentality. Letting a lead slip away with three unanswered goals is crushing, but then coming back with a perfect free kick and rookie Tziarra King scoring her first career goal? Priceless. In recent memory, goals have never been a given for Utah. Seeing them put up a trio of scores had to be a welcome sign for Royals faithful.

Lo’eau LaBonta had the best pass in the tournament so far, putting the entire Houston team out of position to set up Amy Rodriguez’s assist on the first goal. Later, she expertly cleared a ball off the goal line. Utah will not want another singular player beating them again, but facing Rachel Daly and learning from the tape is part of growth.

OL Reign: Their look is definitely different this year, and it’s not just the logo and uniforms. Still, OL Reign’s mentality is defense first. New head coach Farid Benstiti kept his plans for the team close to the vest, then put out a defensive minded starting lineup in their game against Sky Blue FC.

As is often the case in a scoreless game, the back line looked solid, but the Lauren Barnes-led group made plays and even shut down the second half attack. Alana Cook, on loan from PSG, slotted alongside at center back comfortably. As was clear with some late substitutions, there was a lot of attacking flair on the bench. Now, the puzzle becomes how to incorporate that half of the roster. It will take some time, but the pieces are coming together.

Sky Blue FC: Although their game against OL Reign was low on action, it was fun to see the debut of Midge Purce and McCall Zerboni. With the lack of an attack, however, many people will call for Purce to be moved up the pitch into the attack. There are many systems in which a right back can be an extra winger, but Sky Blue is not quite there.

As a team that was not tested much and did not do much probing, there is not much to be learned about Sky Blue from their opening performance. Except to say that whenever Kailen Sheridan was tested in goal, she was more than up to the task.

2023 MVP Breanna Stewart Drops 31 Points in Liberty’s Huge Win Over Fever

breanna stewart and jonquel jones of the new york liberty celebrate win over indiana fever
Stewie and the Liberty dominated the court throughout Thursday's Fever home opener. (Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

The New York Liberty dominated Indiana on Thursday night, winning by a whopping 36 points in the Fever's home opener. 

A sold-out crowd of 17,274 was in attendance to watch as star rookie Caitlin Clark finished the 102-66 defeat with nine points, seven rebounds, and six assists. It’s the first time since January 2021 — her freshman season at Iowa — that Clark's been held to single-digit scoring. 

"The physicality is definitely up there... I'm easily pushed off screens," she told reporters after the loss. "The game seems a little fast for me right now. The more I play and the more comfortable I get, it's going to slow down a little bit. It will be easier for me to make reads, see things develop."

The Fever were outscored by a combined margin of 57 points in their first two games — the largest two-game point deficit in WNBA season-opening history, according to @ESPNStatsInfo.

"We've got to get to a level of toughness," Fever coach Christie Sides in her own postgame remarks. "When things are going south on us, we're not stopping the bleeding."

"I have great perspective on everything that happens," Clark added. "It was the same in my college career. There were some moments that were absolutely amazing. And there were some moments I was not happy with how I played and how my team performed. That's just life, that's just basketball."

Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, who herself experienced a rocky rookie season following a much-hyped college career, offered up some insight on the matter.

"In this league, there are tough defenses all centered around not letting you get the ball, trapping, not letting you score," Ionescu said. "There were many factors that played into what was a tough first season for me in the league, but it helps you be able to figure it out. You have to have those experiences."

But it was reigning league MVP Breanna Stewart that truly stole the show, racking up 31 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks on the night.

"In general, I just wanted to come out more aggressive coming off of last game," Stewart said after putting up the 24th 30-point game in her career.

Stewart she also commended the fans inside Indianapolis's packed Gainbridge Fieldhouse, noting that she hopes that level of support to continue across the WNBA.

"This is how you want every game to be and when it's a sell-out crowd, it gives you a similar playoff atmosphere feel," she said. "People want to be a part of this and the thing now is to continue to sustain it, continue to take the momentum that we have and turn it into something more."

WNBA Commissioner Admits to ‘Faulty’ Charter Rollout

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert at 2024 wnba draft
Cathy Engelbert at the 2024 WNBA Draft in New York. (Cora Veltman/Sportico via Getty Images)

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert admitted to a "faulty rollout" of the new charter travel initiative on Thursday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Ahead of Tuesday's season opener, it was announced that the only teams flying private this week would be Indiana and Minnesota. The announcement came mere days after the league made a new charter flight program for all WNBA teams public. At the time, they said it would be implemented "as soon as we have the planes."

But as two teams out of 12 chartered to their first games of the season, others like the Atlanta Dream and Chicago Sky were forced to fly commercial.

A town hall meeting between Engelbert and the players was held in response to the confusion. Everything from the league's new media rights deal to private travel was covered in the meeting, with players submitting their questions ahead of time. Sky center Elizabeth Williams told Sun-Times reporter Annie Costabile afterwards that cross-country flights were prioritized.

"Flights that are across the country like [the Lynx] going to Seattle, crossing multiple time zones, or flights that usually require a connection, those were the priorities," Williams said. "That’s why New York didn’t go to DC with a charter, but Minny goes to Seattle."

