The recent Netflix documentary Under Pressure delved into the process of selecting an elite squad of soccer players for the U.S. bid for the 2023 World Cup (which was ultimately cut short during a heartbreaking round of sixteen exits). Now, it's selection time — and, this time it's for the 2024 Olympics.
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| US women's soccer Olympics |
In less than 4 months, new head coach Emma Hayes will select Eighteen players to take to France for the Paris Olympics. Zambia was just announced as the 4th and final team in the US. Olympic draw (along with Germany and Australia), raising a lot of questions about who will be on the roster.
So how is the roster selected, and who has made it to the final? Here's what we know so far.
How is the U.S. women's Olympic team selected? New head coach Emma Hayes will take over the team in May (she must first finish her duties at Chelsea Football Club in the UK). The interim coach is Twila Kilgore, who will replace Vlatko Andonovski, and who resigned from the team after the 2023 World Cup.
Right now, the U.S. women's team has Twenty-three players on its roster, but that number needs to be cut to Eighteen. Twila confirmed to The Athletic that she plans to travel to England to meet with Emma and discuss the team's approach to the Olympics.
Who was on the U.S. women's team during the last Olympics? Here’s a rundown of the U.S. women’s national team roster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which was moved to 2021 because of the pandemic:
- Adrianna Franch
- Alyssa Naeher
- Abby Dahlkemper
- Tierna Davidson
- Crystal Dunn
- Kelley O’Hara
- Becky Sauerbrunn
- Emily Sonnett
- Julie Ertz
- Lindsey Horan
- Rose Lavelle
- Kristie Mewis
- Samantha Mewis
- Tobin Heath
- Carli Lloyd
- Alex Morgan
- Christen Press
- Megan Rapinoe
But we won’t see some of these faces again. Carli Lloyd retired in 2021 at age 39. Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz retired in 2023 after the World Cup loss, and Sam Mewis left the sport in early 2024 after a nagging knee injury.
