How the 2027 World Cup team is taking shape

The U.S. women’s national team is about to get on the plane to Brazil for crucial friendly matches one year before the 2027 Women’s World Cup. Who will be on the plane next June to represent the United States?

Answers to that question have become clearer in recent months as head coach Emma Hayes has refined her roster and focused on preparing a core of players for those moments. This trip and recent games against Japan are likely to be the most important litmus tests that Hayes will have to vet players’ readiness before the World Cup.

Hayes has proved to be a nimble coach who will take risks while also rewarding the current form of players. So, while her vision for the 2027 World Cup squad seems clearer, the roster as it stands today is also likely to change plenty over the next year based on how players perform for their clubs. And as Hayes often says about injuries and absences (there are still plenty of those), she can only choose from who is available.

It’s the perfect time to bring back ESPN’s USWNT Big Board.

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How the USWNT Big Board works

As a reminder, the purpose of this exercise is to pick the World Cup team as if the roster needed to be named today. That means players with significant or longer-term injuries wouldn’t be named to the roster.

Do we expect them to be there next year if they are healthy? Of course. But this exercise mimics the real world, where injuries happen at the worst time (like center back Becky Sauerbrunn picking up a knock right before the 2023 World Cup).

Forward Catarina Macario and midfielder Sam Coffey, for example, wouldn’t be on a World Cup roster named today, despite otherwise being locks and starters when healthy. Macario has not played in months because of a heel issue, and Coffey just underwent minor knee surgery.

Here’s how we categorize where players stand:

• Tier 1: Locks. Clear first-choice players who are contending for a starting role.

• Tier 2: In the squad. Not necessarily starters, but substitutes and players on the bench available to go into games.

• Tier 3: On the bubble. Young or less experienced players who have received call-ups and shown promise, or veterans yet to really establish their international careers.

• Tier 4: Outside looking in. Players who were previously part of the picture but now appear to be out of favor, or young players who are less proven at the senior level but are on Hayes’ radar.

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Goalkeepers

Dickey appeared to emerge as the favorite for the starting goalkeeper spot in the most recent window as she started two of the three games — both victories — against Japan. Dickey and Tullis-Joyce remain locked in a battle for the starting job.

But who’s in line for the No. 3 spot? Campbell got off to a hot start with the Houston Dash this season and jumped back into the role, but she (and the Dash) have recently made oodles of mistakes. Campbell’s profile has fallen dramatically over these past few weeks. Meanwhile, McGlynn has been on fire for Utah, including some big stops in a recent win over Angel City FC with Hayes in attendance.

Smith has arguably been the best all-around goalkeeper in the NWSL this year, especially for her ability to spark the Denver Summit‘s attack. Silkowitz is a younger, energetic shot-stopper who recently joined the U-23 women’s team as an overage player.

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Fullbacks

Fox is among the sport’s elite at the position, and Thompson has turned the corner from a young, raw talent with potential to someone who’s showing she is ready for much more responsibility. She told ESPN’s Futbol W recently that she has focused on her nutrition, stretching and even using the bike at halftime to improve her durability.

Thompson’s surge coincided with a poorly timed minor injury to Reale, who looked like the favorite for the starting left back role. The arrival of Norwegian Guro Reiten at Gotham FC has further put a dent in Reale’s playing time.

Patterson is still an exceptional individual talent, but Houston’s defensive woes lately have made club life difficult. Oke is the wild card in the group and has been in and around both the senior and U-23 USWNT environment. Her aggressive attacking disposition, and willingness to overlap and combine, will keep commanding Hayes’ attention.

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Center backs

Girma and Davidson is probably Hayes’ preferred starting duo if they are both healthy, as we said in our 2027 World Cup lineup predictions. Sonnett remains the steady option who is always ready and available.

Wesley’s profile has risen dramatically over the past few months with exemplary play (and goal scoring) for both club and country. Wesley is aggressive on the ball as she sets the attack, much like Girma.

Rudd is still in the mix and has been solid for the surging Washington Spirit, but she didn’t make the recent camp roster for matches against Japan. Bugg, 19, looks like the long-term option, but her recent battle with injury set back a potential push for a significant role in 2027. There’s still time for that to change, but Bugg missed some important recent matches.

Meanwhile, Sams remains a steady presence on camp rosters despite earning only 10 caps in late 2024 (after earning an Olympic gold medal without making an appearance).

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Midfielders

• Locks: Rose Lavelle, Lindsey Heaps, Claire Hutton, Lily Yohannes, Jaedyn Shaw

• In the squad: Olivia Moultrie

• On the bubble: Croix Bethune, Sam Meza, Riley Jackson, Hal Hershfelt

• Outside looking in: Korbin Shrader, Lo’eau LaBonta, Kimmi Ascanio, Taylor Huff, Gia Corley

In the spirit of this being an exercise in naming the World Cup roster today, Lavelle’s inclusion is a conundrum. She has sat out the past couple of weeks for Gotham because of a hamstring injury, and it’s unclear how serious it is.

