Women's Soccer

LONDON — Rebecca Welch will become the first female referee to officiate a Premier League match when she takes charge of Fulham's home game against Burnley on Dec. 23.

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) confirmed the appointment on Thursday and also said Sam Allison would become the first Black official to take charge of a Premier match for 15 years.

Allison will be the referee for Sheffield United v Luton Town on Dec. 26.

Premier League female referee

One in five players were the target of online abuse during the 2023 Women's World Cup, FIFA said on Monday as a package of social media protection tools hid nearly 117,000 comments.

The Social Media Protection Service (SMPS), developed by the world governing body with players' union FIFPRO and launched at the 2022 men's World Cup, was offered to teams at the women's finals in Australia and New Zealand, FIFA said in June.

One of the biggest “What-ifs” for the United States women’s national team in 2023 is what would the year have looked like if star forward Mallory Swanson didn’t suffer a knee injury in April.

During a friendly against Republic of Ireland Swanson’s 2023 World Cup dreams were shattered after suffering a gruesome tear to the patellar tendon in her left knee. She hasn’t played for the USWNT or the Chicago Red Stars since.

Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands have submitted a joint bid to world soccer governing body FIFA to host the Women's World Cup in 2027, the countries' football associations said on Friday.

Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands will face competition from Brazil, who are looking to bring the @FIFAWWC to South America for the first time. pic.twitter.com/VJMEVW4glL

Angel City FC signed 18-year-old defender Gisele Thompson through the 2025 NWSL season.

The deal announced Thursday includes an option for 2026 for the Los Angeles native, who becomes the youngest player ever to sign with the club.

Thompson is currently a senior at Harvard-Westlake School in Studio City, Calif. She is the younger sister of Angel City's 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick, Alyssa Thompson.

Christine Sinclair bid an emotional farewell to international soccer on Tuesday with one final match that brought an end to a superlative career in which she catapulted the Canadian national women's team from obscurity to Olympic champions.

The result of the friendly, a 1-0 win over Australia played in Sinclair's home province of British Columbia, did not matter as the night was all about celebrating Canada's most successful soccer player of all time.

The United States women’s national team ended the 2023 calendar year with a 2-1 comeback victory vs. China on Tuesday.

Interim head coach Twila Kilgore utilized an interesting 3-4-2-1 formation that had a blend of familiar names and newcomers.

Unfortunately, the first half reflected just that: Many players who haven’t played much time together in a formation they didn’t appear comfortable in. There was little to discuss about the USWNT’s attack in the first half.

Ali Krieger hung up her boots as the 39-year-old defender ended her career with a punctuation mark after lifting the NWSL Championship with Gotham FC. The United States women’s national team got a chance to say thanks to the U.S. legend before a friendly vs. China on Tuesday.

Krieger’s 108th and final appearance with the national team came in January 2021 and U.S. Soccer did the right thing in organizing a proper ceremony for the stalwart defender.

Here was the moment Krieger received her flowers and thanks from the USWNT.

GLASGOW — England's Lionesses thrashed Scotland 6-0 on Tuesday but it was not enough to keep alive Team Great Britain's dreams of a Paris Olympic berth after late drama saw the Netherlands pip them to top spot in their Nations League group.

Lucy Bronze scored a last-gasp goal for the Lionesses, who briefly celebrated, believing it was enough to win Group A1 and move into the Nations League semi-finals, but the Netherlands' Damaris Egurrola netted twice in added time as they beat Belgium 4-0 to clinch top spot.

New faces graced the pitch for the United States women’s national team on Saturday during their 3-0 victory vs. China, however there were a serious lack of faces in the stands of DRV PNK Stadium.

Saturday’s game in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was technically the first game of the Emma Hayes era as the new head coach will join the squad next year. 

Big names like Alex Morgan, Crystal Dunn, Alyssa Naeher and Becky Sauerbrunn were left off the roster as the USWNT begin preparation for the 2024 Paris Olympics.