Tag: 2023 World Cup

USWNT World Cup roster projection: It’s go time

We will soon know which 23 players will be on the plane to Australia and New Zealand

The time for speculating is nearly over as the U.S women’s national team’s final World Cup roster gets set to be revealed.

We should know next week which 23 players will be on the plane to Australia and New Zealand, as head coach Vlatko Andonovski gets down to the final decisions on his roster.

Like many other teams, the USWNT won’t arrive at the tournament at full strength. Sam Mewis, Catarina Macario and Mallory Swanson are out injured, while some like Rose Lavelle, Megan Rapinoe and Becky Sauerbrunn could face late fitness tests.

But even without a fully-fit group, the USWNT will be one of the biggest favorites as it aims to take home an unprecedented third straight World Cup title.

Here are the 23 players we project Andonovski to pick for his first World Cup roster.

Fox releases first 2023 Women’s World Cup commercial: ‘USA vs the World’

Some countries will go to any length to slow down the USWNT

Fox Sports has released its first commercial for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, featuring a host of U.S. women’s national team stars.

The ad, titled “USA vs. The World” features some of the USWNT’s biggest challengers at the upcoming World Cup devising ways to stop the two-time defending champions — often in humorous fashion.

Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Rose Lavelle, Crystal Dunn and Naomi Girma are the current USWNT stars who feature in the ad, along with former U.S. forward and current Fox analyst Carli Lloyd.

“Ever since our first World Cup in 2015, we have looked to consistently raise the bar in our campaigns spotlighting this special group of athletes,” said Fox Sports president of marketing Robert Gottlieb.

“With the U.S. women going for an unprecedented World Cup three-peat, we felt this was a great opportunity to have some fun with the idea that the whole world will be on a mission to take down the two-time defending champs.”

The commercial will debut on Saturday during Fox’s coverage of the Belmont Stakes, followed by MLB games featuring the Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs vs. San Francisco Giants.

Watch Fox’s 2023 Women’s World Cup ad

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2023 Women’s World Cup prize distribution guarantees money to players for first time

FIFA is, at long last, paying women’s players directly

For the first time ever, players at the Women’s World Cup will be guaranteed prize money.

FIFA announced a new breakdown of prize allocations for the 2023 World Cup, set for Australia and New Zealand in July and August. This tournament’s method for distributing money will break up the prizes into two pools: one for the association of each national team participating, and one for the players themselves.

“Under this ground-breaking new model, Participating Member Associations (PMAs) will receive record distributions to support football development in their countries, while all participating players will receive guaranteed remuneration for their achievements at the tournament,” said FIFA in a statement announcing the new distribution model.

“The initiative marks another concrete step taken by FIFA to develop women’s football and ensure players receive a fair deal, a commitment FIFA hopes sets a standard across the industry, from broadcasters to governments and beyond.”

For players with the U.S. women’s national team and other favorites like England, Australia, and Germany, professional wages and sponsorship opportunities mean these bonuses are welcome, but may not represent more money than they were already set to make this year.

However, for the majority of players on the majority of teams, even the smallest prize package ($30,000 to each player on a team eliminated in the group stage) will likely be the biggest windfall they’ve ever received from playing soccer. Even for someone making the NWSL minimum salary for 2023, which is $36,400, the smallest World Cup bonus would nearly double their wages for the year.

“FIFPRO is very pleased with the steps taken by FIFA in establishing this guaranteed player payment mechanism,” said David Aganzo, president of international players’ union FIFPRO. “The key behind the success of this model is that it is universally applied, and it is fair, which is what female footballers tell us they want above all else. We see this is as only the beginning of what will be a transformational journey for the women’s professional football landscape together with FIFA.”

Per-player prize money

Final Position Prize money
Group Stage $30,000
Round of 16 $60,000
Quarterfinal $90,000
Fourth place $165,000
Third place $180,000
Second place $195,000
Champion $270,000

Meanwhile, FIFA has raised the total prize pool given to the associations running the 32 national teams that qualified to a hair over $61 million, more than double the $30 million pool that was carved up between the 24 teams that played in the 2019 World Cup.

While that still leaves a gargantuan gap between what FIFA provides for the women’s World Cup as compared to the men’s (which got a $440 million pool in 2022) it does represent a substantial boost to the women’s game.