If there’s even a chance that you can name Lavelle to the roster and have her back by mid-tournament, you do it (see: 2023). This isn’t as risky for a World Cup as it is for an Olympics, such as when Megan Rapinoe came back for the 2016 Games, but wasn’t quite ready.

Coffey’s absence would make Hutton an automatic starter at defensive midfield and force her to be the main option there. Between Coffey’s absence and the uncertainty around Lavelle’s hamstring, this roster would need added midfield depth.

Moultrie has been the best player in the NWSL this season, and she has an audacious creativity similar to Lavelle. Shaw is equally versatile, capable of playing across most of the front six positions. And Bethune deserves to be back in the picture based on her performances with the Kansas City Current.

With Coffey hurt, would Meza or Hershfelt suddenly be thrust into the picture out of necessity? Or would Hayes go all-in with Hutton, and lean on Heaps and Yohannes to provide balance?

Shrader played an important box-to-box role in the 2024 Olympics but hasn’t been called up to the U.S. senior team or the U-23s in nearly a year despite earning regular minutes for OL Lyonnes.

And don’t forget about Corley, who is a dual national born in Washington state. She spent her youth national team career with Germany before suddenly joining the U.S. U-23s last year. The creative, attacking midfielder has had some injury issues, but her ceiling is high. The biggest question: Does she want to play for the U.S. at the senior level?

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Forwards

• Locks: Alyssa Thompson, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson

• In the squad: Ally Sentnor

• On the bubble: Emma Sears, Michelle Cooper, Jameese Joseph, Yazmeen Ryan, Mallory Swanson

• Outside looking in: Ashley Sanchez, Jordynn Dudley, Pietra Tordin, Riley Tiernan, Kat Rader

Alyssa Thompson’s rise over the past year cannot be understated. After missing out on the Olympics, Thompson is arguably the first name on the team sheet for Hayes even in a crowded, deep pool of forwards. She has the confidence to run at defenders one-on-one and the technical precision to finish the opportunities she generates.

Wilson seamlessly reintegrated into the team upon her return from maternity leave during the last window. She is the starting No. 9 again, especially with Macario injured. Rodman is also a lock on the other wing to complete the front three.

Swanson just returned from maternity leave for the Chicago Stars, which will further crowd the forward line. By this time next year, Swanson probably will be blazing past defenders again and making her case for a starting role to restore the famed “Triple Espresso.” But if the World Cup roster were being named today, Hayes would have another tough call to make considering Swanson just returned to the field Saturday for the first time in 18 months.

Meanwhile, Cooper has been sensational on the wing for the Kansas City Current. Ryan might be the Denver Summit’s best player of late, a run of form that began when Hayes showed up to watch in person. Further outside the bubble, Sanchez and Dudley have been among the best American forwards in NWSL this season.

Where does that leave Sears? Two months ago, Hayes was lauding Sears and saying she would be the first player off the bench if the World Cup started today. But earlier this month, Sears was relegated to the bench for a struggling Racing Louisville — and she came on and scored immediately in a crucial win.

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USWNT squad if the World Cup started today

Goalkeepers: Phallon Tullis-Joyce, Claudia Dickey, Mandy McGlynn

Defenders: Naomi Girma, Tierna Davidson, Emily Fox, Gisele Thompson, Avery Patterson, Emily Sonnett, Kennedy Wesley

Midfielders: Rose Lavelle, Lily Yohannes, Lindsey Heaps, Claire Hutton, Jaedyn Shaw, Olivia Moultrie, Croix Bethune

Forwards: Alyssa Thompson, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson, Ally Sentnor, Michelle Cooper, Emma Sears

Assuming a 23-player roster, the toughest calls are as follows:

Wesley edges out Sams at center back based on current form and superior chemistry with Girma. Patterson also narrowly gets the nod over Reale based on recent minutes to provide fullback depth, and Hayes rolls the dice by knowing she can turn to the ever-reliable Sonnett at fullback if any of Fox, Gisele Thompson or Patterson are injured.

In midfield, Lavelle still needs to be on the plane based on the current injury information we have (which isn’t a lot, so if it is a longer-term thing, that blows up the midfield). Moultrie and Bethune will provide cover there, but Hutton now must shoulder the entire burden in defensive midfield. Similarly, Sonnett could provide cover there if there’s a group-stage opponent that allows for rotation.

Cooper and Sears both get the nod to provide depth on the wing, especially because of the demand of those positions. But the reality a year from now might be choosing one of them to join a fully fit Swanson.