Emma Hayes Departs Chelsea with 2024 WSL Title 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏆

It’s May 20th, 2024. Give us four minutes, we give you everything The Women’s Game.

Happy Monday, TWG readers! I spent my weekend doing yard work, riding bikes, and enjoying the beautiful weather. Pat and I are building a fire pit in our backyard… yes, we are getting our middle-aged-suburban-homeowner on. It’s terrifying but also feels like a very natural progression. I guess Saturday’s are now for trips to Lowe’s.

Lowe’s aside… Trophy season is upon us! Watching Chelsea win the English Women’s Super League title so joyously on Saturday was such a great reminder of why we love this game so much. After such a tumultuous spring for the club, it was so incredible to see Emma Hayes and her team celebrate their 5th league title in a row. 

Lucky for us, there is another HUGE trophy up for grabs this weekend, with the Champions League Final kicking off on Saturday in Bilbao between Lyon and Barcelona. We’ll hear from Netherlands and Lyon midfielder Daniëlle van de Donk this week on Friendlies to preview that game — she also tells us all about the swim cap situation from last summer’s World Cup so make sure you tune in on Thursday.

We’ll also hear from NWSL All Time Goal Scoring record holder Lynn Williams TOMORROW on GVFC to discuss everything that went on in the soccer world this past weekend, most notably, her 79th NWSL goal against Chicago on Sunday night. I’m so thrilled for Lynn as she is one of the most hard-working, talented players in the league and a record like this just further demonstrates her longevity and her value. So GO LYNN.

There’s much more for you to catch up on in the rest of the newsletter, so I’ll leave you to it. If you’re enjoying this newsletter, forward this email to a friend! Word of mouth is how we grow around here and your support means more than you know.

Thanks for being here!

Love,

Sam

I. Emma Hayes departs Chelsea with 2024 WSL Title 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏆

a. The US Women’s National Team has inherited a relentless winner. Emma Hayes officially ended her tenure as the endlessly entertaining and deservedly esteemed manager of Chelsea this weekend by collecting her fifth straight WSL title. It looked improbable just three weeks ago, as Manchester City led the league while Chelsea dropped points with a loss to Liverpool. But City stumbled in a loss to Arsenal, and the Blues amassed a remarkable 15-0 scoreline in their final three games, overcoming Manchester City in the title race and clinching glory with a 6-0 win at Manchester United the final day. The scenes of elation marked the end of an exceptional run over 12 years for Emma Hayes, whose impact on women’s club football in England has been immense. As Hayes told reporters following the game, the standards and pay Chelsea enjoys now have come at her behest: “People say to me, you have the biggest budget. I am like, you should pat me on the back, you should say well done for paying women properly." 

b. As the confetti settled on Chelsea’s celebrations, Hayes wasted no time looking to her future with the USWNT. On June 1, Hayes will lead the US Women’s National Team in a friendly against South Korea to mark the start of a new era for both Hayes and the USA. With the Olympics just months away, new challenges lie ahead. With a heartbreaking Champions League loss to Barcelona still fresh, Hayes nodded to the Olympics, as she remarked to the English press: “See you guys at some point, maybe Olympic gold medal final, I have to go and f$&<ing beat the Spanish at some point.” 🥇

More: ‘Chelsea may sell minority stake in their women’s side to boost investment’ 

II. NWSL Week 10: Lynn Williams has the most goals ever in NWSL 🇺🇲

a. After drawing level with Australian striker Sam Kerr’s all-goals all-time NWSL record earlier this month, The Women’s Game’s very own Lynn Williams gave Gotham a 1-0 lead in the 57th minute against Chicago Red Stars to claim her 79th NWSL goal across all competitions, officially taking hold of the league record. Williams was later asked what she thought about when Esther's cross came into the box, to which she simply said: “Put it in the goal.” After Chicago drew level 1-1, Ella Stevens scored in the 90th minute against her former club to make it 2-1, giving Gotham their fourth win of ‘24. As we tweeted,“NWSL is the best league in the world because it is filled with stone cold killers and spite filled haters out to settle grudges.”

b. Orlando Pride continue their remarkable form in the first-half of the season as they reclaimed the top spot in NWSL this Sunday with their seventh straight win. Playing on the road in Seattle, 24-year-old defender from Boise, Idaho Emil Madril scored first for the Pride with a strike from way out. Zambian forward Barbra Banda then scored her fifth and then sixth goal in six games to seal Orlando’s victory 3-2. Since debuting for Orlando April 19, Banda has quickly earned the highest goals per game rate in NWSL (1.15 per match) and is now second behind just Sophia Smith (8 goals) in the golden boot race. Next Friday, the two golden boot leaders will meet as Orlando plays Portland Thorns (Friday, May 24, 7 PM EST, NWSL+), which also marks the first-ever NWSL meeting between two teams on a winning streak of more than four games. 🇿🇲 

c. NWSL After Dark is a weekly recipe for chaos. In this week’s edition between Washington Spirit and Angel City FC, we were treated to a 4-2 goalfest ending in Washington’s favor. Highlights include Sydney Leroux’s 44th NWSL goal to finish off the assist from Angel City’s Scottish magician Claire Emslie and this Trinity Rodman brace, helping her club to their seventh win of the year, as the Spirit sit third in the standings behind only Orlando and Kansas City. Oh, and a bit of history: as 18-year-old defender Gisele Thompson clocked her first start for Angel City with 19-year-old Alyssa Thompson starting on the left wing, the Thompson sisters became the first sisters to start side-by-side in NWSL. 

