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Gisele and Alyssa Thompson made their fourth starting lineup together for the U.S., a record for sisters. Ever since Alyssa left the NWSL for Chelsea in England, national team camp has been one of the few times we get updated dancing TikToks from the pair. Anyway, in today’s Full Time:
🥊 USWNT versus Japan continues
🗣️ Mary Earps reflects on England career
⁉️ A 21-0 scoreline
But first, let’s start with a game-changing appointment …
History-Making Hire: Union Berlin backs new coach
Marie-Louise Eta is no stranger to making history. Three years ago, she was promoted to interim assistant coach at Union Berlin, becoming the first woman on a coaching staff for a men’s Champions League match. Now, she’s the one in charge.
The club appointed Eta as its head coach through the end of the season, making her the first woman to land the top job at a men’s team in one of Europe’s five biggest leagues.
While Union Berlin’s fortunes may have changed — instead of battling for a place in Europe, they are mid-table, recovering from a loss to the worst team in Germany’s Bundesliga — Eta continues to find new heights. The 34-year-old replaces Steffen Baumgart after a 3-1 loss to bottom club Heidenheim.
But the move wasn’t made with history in mind. The club didn’t consciously decide to hire a woman, as Union’s president Dirk Zingler said three years ago.
Unfortunately, we can’t ever have nice things. The club has already received sexist comments regarding the appointment and Eta’s ability to lead. But Union “has her back,” it said on social media, and its director of football Horst Heldt called out the comments for being “embarrassing.”
Eta has been part of Union at multiple levels, including coaching the under-19s. She also won’t be long for this role, though, as she previously agreed to take over as head coach on Union’s women’s team starting this summer.
USWNT Watch: U.S. good but not great vs. Japan, Round 1
The U.S. women’s national team defeated Japan 2-1 on Saturday. Next up … Japan. The teams face off for the second of three matches this window tomorrow at 10 p.m. ET in Seattle.
Head coach Emma Hayes has plenty of new talent at her disposal to tinker with her lineup, players she’s given first caps to and developed in the last two years. But over the weekend, it was two veterans who steadied the team against a fierce opponent.
Midfielder Rose Lavelle, 30, opened the scoring in the ninth minute of her 100th career start with the U.S.
Lavelle later provided an assist to captain Lindsey Heaps, 31, in the 48th minute.
Sophia Wilson also made her long-awaited return, earning her first start and minutes since 2024 and becoming a mom.
This match was about the small details, things that might not be flashy to the casual viewer. So here’s Tamerra Griffin’s take:
💬 “The USWNT versus Japan isn’t a traditional rivalry, yet something about the first of the three-part series between the first- and fifth-ranked women’s teams in the world carried shades of a derby, as in: The anticipation was so high that it may have dampened the product, which was good but not always quality.
“It’s important — poetic, even — that the U.S. won by the same scoreline by which it lost to Japan at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup, and perhaps even more so that the match included prime-time experience for Gisele Thompson.
“Just like at last month’s SheBelieves Cup, the younger Thompson sister delivered, covering acres of space behind when Japan launched its attacking threats and exploiting the space ahead of her, which on one occasion led to the U.S.’s go-ahead goal.”
There was one moment Thompson may want to erase from her otherwise strong performance: In the 61st minute, Thompson’s position kept Riko Ueki onside, allowing her to convert Japan’s only goal. Still, Thompson is officially on our World Cup bubble watch list.
News to Know
Earps reflects on complex England career
After a controversial departure from the England national team, goalkeeper Mary Earps is back, nearly a year later, for a celebratory international retirement ceremony.
During her career, the 33-year-old has taken on Nike, and won, screamed “F— off” after saving a penalty in the World Cup final and caused a stir with an autobiography she’s ready to move on from. While she’s not done playing at the club level, tomorrow’s game against Spain in the Nations League World Cup qualifying tournament will bring a moment of reflection. It’s also time for Earps to look forward.
