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- 2025: A BIG YEAR FOR WOMEN’S FOOTBALL 🎆
2025: A BIG YEAR FOR WOMEN’S FOOTBALL 🎆
Happy Monday and Happy New Year TWG readers!
It’s 2025! I hope everyone rang in the New Year safely and happily. I spent my NYE at Steph McCaffrey’s wedding and had the absolute best time. I thrive at weddings but I have a feeling they are taking years off my life.
I write to you from Melbourne, Australia today. I’m here to celebrate Lynn and Marley again as they have their Australian wedding ceremony. My husband, Pat, and I have turned this trip into our vacation so we are hitting the beach, eating acai bowls, and exploring the city with SPF 100 on at all times. Any good Melbourne recs, send me an email at [email protected].
We have some great content headed your way this week — including a “Best of Triple Espresso” show that breaks down the best parts of my interviews with Mal, Trin and Soph from 2024. Plus we’ll hear from NWSL Midfielder and Rookie of the Year, Croix Bethune, on Friendlies. Both of those episodes will be available wherever you get your podcasts and on The Women’s Game YouTube channel!
Thank you all so much for being here with us! 2025 is going to be a big year!
Love,
Sam
A BIG YEAR FOR WOMEN’S FOOTBALL 🎆
2025 is filled with phenomenal women’s football competitions. From brand new leagues to elite international tournaments, here’s a few highlights:
UEFA Women’s EURO 2025🇨🇭
Europe’s preeminent international competition goes down in Switzerland from July 2-27. 16 teams, initially split into four groups of four, compete in eight cities across Switzerland for the biggest international trophy in continental competition. England’s Lionesses are the reigning champions. While current World Cup champions Spain still hope to claim their first European Championship trophy.
SheBelieves Cup 🇺🇲
The senior USWNT begin their year with another rendition of the SheBelieves Cup. From Feb. 20-26, the reigning Olympic gold medalists and FIFA’s number one ranked team host Japan (8), Australia (15) and Colombia (21) in a series of top tests across Texas, Ariz. and Calif.
Copa América Femenina 🇪🇨
The 10th edition of South America’s Copa América Femenina takes place in Ecuador from July 12 through Aug 2, 2024. Olympic silver-medalists Brazil look to build on an impressive run of eight titles from nine previous competitions. Argentina won the sole remaining title in 2006.
Women’s Africa Cup of Nations 🇲🇦
A much-anticipated rendition of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) goes down in Morocco from July 5-26. Morocco also held the last competition in 2022, when South Africa claimed their first title by beating the hosts 2-1 in the final. Nigeria’s Super Falcons are the most successful team with 9 Wafcon trophies.
The Northern Super League 🇨🇦
Top flight footy is coming to Canada. The Northern Super League will make seismic Canadian history when it launches play on April 16. The inaugural season will feature six clubs based in Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver. The league expects to announce its schedule in early February.
Concacaf W Champions Cup 🇲🇽
Mexico will host the inaugural Concacaf W Champions Cup Finals in Nuevo Leon, Mexico from May 21-24. The Finals include the semi-final and final round, as well as a third-place match. Mexican club Tigres plays Portland Thorns in one semi final, and Mexico City’s Club América face Gotham FC in the other. The competition serves as qualification for the first-ever FIFA Women’s Club World Cup in 2026.
🥤 Olipop power everything we do here at The Women’s Game. You can use code TWG20 for 20% off your first order at drinkolipop.com/TWG20.
Transfer window update 🔄
Players are on the move during the NWSL's off-season. Here’s a quick look at some of the biggest moves so far.
Gotham has turned heads with lots of big moves this offseason. After winning the 2023 NWSL Championship, Gotham brought in a spate of big names as it sought to build a ‘super team’. But after a respectable third-place finish and semi-final run in 2024, they’ve made big roster changes, causing some fans to wonder what’s up.
Outgoing: As part of a trade that brought in 25-year-old American midfielder Jaelin Howell, NWSL’s all-time leading scorer Lynn Williams was sent to Seattle Reign alongside 29-year-old American goalkeeper Cassie Miller. Forward Yazmeen Ryan, who impressed in her USWNT senior team debut this December, was traded to Houston Dash.
