And we're back! Get ready for Seattle Reign!

The Courage are poised for an intriguing – and potentially higher scoring – finish to their season, welcoming Kerolin back from injury and three new players to the squad. New additions include forward Cortnee Vine and defender Charlotte McLean, from Sydney (Cortnee also served on Australia’s national team, who had the best jerseys in the Olympics, regardless of what you have been told by any other news source), and Brazilian forward Aline Gomes.

There’s all sorts of exciting updates from around the NWSL as well, because nothing is ever dull in this league.

But first, let’s enjoy the Courage’s highlight reel of Marisa Bova’s saves in July, while she was filling in for Casey Murphy.

Look ahead: Courage v. Seattle Reign

Well. This match should tell us a lot.

Of course, the Courage beat Seattle 1-0 at home back in April. Since then, the usually-perennially-dominant Reign have muddled through the 2024 season. They are sitting next to last on the table, only two points above expansion side Utah Royals, and a full three points behind the next team, Houston Dash. In short, they’ve struggled to put together convincing wins this season.

Working in Seattle’s favor are a few factors. First, the Courage have struggled to put together a road win during the regular season, and historically struggle on the West Coast. Additionally, this Sunday will be Megan Rapinoe’s jersey retirement ceremony, and the team is opening up additional stadium seating, expecting a large turnout. As Katie points out in our podcast this week, never underestimate the extra motivation of a major event like this.

And both teams have had roster changes during the international break. On the Seattle side, Swiss forward Ana-Maria Crnogorčević has joined the squad, coming from Atlético Madrid (and a dominant Barcelona side before that), and is part of the Swiss national team. Joining her will be Hatian forward Nérilia Mondésir, who did a long stint with Montpellier HSC.

They also acquired midfielder Jaelin Howell and $50,000 in allocation money from Racing Louisville, in exchange for forward Bethany Balcer.

Kansas City acquired defender Alana Cook for $115,000 in allocation money. And Ryanne Brown has been placed on the season ending injury list, following an ACL tear against Utah.

So, we’re about to see a great Courage squad up against a previously mediocre Seattle side, with both teams adding some forward firepower.

The Courage need to start racking up some road wins to maintain a solid playoff position. I’m excited to see how it shakes out.

Courage news and updates

• Roster changes:

  • The Courage waived defender Jenna Winebrenner, who was on an injury contract. She joined USL Super League club Dallas Trinity FC.

  • Defender Julia Dorsey was also loaned to Dallas Trinity FC for the remainder of the 2024 NWSL season. In the linked announcement, head coach Sean Nahas says this is a good opportunity for her to get more minutes. Dorsey is coming off a 2023 ACL tear in college.

  • Another draft pick, defender Talia Staude, has been loaned to Tampa Bay Sun FC through December 2024. It’s worth noting we needed to make additional room on our roster, and loans are an effective way to do this while evaluating players that might earn more minutes in the 2025 season.

  • Kerolin Nicoli should be back from her ACL injury, although she had another injury coming out of the Olympics, and we haven’t seen an availability report at the time of publication.

  • In a wonderful surprise, midfielder / team captain Denise O’Sullivan agreed to a 2-year extension through 2026. Some rumors earlier this year indicated Sully was entertaining offers by European clubs. A mid-season confirmation that she is renewing – rather than a protracted post-season negotiation – is a huge boost for the Courage. It adds a sense of stability for the remainder of this season, as well as reassurance to current teammates and potential incoming free agents as we begin to think about shaping our team for the next two years.

  • The Courage signed Brazilian forward Aline Gomes. She scored nine goals in 13 games in the 2024 season, and should add some firepower up front for the Courage.

  • This was previously announced, but since it’s been a minute, a reminder that Australia players Cortnee Vine and Charlotte McLean have joined the squad and should be ready to go this week.

• Midfielders Riley Jackson and Manaka Matsukubo were called up to the Under-20 Women’s World Cup, representing the United States and Japan, respectively. Games are slated Aug. 31 – Sep. 22 in Colombia.

• During the Olympics, Christian Brooks did a nice profile on Feli Rauch and her love of music in Beats and Rhymes FC, highlighting her time with the Courage. She played the ukulele!

• TIME CHANGE: the Courage announced that the September 13 match against Bay FC start time has moved up to 7p ET.

Thanks for making it this far. Here’s Charlotte McClean eating a hot dog for the first time.

Around the league and beyond

• Carolina Ascent sold out their home opener and beat DC Power, marking the historic first win for any team in the USL Super League. They also set a record for attendance at a women’s club in the Carolinas with 10,553 fans. We’re sending them best wishes!

• Lyndsey D’Arcangelo wrote in Awful Announcing that ION is creating a brand new studio for its weekly NWSL and WNBA shows, indicating its further commitment to covering women’s sports.

• Abdullah Abdullah for the Equalizer wrote a good write-up of Hayes’ system for the USWNT; and specifically noted Crystal Dunn and former Courage player Emily Fox are syncing up well together in the new system.

• Minnesota Aurora dropped their bid to become an NWSL expansion team in 2026. Their bid was complicated by their fan ownership structure, but the announcement makes clear they are still interested in a pro team and suggests their investment group is ready to go.

• Angel City signed British national team midfielder, and former Manchester United Women captain Katie Zelem. It’s noteworthy both because it’s felt rare this year for British players to join NWSL, rather than the other way around. And because it’s Angel City’s first big move since the announcement of their ownership group change.

That’s it for this week! As always, you can get in touch with tips, suggestions, corrections and more: [email protected].

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