She has spent a lot of time in England recently, despite playing for Paris Saint-Germain in France, namely to work on various efforts to get more youth players involved in soccer.
Her latest project, KeepHer, is a partnership with the charity Foundation 92 aimed at giving girls free goalkeeping lessons.
“It’s not that I’m forcing goalkeeping on everyone,” Earps told Megan Feringa this week, but she is trying to close a gap that has made it harder for young players to get goalkeeping training.
No matter how complex her relationship with English soccer is — Earps herself admits she’s “not perfect”— there’s no doubt about the impact she’s already had and will continue to have on the sport.
More news
Get to know the USWNT’s keystone midfielder
U.S. women’s national team and Bay FC midfielder Claire Hutton is a student of the game. The 20-year-old, who is crucial for both her club and country, has always been that way. Growing up, she would spend hours studying her favorite players like any Gen Zer — on Youtube. Initially, her favorite players were Brazilians, the likes of Marta and Ronaldinho. You’ll want to listen to this interview before tomorrow’s game.
ACL tear fears, TikTok myths and the fight for credible women’s health science
A new era of sports science, in which women are not viewed through the prism of “little men,” is gradually emerging. But even with more funding, researchers are struggling to outpace athletes’, coaches’ and the public’s desires for answers. Megan Feringa spoke with several people in the women’s health space about the frustrating conundrum and what some are doing in the fight for credibility.
Catching up with Concacaf World Cup qualifiers
The U.S. women don’t start World Cup qualifying until November, thanks to their high FIFA ranking, but other nations in the region have already gotten started. At this stage of Concacaf qualifying, scores are a bit lopsided as smaller countries test their strength against programs with more funding.
Even still, Costa Rica’s 21-0 victory over the Cayman Islands turned heads. It was the country’s biggest win and a good starting point as it tries to earn a spot in its third World Cup. Two players, Fenerbahçe’s María Salas and Kansas City Current’s Rocky Rodríguez, recorded hat tricks, but it was Atletico Madrid’s Priscila Chinchilla who stole the show with her SEVEN goals. The three players were among eight different goal scorers against the Cayman Islands.
Elsewhere, Manchester City fans can smile as their striker, Bunny Shaw, seems to be doing fine after an injury scare last week. She scored three in Jamaica’s 4-0 win over Antigua and Barbuda.
What to Watch
📺 USWNT vs. Japan, twice
Tomorrow at 10 p.m. ET and Friday at 9 p.m. on TNT and truTV
The U.S. will likely roll out a similar lineup in the second match against Japan tomorrow, with a few minor changes, while the XI on Friday is anyone’s guess. Let’s just hope there’s a little more excitement in the follow-up matches. The good news for tomorrow: More than 35,000 tickets have been sold — putting the game on pace for a local record.
📺 England vs. Spain (World Cup qualifying match)
2 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network and Paramount+
Though immediate jeopardy has not been introduced to this part of the Nations League tournament, a matchup between Spain and England is always appointment viewing. Will England coach Sarina Wiegman play 17-year-old Erica Parkinson in her first camp with the senior team? Spain is on an impressive streak, having only lost twice in the last year. But both of those losses came at England’s feet.
Full Time First Looks
Not feeling blue: The Kansas City Current won their second consecutive Teal Rising Cup yesterday, dominating the friendly tournament they hold during international windows. Though it wasn’t a regular-season game, Temwa Chawinga did score her first goal since returning from the Season-Ending Injury list earlier this month. Tamerra wrote about her return and impeccable aura last week.
Horrible news: A Czech football coach secretly recorded 15 female players, the youngest 17 years old, showering and changing in locker rooms over a four-year period. Though he was banned from coaching in the country, he’s yet to be barred from the game completely. Charlotte Harpur has the full report and brave story directly from one of his former players.
A win for all: Last month, the WNBA and its players association reached an agreement on a “transformational” new collective bargaining agreement after months of negotiations. I enjoyed this piece from IX Sports’ Stephanie Kaloi, who writes about how the win is not just one for basketball, but soccer, too.
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This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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