More: Sam spoke with Lynn about her move to Seattle Reign on the podcast this December. Watch the full conversation here.
Incoming: In addition to Jaelin Howell, Gotham has made a number of signings so far. That includes 29-year-old Brazil forward and silver medalist, Gabi Portilho, who joins from Brazilian club Corinthians. Portilho was nominated for the prestigious 2024 Ballon d’Or. Gotham also signed 19-year-old Ghanaian midfielder Stella Nyamekye, who joins from Dreamz Ladies FC in Ghana. Nyamekye captained Ghana’s Black Queens U20 team at the recent U20 World Cup.
Other notable moves in NWSL include 25-year-old former Bay FC midfielder Alex Loera, who joins Utah Royals. 31-year-old Costa Rica international midfielder Raquel “Rocky” Rodriguez is joining Kansas City Current from Angel City FC. And Angel City signed 23-year-old French forward Julie Dufour from Paris FC. Dufour scored 19 goals in 41 matches in her two seasons with the Parisian club.
More: The winter transfer window is also underway across the Atlantic. Review all moves across the top five leagues here. And this: Women’s football winter transfer window: the biggest moves so far
News and Notes 📰🗞️
Officially official: Denver is NWSL’s next team. The 16th club to join the USA’s top flight sets a new record with its 110 million USD expansion fee. Denver’s expansion fee is more than double NWSL’s last record and sets a new record in all of women's sport. ⛰️
37-year-old Fabrice Gautrat is the new manager of NWSL’s Houston Dash. Gautrat takes over after a tough year for the Dash, who finished 2024 in last place after a season often absent their previous head coach, Fran Alonso. How can he take the club out of NWSL’s basement? 🆕
University of North Carolina’s Kate Faasse is the 2024 MAC Hermann Trophy winner, awarded to each year’s top player voted by coaches. The Phoenix, Ariz. forward is the eighth Carolina Tar Heel to win the prize, adding her name to an illustrious list of USWNT talents, including Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly, Crystal Dunn, and Cindy Parlow Cone. 🏆
England WSL team Brighton & Hove Albion will build their women’s stadium by 2027-28. The club’s historic proposal was first approved in October 2023. 🏟️
As Spain’s Liga F picked up after the New Year, top-ranked Barcelona beat Sociedad 6-0. Polish striker Ewa Pajor scored her fourth hat-trick of the year in the win. Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid 2-1 to stay in second place over their third-place Madrid rival. 🇪🇸
Former Zambia manager Bruce Mwape has been reassigned to an advisory role with Zambia’s junior teams. The move comes after years of sexual abuse allegations while managing the senior national team, and subsequent criticism regarding the sanity of Mwape’s new assignment. Ghana’s former coach, 41-year-old Swiss manager Nora Hauptle, will take over Zambia’s senior women’s national team, the Copper Queens.🇿🇲
Parting Shots 🥃
Out of the depths of winter, a warming sight: Australian striker Sam Kerr kicking a soccer ball. Kerr has joined Chelsea’s training camp in Portugal this winter as she works back to the beautiful game after year-long recovery from an ACL injury. Chelsea manager Sonia Bompastor previously indicated Kerr could return this February or March. 🇦🇺♥️
Good Reads 📚
From The Mercury News, ‘After Bay FC’s record-setting season, CEO Brady Stewart sees a movement coming in women’s sports’
From Leonard Solms on ESPN, ‘Africa’s stars step up in Europe and Saudi Arabia’
From Sophie Downey in The Guardian, ‘From the Euros to Canada’s new league: women’s football in 2025’
Moment of Joy ✨
Caitlin writes:
Hi Sam!
My husband and I have been joking about a gallon of nog since the Christmas episode dropped. We just discovered egg nog can be tossed straight into an ice cream maker to make the easiest and most delicious holiday ice cream treat. I hope you still have a gal in the fridge and an ice cream maker to try this out - I’m thinking a little maple swirl could really elevate it to the next level.
Love the pod and everything you’re doing with The Women’s Game!
-Caitlin (from Weymouth, MA!!)
Sam response:
Caitlin! Hi! I’m so glad you appreciate a good gallon of nog. Thank you for the tip on the ice cream! I will definitely be trying that out ASAP.
Want to be featured in the TWG Newsletter? Send Sam an email at [email protected]
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