The U.S. women’s national team begins its most important task of 2022 early next month at the CONCACAF W Championship, and will do so with a heavy Washington Spirit influence.
Seven of the 23-player USWNT roster Vlatko Andonovski assembled earlier this week for that tournament and friendlies against Colombia play for the 2021 NWSL champions. No other club contributed more than four players to this squad, and four NWSL teams were shut out entirely.
In an interview conducted over email with Pro Soccer Wire, Spirit co-captains Aubrey Kingsbury and Andi Sullivan both said that there are clear benefits to the kind of familiarity that fosters that can be applied with the USWNT and in NWSL.
“We all have high aspirations, not just for the Spirit, but representing our country in the upcoming World Cup and Olympics,” said Kingsbury. “We’re kind of in it together on both fronts, the national team and the Spirit.”
“I do think it’s beneficial any time you get players that know each other and are familiar with each other, which is very common with the national team,” added Sullivan, who noted that at the USWNT level, there tends to be some familiarity from youth national team play, college soccer, or the frequency of seeing one another in NWSL play.
While much has been made of the Spirit’s emergence over the past three seasons, Kingsbury and Sullivan both joined the team in 2018, a disastrous season in which the club set the NWSL record for minutes without a goal twice, and won just two times in 24 games.
It’s been a long, difficult road from those tough times to becoming the team supplying over 30% of the USWNT squad for a competitive tournament.
“It’s incredible,” said Kingsbury, who after three seasons on the fringes of the national team appears to have carved out a more secure niche. “Having seven players on the national team, it’s an intense, competitive training environment (with the Spirit). Now when I go to the national team it’s like ‘Oh, this is the Washington Spirit here!'”
“Teams that are making playoffs, making finals, winning finals, you look good,” said Sullivan. “I think that speaks to the culture of the Spirit and what we’ve been able to do the last year especially given a lot of difficulties.”
Looking ahead to the W Championship, Sullivan says she’s been paying attention to the growth of Liga MX Femenil, which has been drawing big crowds and improving the Mexican women’s national team. In typical USWNT fashion, though, she sees the challenge of a hostile environment as one to look forward to.
“I’m looking forward to playing against a rowdy crowd. I think we’re used to rowdy crowds in the U.S. but obviously they’re for us,” explained Sullivan. “I’m looking forward to feeling that heat both from the climate and from the Mexican fans.”
Despite the similarity in club background, Kingsbury and Sullivan enter this camp in different positions. Kingsbury has only recently emerged as a possible back-up to Alyssa Naeher, getting her first cap in April after numerous call-ups and camp invites.
For Kingsbury, the competition to stay in the frame is demanding.
“It’s definitely a very competitive environment,” said Kingsbury of being in USWNT camps. “The standards are high. We get there early, (goalkeepers) start training before the rest of the team does… It’s a fun, challenging environment to be in because we all demand perfection.”
Sullivan’s situation is a bit different. She has emerged as the USWNT’s first-choice defensive midfielder, starting 10 of the team’s last 11 games and receiving hearty backing from Andonovski on Friday. However, she isn’t taking her place for granted.
“I’m obviously more excited to be getting more playing time and more starts with the national team. It’s great to have opportunities but it doesn’t guarantee anything,” said Sullivan. “My role with the national team is to do whatever the team needs and I feel like that’s the same with the Spirit. ‘Whatever best way I can serve the team that will help the team win’ is always the approach I’m gonna take.”
In terms of what they expect out of the USWNT over the next few weeks, the answer is simple: win.
“Just given the expectations this team has for itself, first place is the only acceptable outcome,” said Sullivan. “Hopefully, we can focus on the little things that will make that happen and have everything else take care of itself.”
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