2023 U.S. Women’s World Cup Soccer Team & How to Follow Them (PHOTOS)
The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team has an all-star lineup for the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The global tournament will mark soccer legend Megan Rapinoe‘s last games, and she — along with Alex Morgan, Alyssa Naeher, and other returning members of the team — are all hoping to pull off a hat trick with a third consecutive FIFA Women’s World Cup victory (they previously won in 2019 and 2015). This year’s tournament marks many teams’ fourth appearances at the global competition. There have been eight total FIFA Women’s World Cups, of which the U.S. team has won four.
The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup kicks off on Thursday, July 20, in Australia and New Zealand, marking the first time the global tournament has had more than one host country. Additionally, the tournament will feature a new 32-team format.
Kelley O’Hara, Julie Ertz, Crystal Dunn, Emily Sonnett, Lindsey Horan, and Rose Lavelle are also part of the 2023 USWNT. Here, meet the full roster of players, including their positions, ages, World Cup histories, records, and where to follow them on Instagram. And check out the tournament TV schedule airing on Fox and FS1.
Megan Rapinoe #15
Position: Forward
Age: 38
Hometown: Redding, California
Club: OL Reign
World Cup Wins: 2
Instagram: @mrapinoe
President Joe Biden awarded Rapinoe the Medal of Freedom in July 2022, the U.S.’s highest civilian honor, thanks to her activist work advocating for equal pay in sports. She is the first soccer player to receive the honor. Rapinoe ranks in the Top 10 in USWNT history for both goals and assists and, in 2019, won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot at the World Cup, the Best FIFA Women’s Player of the Year, the France Football Ballon d’Or, and the Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year awards. On July 8, 2023, Rapinoe announced this season would be her last. She has made 63 goals and 73 assists.
Alex Morgan #13
Position: Forward
Age: 34
Hometown: Diamond Bar, California
Club: San Diego Wave FC
World Cup Wins: 2
Instagram: @alexmorgan13
Morgan ranks in the top 10 in United States Women’s National Soccer Team history in goals, assists, and multi-goal games. In November 2022 in a game against Germany, she became the 13th player in the history of the USWNT to reach 200 caps (“earning a cap” means a player was selected to represent their country in an international match). Morgan helped Team USA win the gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics thanks to her key goal in the semifinal game against Canada. Morgan has made 121 goals and 49 assists.
Alyssa Naeher #1
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 35
Hometown: Stratford, Connecticut
Club: Chicago Red Stars
World Cup Wins: 2
Instagram: @alyssanaeher
Naeher first appeared in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In the 2019 World Cup, Naeher only allowed three goals by USWNT opponents and earned four shutouts. Her shutout against the Netherlands in the Championship match led to USWNT winning the World Cup that year. She’s the fifth goalkeeper in history to pull out a shutout in a World Cup final. Naeher ranks third all-time in U.S. history for caps, wins, and shutouts for a goalkeeper. She has 53 cleansheets under her belt.
Alana Cook #12
Position: Defender
Age: 26
Hometown: Far Hills, New Jersey
Club: OL Reign
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @alana.cook
Cook more than tripled her caps and starts in her first 15 games for the USWNT in 2022. She started all 15 and played the full 90 minutes in 12 of those matches. She received NWSL Best XI First Team honors and was a finalist for NWSL Defender of the Year for OL Reign in 2022. Cook helped Team USA qualify for both the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and the 2024 Summer Olympics at the 2022 Concacaf W Championship.
Alyssa Thompson #7
Position: Forward
Age: 18
Hometown: Studio City, California
Club: Angel City FC
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @alyssthomp
At 17 years and 334 days old in October 2022, Thompson became the 70th teenager all-time to play for the national team and the youngest player to make their Team USA debut since Mallory Pugh in 2016. She made her USWNT debut coming in for Rapinoe in the 84th minute of the October 7, 2022 game against England.