What’s unclear under that metric is that the Atlanta Dream played the Los Angeles Sparks on Wednesday, which could technically be classified as a cross-country flight. 

On Tuesday, rookie forward Angel Reese shared a photo on her Instagram story lamenting the league's use of commercial flights.

"Just praying that this is one of the last commercial flights the Sky has to fly," Reese posted. The team still has at least three commercial flights awaiting them in the near future.

"Obviously, I think all teams should be able to get chartered," Reese told the Sun-Times. "But I know moving forward... going in the right direction, being able to have some teams [chartering] is cool. Within the next weeks, everybody will be flying charter, which will be really good."

On Thursday, Lindsay Schnell of USAToday Sports confirmed that the league intends to have all teams on charter flights by May 21st.

Brazil Wins Bid for 2027 Women’s World Cup Host

fifa womens world cup trophy on display
The FIFA Women's World Cup trophy on display in Bangkok after Brazil was announced as the 2027 host country. (Thananuwat Srirasant - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

Brazil has been named the host for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, with FIFA announced early Friday. 

The decision came after a vote at the 74th FIFA Congress in Bangkok, with Brazil earning 119 votes to the joint European bid’s 78. 

This will be Brazil’s first time hosting the Women’s World Cup, with the country having hosted the men’s World Cup twice before in 1950 and 2014. It will also be the first Women’s World Cup held in South America. The tournament will follow the same 32-team format as the 2023 WWC in Australia and New Zealand.

Brazil winning the bid was not entirely surprising after FIFA issued a report just last week, stating that the Brazilian bid had pulled ahead as host following technical inspection. After evaluation, Brazil was given a score of 4.0 out of 5, compared to the 3.7 awarded to the Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

Brazil ranked higher in a number of key areas, including stadiums, accommodations, fan zones, and transport infrastructure. Though considered to be a frontrunner, the US and Mexico withdrew their joint bid prior to the technical inspection period, saying they would instead focus their efforts on 2031.

On Friday, Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president Ednaldo Rodrigues called it a "victory." 

"We knew we would be celebrating a victory for South American women's soccer and for women," he told reporters. "You can be sure, with no vanity, we will accomplish the best World Cup for women."

"We are working on a transformation, not only for the country but for the continent," added bid team operational manager Valesca Araujo.

Brazil intends to use 10 of the venues utilized at the 2014 men’s World Cup, including holding the final in Rio de Janeiro on July 25th. The CBF's proposal outlines that the 2027 tournament run from June 24th through the end of July. Last summer’s World Cup began at the end of July and concluded on August 19th.

Another notable element of Brazil's newly unveiled plan to grow of the women’s game is that "all [men’s] clubs wishing to take part in high-level national and continental competitions must now provide a structure for a women’s team." While the definition of "structure" was not specifically identified, the country has set targets with CONMEBOL to help increase the number of women’s club teams in the country.

In last week's inspection findings, FIFA noted that selecting Brazil as the next WWC host could "have a tremendous impact on women's football in the region."

Chelsea Eyes Weekend Finale With WSL Title in Sight

chelsea players celebrate win against tottenham in the wsl
Chelsea beat Tottenham on Wednesday, moving to the top of the table in an effort to win departing coach Emma Hayes some silverware. (John Walton/PA Images via Getty Images)

Chelsea did what they needed to do on Wednesday in order to make Saturday's slate of season-ending WSL fixtures interesting: Beat Tottenham.

The Blues are now number one in the league, with an edge over Manchester City on goal differential thanks to an eight-goal outing against Bristol City last week. 

Yesterday's result tees up a league finale for the books as Chelsea looks to send coach Emma Hayes off with another trophy to add to her cabinet. The Blues will play FA Cup winner Manchester City at Old Trafford on Saturday, while City is away at Aston Villa.

"We will be leaving nothing on the pitch, we will be giving everything and no matter what the result is," Chelsea midfielder Erin Cuthbert said after Wednesday's win. "At least we can look each other in the eye and say we gave everything."

It makes for a thrilling end to Chelsea's Emma Hayes era, as the decorated WSL coach will take over the USWNT in June. And it comes after Hayes all but conceded the title race early this month after Chelsea fell to Liverpool 4-3.

"I think the title is done," Hayes said at the time. "Of course, mathematically, it's not, but I think the title is done. Our job between now and the end of the season is to keep pushing until the end, but I think it will be very difficult.

"We will never give up. But the title is far from us; it's not in our hands. I think City are deserving, their consistency has put them in that position. Of course, we will go to the end, but I don't think the title will be going to us this year."

Be it mind games or Hayes truly thinking her team was that far off, her words lit something in Chelsea. Their following two performances showed the team’s determination to have a shot at some silverware.

As for Saturday's schedule, Hayes believes her team is facing the "tougher of the two games."

"It's a fitting finale for me, being my final game," she told BBC Sport. "As I said to the players if someone gives you a second chance in life, make sure you don't need a third one. We're in the position we want to be in, and we'll give it everything on Saturday no matter what."

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