III. THIS SATURDAY: Lyon and Barcelona set for 2024 Champions League Final 🇫🇷🇪🇸🏆 (Saturday, May 25, 12 EST, DAZN)

This Saturday in Bilbao, Spain, two giants of the European game will square off for the Champions League trophy in the 23rd edition (and 15th since its renaming) of Europe’s preeminent women’s club football tournament. On one side, French juggernaut and eight-time champions, Lyon, look to reclaim the most prestigious title in European club competition. They’ll face the reigning champions Barcelona. Both sides are stacked with the world’s elite talent (US-based fans may keep an eye on US co-captain Lindsey Horan, who plays a key role for Lyon’s midfield). They enter the fray coming off smashing success in their regular seasons, as both teams won their respective league titles. Lyon clinched their 17th league title Friday with a 2-1 win over PSG. Barcelona also collected the Supercopa de España Femenina earlier this year, and clinched the Copa de la Reina this Saturday with a resounding 8-0 win over Real Sociedad. 

More: ‘Coach Sonia Bompastor on Lyon’s latest Women’s Champions League final’

PROGRAMMING NOTE: Join us after the final whistle of the Women’s Champions League final as Sam and Rog will be LIVE on our YouTube channel to break down all the action. Stay tuned to our social media for more details on that. 📺

Also: ‘Paralluelo setting the pace for Women’s Champions League finalists Barcelona’

IV. FIFA confirms Brazil to host Women’s World Cup 2027 🇧🇷🌎

Friday in Bangkok, FIFA members from across the globe gathered for the 74th FIFA Congress. As part of this year’s proceedings, the gathered representatives voted on the 2027 Women’s World Cup host, awarding the next edition to Brazil. The South American giants of football were selected over a joint European bid between Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, marking the first-ever women’s edition in South America. While the historic decision is worthy of excitement, it also comes just three years from the tournament’s start date: a stark contrast to the advanced planning provided to the men’s edition. 

More: ‘Women’s World Cup 2027: the two options set to define the future of women’s football’

V. News and Notes 📰🗞️

a. Arsenal will make Emirates Stadium their home stadium for the 2024-25 season. The remarkable news is a major step for the growth of England’s WSL and comes after another strong season for the Gunners, who finished third in WSL behind Chelsea and Manchester City. Throughout the year, the women’s side played intermittent games at Emirates to remarkable sellout crowds. Across all games and stadia, Arsenal averaged 30,000 fans per game, and reached highs of over 60,000 at the Emirates. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

b. FIFA has announced a new Club World Cup. The new 16 team tournament will feature the best clubs globally every four years, starting with the inaugural edition in January-February 2026. While the tournament is an exciting prospect at face value, Fifpro and various clubs have criticized the latest addition to an overstretched calendar, further straining footballers worldwide. From the BBC, ‘FIFA threatened with legal action over expanded calendar’. 🏆 

c. Legendary Dutch striker Vivianne Miedema is leaving Arsenal this summer. As the multi-year WSL top scorer and player of the year, many have wondered what was behind the decision to let the Dutch star go. More: ‘Why did Arsenal let Miedema leave on a free at 27?’ 🇳🇱

d. Bruce Mwape, the head coach of Zambia’s Women’s Football team has had new allegations of sexual harassment come out. The news comes after similar reports were made during last summer’s World Cup, and amid FIFA investigations into corruption at the Zambian Football Federation that could keep the Copper Queens from this summer’s Olympics. 🇿🇲 

e. The Chicago Red Stars’ USWNT star Mallory Swanson’s husband, Dansby Swanson, plays baseball for the Chicago Cubs, and wore a t-shirt saying “Mallory Swanson is good at soccer” to a recent batting practice. Truer words have never been spoken 🙌

VI. Parting Shots 🥃

Sold out crowds aren't just for first-tier women’s football. US fourth-tier team Detroit City FC opened its season at home before a joyous crowd this weekend. 

VII. Good Reads 📚

a. From Adam Millington in the Independent, ‘Vivianne Miedema was the personification of Arsenal’s greatest qualities, now they’re ready to move on without her’

b. From FIFPRO, ‘Why rest and recovery periods are needed in the international match calendar’

c. From Suzanne Wrack in The Guardian, ‘Fifa criticized for lack of mandatory rest periods in new women’s calendar’