Andi Sullivan #17
Position: Midfielder
Age: 28
Hometown: Lorton, Virginia
Club: Washington Spirit
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @sunnysulli
Sullivan earned her first four caps in October 2016 before suffering an ACL injury. After she returned, she earned more caps each year from 2017-2020. After the delayed 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, she was a consistent presence on the U.S. team. Sullivan also played in two youth World Cups (2012 and 2014).
Ashley Sanchez #2
Position: Midfielder
Age: 24
Hometown: Monrovia, California
Club: Washington Spirit
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @ashley.sanchez
Sanchez was previously named the U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year in 2016 and was a longtime member of the U.S. Women’s Youth National Teams. That year, she made history when playing in both the FIFA Under-17 (during which she served as captain) and Under-20 Women’s World Cups in the same season. She debuted on the USWNT in 2021 and helped the U.S. qualify for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Aubrey Kingsbury (Bledsoe) #21
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 31
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Club: Washington Spirit
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @aubreybledsoe
Formerly Aubrey Bledsoe, Kingsbury debuted on the USWNT in April 2022. In that game, she made history as the eighth goalkeeper in the team’s history to keep a clean sheet (no conceded goals) in her first international game. She’s the fifth player in history to make their USWNT debut at 30 years old or older and holds the record for the oldest goalkeeper to earn a first cap for the team.
Casey Murphy #18
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 27
Hometown: Bridgewater, New Jersey
Club: North Carolina Courage
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @caseymurphy11
Murphy was the starting goalkeeper for the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Papua New Guinea. On the national team, she made one of the most noteworthy goalkeeper debuts in the team’s history, earning the shutout in the 3-0 victory against Australia in November 2021. The same game, she made eight saves and became the seventh U.S. goalkeeper to earn a shutout in their first international game. Murphy now has 10 cleansheets.
Crystal Dunn #19
Position: Defender
Age: 31
Hometown: Rockville Centre, New York
Club: Portland Thorns FC
World Cup Wins: 1
Instagram: @cdunn19
Dunn was the only player on Team USA to start all six games at the delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021. She was a member of the 2019 World Cup championship team, playing every single minute of all six of her starts in France. Pregnancy prompted her to take a break from the sport in 2021/2022. She has made 24 goals and 19 assists.
Emily Fox #23
Position: Defender
Age: 25
Hometown: Ashburn, Virginia
Club: North Carolina Courage
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @___emilyfox
Fox was the No. 1 overall draft pick for Racing Louisville FC in the 2021 NWSL Draft. One of the USWNT’s outside back rising stars, Fox started three matches at the Concacaf W Championship in 2022, helping the team secure its spot at FIFA 2023 and the 2024 Olympics.
Emily Sonnett #14
Position: Defender
Age: 29
Hometown: Marietta, Georgia
Club: OL Reign
World Cup Wins: 1
Instagram: @emilysonnett
Sonnett has been part of the last two U.S. Women’s World Cup teams and is one of the 2019 champions. She was the No. 1 pick in the 2016 Draft for the Portland Thorns. She played a key role in goals during the Concacaf Women’s Championship in 2022 and the July 14, 2022 game against Costa Rica. When she earns her 75th cap, she’ll become one of just 51 players in USWNT history to do so.
Julie Ertz #8
Position: Midfielder
Age: 31
Hometown: Mesa, Arizona
Club: Angel City FC
World Cup Wins: 2
Instagram: @julieertz
A two-time FIFA champion and Olympian, Ertz earned her 100th cap on March 5, 2020, but wasn’t honored for it until April 8, 2023 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. She played every minute of all seven games during the 2015 World Cup, assisted Carli Lloyd’s game-winning goal in the China quarterfinal, and was selected for the FIFA WWC All-Star Team. Ertz has made 20 goals and six assists.
Kelley O'Hara #5
Position: Defender
Age: 34
Hometown: Fayetteville, Georgia
Club: NJ/NY Gotham FC
World Cup Wins: 2
Instagram: @kelleyohara
Another two-time FIFA champ, O’Hara is one of 12 players in the history of the USWNT to be named to four Women’s World Cup Teams. She’s been selected for the USA’s last seven world championship rosters. She has made 3 goals and 21 assists.