Participating Member Association prize money

Final Position Prize money
Group Stage $1,560,000
Round of 16 $1,870,000
Quarterfinal $2,180,000
Fourth place $2,455,000
Third place $2,610,000
Second place $3,015,000
Champion $4,290,000

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Budweiser is back at the World Cup after FIFA, AB InBev confirm partnership

Cheers!

When it comes to getting a beer at the World Cup, normal service has resumed.

FIFA on Thursday confirmed that AB InBev has renewed its contract with soccer’s governing body to be the official beer provider for this summer’s women’s World Cup as well as the 2026 men’s World Cup.

At last year’s World Cup in Qatar — a country that generally speaking doesn’t allow alcohol consumption at all — local organizers said they would allow for beer sales in limited time windows and only in specific spaces in stadiums, only to renege just days before the tournament began.

Despite knowing Qatar’s customs and laws, that outcome seemed to catch FIFA and AB InBev, who were all set to make sure everyone enjoyed as much Budweiser at games as they could get their hands on, totally off-guard. In the end, outside of specially licensed hotels, fans had to content themselves with a FIFA fan zone, and only during certain hours.

FIFA, AB InBev friendship back on

Nonetheless, it appears that there aren’t any hard feelings between the two multi-billion-dollar entities, which is nice for them.

“We are proud to renew this successful partnership, which will undoubtedly reach new heights in 2023 and 2026,” said FIFA Chief Business Officer Romy Gai in a press release. “As one of our longest-standing sponsors, AB InBev’s investment will benefit the game, as well as football development all over the world, while bringing creativity and excitement to the experience that football fans will have during our most iconic tournaments.”

“FIFA World Cup tournaments are the most popular sporting events in the world,” added AB InBev chief marketing officer Marcel Marcondes. “We are deeply connected to the fans and to football all over the world, which is why we’re excited about extending the relationship with FIFA.”

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Fox Sports unveils full 2023 World Cup broadcast team

JP Dellacamera and Aly Wagner will serve as the lead announcer pairing

Fox Sports has revealed its full broadcast team for the upcoming women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

For the second straight women’s World Cup, JP Dellacamera and Aly Wagner will be the lead announcer pairing, which will likely see them handle all of the U.S. women’s national team’s games.

John Strong, the lead play-by-play man for the men’s World Cup in Qatar, will also call games at the women’s World Cup, and will be joined by Kyndra de St. Aubin as the match analyst.

Just like for the men’s World Cup, Rob Stone will serve as the lead studio host. He’ll be joined by a rotating cast of studio analysts including lead analyst Alexi Lalas and former USWNT stars Carli Lloyd and Heather O’Reilly.

Making his World Cup debut after joining Fox from ESPN earlier this year, Chris “The Bear” Fallica will contribute to coverage as a wagering expert.

“This broadcast team builds on the tremendous success of our last two FIFA Women’s World Cup presentations and with 42 days to go until the opening match, we’re looking forward to having this group of acclaimed analysts, commentators, hosts and reporters shine on Fox Sports,” said David Neal, executive producer of the World Cup.

“Since 2015, Fox Sports has been America’s home for the most memorable moments in women’s soccer and this edition of the world’s greatest sporting event promises to deliver amazing storylines with the USWNT challenging for a third-straight World Cup victory against the biggest field in tournament history.”

A women’s World Cup-record 29 games will be on Fox’s broadcast network, with the other 35 set for FS1. Every game from the quarterfinal stage onward will be on Fox.

Fox Sports 2023 World Cup broadcasters

Studio Analysts

Carli Lloyd

Alexi Lalas

Karina LeBlanc

Kate Gill

Heather O’Reilly

Ariane Hingst

Stu Holden

Play-by-Play/Match Analysts

JP Dellacamera and Aly Wagner

Jacqui Oatley and Lori Lindsey

John Strong and Kyndra de St. Aubin

Kate Scott and Danielle Slaton

Jenn Hildreth and Warren Barton

Studio Host

Rob Stone

USWNT Insider

Jenny Taft

Feature Correspondent

Tom Rinaldi

Wagering Expert

Chris Fallica

Rules Analysts

Dr. Joe Machnik

Mark Clattenburg

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Angel City boss Coombe insists Ertz will be fit for USWNT World Cup roster

The midfielder has missed her team’s past two games with a thigh injury

Angel City head coach Freya Coombe believes Julie Ertz will be fit for the World Cup after the midfielder missed her team’s past two games with a thigh injury.

