UPDATES: Kansas City Current defender Hailie Mace replaced Kelley O'Hara and Racing Louisville midfielder Savannah DeMelo replaced Trinity Rodman on the U.S. Women's National Team roster.
U.S. Women’s National Team head coach Vlatko Andonovski has named a 23-player roster ahead of the USWNT's match against Nigeria on Sept. 3 at Children's Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas. Kick off is set for 12:30 p.m. CT with coverage beginning at noon CT on FOX and tickets are available at ussoccer.com.
“All the players on the roster performed well in Mexico at qualifying and have carried that form for their clubs, so we’ll continue the process of growing as a team with this group,” said Andonovski. “Preparing for the World Cup is a long process, and I’ve been very happy with how our team understands that process, is willing to do the work and is making positive strides every camp to get us to where we want to be next summer.”
Winners of four FIFA World Cups and four Olympic Games, the U.S. qualified for its ninth consecutive World Cup at the Concacaf W Championship this summer and defeated Canada in the final to earn a berth to the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Sept. 3 friendly will be the first domestic match for the USWNT since qualifying for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, which will kick off in less than a year in Australia and New Zealand. Nigeria also qualified for a ninth consecutive Women’s World Cup, earning its berth earlier this summer at the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
The U.S. Women's National Team roster features seven players who helped the United States win the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, including captain Becky Sauerbrunn as well as forwards Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe who rank in the USWNT's top five all-time for goals and assists, respectively.
The match in Kansas City also brings the USWNT back to Andonovski’s home area for the second time since he became head coach at the end of 2019. Andonovski, a graduate of Park University, won two NWSL championships in KC during his five seasons as head coach of FC Kansas City from 2013-2017 in addition to being a past player and coach for the Kansas City Comets.
U.S. Women's National Team roster by position (club)
- GOALKEEPERS (3): Aubrey Kingsbury (Washington Spirit), Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars)
- DEFENDERS (6): Alana Cook (OL Reign), Emily Fox (Racing Louisville FC), Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave FC), Sofia Huerta (OL Reign), Hailie Mace (Kansas City Current), Becky Sauerbrunn (Portland Thorns FC)
- MIDFIELDERS (8): Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns FC), Savannah DeMelo (Racing Louisville), Lindsey Horan (Olympique Lyon), Taylor Kornieck (San Diego Wave FC), Rose Lavelle (OL Reign), Kristie Mewis (NJ/NY Gotham FC), Ashley Sanchez (Washington Spirit), Andi Sullivan (Washington Spirit)
- FORWARDS (6): Ashley Hatch (Washington Spirit), Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave FC), Mallory Pugh (Chicago Red Stars), Midge Purce (NJ/NY Gotham FC), Megan Rapinoe (OL Reign), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns FC)
Kansas City, recently announced as a host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, has hosted the USWNT nine times since the team’s inaugural visit in 1999. The U.S. Women’s National Team has a 5-0-4 record in KC and a 3-0-2 record in five previous matches at Children’s Mercy Park, most recently playing South Korea in front of a sold-out crowd on Oct. 21, 2021.
The world-class home of Sporting Kansas City (MLS) and the Kansas City Current (NWSL), Children’s Mercy Park also hosted the U.S. Men’s National Team in June for an international friendly against Uruguay. The U.S. Men’s and Women’s National Teams are 15-0-6 in Kansas City and 11-0-4 at the state-of-the-art stadium.
