The GIST: The 11th annual SheBelieves Cup — an international four-team friendly tournament hosted by the USWNT — begins in Nashville, TN, on Sunday, featuring the world No. 2 Americans, No. 10 CanWNT, No. 20 Colombia, and No. 30 Argentina. 2025 was a year of experimentation for both the USWNT and CanWNT, but now it’s go time.
👀 SheBelieves is just the beginning: The USWNT and CanWNT head coaches (HCs) were in reset mode last year, adding numerous new players to their talent pools without the pressure of a major international tourney on the calendar. While SheBelieves is a friendly competition, it features four fierce squads who’ll likely feature in the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup — if they qualify, of course.
- For the USWNT and CanWNT, those high-stakes qualifiers will come this November at the Concacaf W Championship, making SheBelieves the perfect place to start determining which players are roster-worthy.
🇺🇸 Trinity Rodman, Naomi Girma lead the red, white, and blue: If you’re not familiar with all 26 names on the USWNT roster, have no fear: HC Emma Hayes has debuted 32 new players in her 32 games since 2024, expanding the player pool to include footballers like new goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce (four caps) competing alongside veterans, like midfielder Rose Lavelle (116 caps).
- Speaking of, this SheBelieves roster features a mix of the old guard and new, allowing players like forward Rodman and defender Girma to further ascend as leaders. Perhaps one of them will rock the captain’s armband Sunday at 5 p.m. ET vs. Argentina.