In her team’s most recent match, a 4-1 loss to OL Reign on Saturday, Ertz did not participate in warm-ups, indicating she likely had no chance of playing despite being in the matchday squad.

Time is of the essence for the 31-year-old, who is aiming to make the U.S. women’s national team World Cup squad after only recently returning from nearly two years away from the game.

Ertz has played just three times for Angel City after she signed in April, most recently appearing on May 13 in a loss to the Washington Spirit.

With less than a month until the USWNT World Cup roster is announced, Coombe said she is still confident that Ertz will be fit enough for selection.

“She will get there,” Coombe told the Los Angeles Times. “There’s one thing that I’ve learned about [in] my short time working with her is just her mentality. I think her mentality is such that she will absolutely get there.”

“I was surprised at the level that she came in at — in a good way,” Coombe added. “I do think that there’s another level for her to go in terms of her match fitness and just being to be up to speed with the games. There’s more room for her to go and then getting to that fifth gear.”

After Ertz was recalled to the USWNT in March, head coach Vlatko Andonovski cautioned that she wouldn’t be able to simply walk into her previous role as the team’s unquestioned starter at holding midfielder.

“Nothing is going to be given,” said Andonovski. “I also have to say, we’ve been very pleased with Andi Sullivan and her progression, so Julie coming in doesn’t mean that everyone moves on the side and Julie gets into that spot. I said earlier, she needs to come in, she needs to prove herself.”

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USWNT forward Macario will miss World Cup with knee injury

It’s a major blow for the USWNT and the 23-year-old star

U.S. women’s national team forward Catarina Macario has announced she’ll miss the 2023 World Cup amid an ongoing recovery from an ACL tear.

Macario suffered the injury in June 2022 during Lyon’s final match of the season, and she has not returned to the pitch since.

With just two months remaining until the World Cup, the 23-year-old posted on social media that she is not sufficiently recovered yet to take part in the tournament.

“While I’m excited and super optimistic about my future as a footballer, I’m sad to share that I won’t be physically ready for selection to our U.S. World Cup team,” she said on Tuesday.

“The desire to return to play for my club and country has driven my training and fueled my everyday life. However, what’s most important right now is my health and getting fit and ready for my next club season.

“I am eternally grateful to Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital for always supporting me and guiding me in my rehab, and to U.S. Soccer and [head coach] Vlatko Andonovski for prioritizing my long-term health over any individual and collective ambitions.

“I’ll be cheering hard for my teammates at the World Cup, and I look forward to dedicating myself to fight to earn a spot for what I hope will be a long future on the U.S. national team.”

A difficult recovery

Macario initially seemed like she’d have enough time to recover for the World Cup, with her injury coming 13 months before the tournament in Australia and New Zealand kicked off.

That idea was bolstered by Andonovski in February, as the USWNT boss said he was expecting to see Macario back on the field for Lyon in March.

But Macario’s recovery did not go according to plan from that point on, and Andonovski admitted in April that he wasn’t sure whether Macario would be fit for the World Cup.

Losing Macario is a big blow to a USWNT team that will already be without another of its top attacking players in Mallory Swanson.

Macario, who was born in Brazil and moved to the U.S. at age 12, debuted with the USWNT in 2021. She then starred for the team in 2022 playing as a false nine, scoring five goals in five appearances last year before her injury.

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Will the clock run out for Catarina Macario?

The USWNT forward is a few games away from missing the entire season with Lyon

Nobody has come out and explicitly said it yet, but things aren’t going to plan in Catarina Macario’s recovery from a torn ACL.

It’s been 11 months now since Macario suffered the injury during Lyon’s final match of the season. As Lyon nears the end of its following campaign, Macario is still nowhere to be found.

It’s an increasingly worrying development for club and country, as the clock continues to tick toward the World Cup this summer. Every day that goes by without Macario back on the pitch takes her closer to missing the chance to compete on the game’s biggest stage.

The recovery was supposed to be farther along for Macario, who debuted with the U.S. women’s national team in 2021 and really hit her stride in early 2022, scoring five goals in five appearances before her injury.

Macario played in a variety of roles but was especially devastating as a false nine, where she could create for teammates and get into prime goalscoring positions herself.

The injury halted Macario’s momentum but with more than a year to go before the World Cup, it seemed like she’d have plenty of time recover before Australia-New Zealand.

