Women's Soccer

NEW YORK - With a blockbuster 2023 that shows no sign of slowing down, United States forward Mallory Swanson has shed her early "wunderkind" image and unveiled what she calls a "Mal 3.0" version of herself ahead of this year's Women's World Cup.

The 24-year-old flicked her seventh goal of the year into the net at the SheBelieves Cup last month in an astonishing run that underlined her claim to a spot in the squad when the U.S. seek an unprecedented third straight World Cup title.

Arsenal defeated Bayern Munich 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium Wednesday to win 2-1 on aggregate in the Women’s Champions League quarterfinal.

The Gunners overcame a 1-0 first-leg deficit to reach the UWCL semifinals for the first time since 2013.

An out of this world goal from Norwegian midfielder Frida Maanum in the 19th minute sparked the comeback. 

Arsenal put together a quick succession of passes after regaining possession outside of Bayern’s box to set up Maanum. The 23-year-old took the shot first time and placed it into the top corner like an arrow.

Barcelona vs. Roma was the biggest mismatch of the Women's Champions League quarterfinals on paper, and so it proved over two legs as Barça stormed to a 6-1 aggregate victory over the Italian side.

After winning 1-0 in Rome last week, Barcelona scored five at the Camp Nou on Wednesday night through Fridolina Rolfö's brace and further goals from Mapi León, Asisat Oshoala and Patri Guijarro. 

Italy international Annamaria Serturini was able to score one for La Lupa in Catalonia. 

In an unexpected twist, Julie Ertz was named on the 26-player roster for the United States women’s national team’s pair of friendly games vs. Ireland in early April. If Ertz appears in either game, it will be her first appearance for club or country since the bronze medal match in the Tokyo Olympics on Aug. 5, 2021.

Ertz has been away from the game for over a year and a half due to injuries and the birth of her child, Madden, in August 2022.

Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas completed part of the training session with her Barcelona women's teammates on Monday as she continues to recover from a knee injury.

The Spain midfielder injured her knee in July before the women's European Championship.

"I'm glad to move on to the next phase of rehabilitation. I'm happy to be back training with the team," Putellas said on Monday. "It's a matter of patience, of continuing to work progressively with the team and getting back into shape."

We already knew that Alyssa Thompson was special. The 18-year-old made history when Angel City, with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft, made her the first-ever selection straight out of high school. 

Then, back on March 9, she scored her first goal for the club in a friendly win over América — a remarkable dribble from the center circle that left four defenders and the goalkeeper in her wake.

Opening weekend of the NWSL season continued Sunday with the Washington Spirit welcoming OL Reign to Audi Field, where Trinity Rodman brought the crowd to its feet with some sublime quality on the ball and a solo game-winner in the second half.

We had a scoreless opening 45 in the nation's capital, but Rodman established herself as the standout player with a couple brilliant moments. 

One run from deep inside her own half was finished with a backheel pass and half-chance for Ashley Hatch.