By February, Macario was still not back on the training pitch, but USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski offered an encouraging update.

“She’s going back to Lyon to start team training [in the] middle of February,” said the USWNT coach. “Hopefully we can see her starting playing for her club team sometime in the second half of March.”

Andonovski added that he expected Macario back for April camp.

When April camp arrived and Macario still wasn’t back, Andonovski offered a more cautious update.

“We have to see her on the field,” the coach said when asked about Macario’s chances of making the World Cup roster. “Cat has to get back in a professional environment, play professional games, competitive games, games that matter.”

One month after those comments, Macario has yet to make a matchday squad for Lyon, which now only has three games left of the season.

Even if Macario returns for Lyon before the season ends, taking her to the World Cup would be something of a risk. At the most she’d only have a couple “games that matter” under her belt in more than a year, none of which would have come with the USWNT since April 2022.

Macario is the kind of talent that’s worth taking a risk for, but at this point it’s unclear if she’ll be healthy enough for Andonovski to even consider. That would be a devastating blow for a player who looked certain to be a cornerstone for the USWNT’s title defense.

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Nearing return from injury, Press not giving up on World Cup dream

Press admitted her recovery “took a bit longer than I had hoped”

U.S. women’s national team forward Christen Press isn’t giving up on the World Cup, but admitted her recovery from an ACL tear has taken “a bit longer than I had hoped.”

Press tore her ACL in June 2022 during an NWSL match with Angel City FC. In March, the forward posted an update on her Instagram account that indicated she was forced to undergo additional surgeries.

“1 knee. 8 months. 3 surgeries,” Press said. “My unique journey. Relentless optimism + enduring hope. Little wins. Letting go.”

With the World Cup less than three months away and her return date still unknown, Press appears to be a longshot to make the USWNT roster. But in an interview with Futbol Americas, the 34-year-old said she is not giving up hope.

“It has been a unique recovery journey. I’ve had some setbacks and I’ve had some ups and downs,” Press said. “I think that’s normal. I think this took a bit longer than I had hoped up until now. But I’m in the final stretch of my recovery. I’m starting to feel like myself again, getting my body back. Hopefully I’ll be joining the team soon.”

Asked about a late run to the USWNT World Cup squad, Press said: “There has never been a moment where I lost hope or took my focus off of the World Cup from the moment that I got injured until now. It’s the North Star for all of us professional players and it’s a motivation.

“Obviously, the timing is really tough but I’m doing everything I can to get back as quickly as possible because it would be a dream come true to represent my country again at that level.”

Press has not played for the USWNT since the Olympics in 2021. Following the tournament in Japan, she took some time away from the game to focus on her mental health.

Just after her injury last summer, USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski said that Press would have been left off his CONCACAF W Championship roster even if she hadn’t suffered the ACL tear, citing the increased competition at the forward spot.

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Mewis: World Cup roster spot would make everything I’ve done in my life worth it

“If I don’t make this World Cup team, do I feel fulfilled in my career?”

Kristie Mewis has opened up about how badly she wants to make the U.S. women’s national team World Cup roster, saying a berth on the squad would change her life and how she views her career.

Mewis has been a regular with the USWNT in 2023, appearing in five of the team’s seven games. The Gotham FC midfielder is considered a likely bet to make the World Cup roster, but is far from a lock.

The 32-year-old played in her first major senior tournament with the USWNT in 2021, featuring in the Olympics in Japan. Should Mewis make the roster for Australia-New Zealand, it would be her first World Cup.

Appearing on the Snacks podcast, co-hosted by her younger sister Sam, Mewis admitted she has a lot riding on whether she makes Vlatko Andonovski’s 23-player squad.

“If I don’t make this World Cup team — this is so deep — but, do I feel fulfilled in my career?” she asked.

“That’s such a scary thought, being a bubble player and then I’ve also never really won anything. Yes, I won the [2020] Challenge Cup, but I’ve never won an NWSL championship. I’ve never won a college championship.

“I just feel like being named to this roster, like I everything that I’ve done my entire life will have been worth it — this is so deep, I hate it! But that’s actually how it feels to me and maybe it doesn’t seem that deep to other people.

“People who are locks [for the roster], they feel different pressure. Whereas I feel like this is actually going to change my life and change how I view my career. And that’s really hard to stomach every single day waiting for the roster to come out.”

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