Kristie Mewis #22
Position: Midfielder
Age: 32
Hometown: Hanson, Massachusetts
Club: NJ/NY Gotham FC
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @kmewis19
Mewis has a noteworthy comeback story. She played with the senior USWNT in 2013 and 2014, but was off the time for six years after. During that time, she sustained an ACL injury, but she made a dramatic return to the national team in 2020 and has remained on the team every year since.
Lindsey Horan #10
Position: Midfielder
Age: 29
Hometown: Golden, Colorado
Club: Olympique Lyonnais (France)
World Cup Wins: 1
Instagram: @lindseyhoran10
Part of the 2019 championship team and a two-time Olympian, Horan is known for being the first American female player to sign a professional contract directly out of high school. She played for Paris Saint-Germain in July 2012 shortly after she graduated. She made her USWNT debut in 2013 and after scoring six goals and five assists in 2021 was named the U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year. Horan has made 27 goals and 33 assists.
Lynn Williams #6
Position: Forward
Age: 30
Hometown: Fresno, California
Club: NJ/NY Gotham FC
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @lynnwilliams9
Williams made waves in 2016 when she was called up to the USWNT after winning the NWSL scoring title, the NWSL MVP, and winning an NWSL championship in one two-week stretch in October 2016. Williams scored her first goal just 49 seconds after taking to the field in her first cap against Switzerland.
Naomi Girma #4
Position: Defender
Age: 23
Hometown: San Jose, California
Club: San Diego Wave FC
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @naomi_girma
Girma played in two FIFA Youth World Cups (U-17 in 2016 and U-20 in 2018), playing every single minute of all three games in both of those tournaments. She was first called-up for the national team in 2020 but made her debut in 2022 in a shutout victory against Uzbekistan, during which she played the full 90 minutes.
Rose Lavelle #16
Position: Midfielder
Age: 28
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Club: OL Reign
World Cup Wins: 1
Instagram: @lavellerose
Lavelle made a splash in the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup when winning the Bronze Ball as the third-best player in the tournament. She was named to the FIFA FIFPro World XI and is one of the USWNT’s most popular players thanks to her game-winning goal against the Netherlands in the World Cup Final. She’s one of just eight Americans to score a goal in a World Cup Final at the senior level. Lavelle has made 24 goals and 20 assists.
Savannah DeMelo #9
Position: Midfielder
Age: 25
Hometown: Bellflower, California
Club: Louisville FC
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @savdemelo
DeMelo could earn her first cap in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup after first being called to the team in August 2022. She was part of the U.S. teams at the 2016 and 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cups and was a scoring leader with four goals.
Sofia Huerta #3
Position: Defender
Age: 30
Hometown: Boise, Idaho
Club: OL Reign
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @sofiahuerta
Huerta first played for the U.S. Youth National Teams, and then got five caps playing for the Mexican senior national team. She officially changed her association on September 14, 2017 and earned her first cap for the U.S. the very next day. She helped the USWNT qualify for FIFA 2023 and the 2024 Olympics.
Sophia Smith #11
Position: Forward
Age: 22
Hometown: Windsor, Colorado
Club: Portland Thorns FC
World Cup Wins: 0
Instagram: @sophsssmith
Smith was first called to the U.S. national team in 2017 at the age of 16, but her debut came in November 2020. Her debut made her the first player born in the 2000s — and the first player born after the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup — to cap for the USWNT. She earned the title of BioSteel U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year in 2022 after scoring 11 goals for the USWNT. She was also voted NWSL MVP, won the NSWL Championship, and was named the MVP of that championship game. In April 2022 at 21 years and 242 days of age, she became the fifth-youngest player to score a hat trick in USWNT history. She has made 12 total goals and 4 assists.
Trinity Rodman #20
Position: Forward
Age: 21
Hometown: Laguna Niguel, California
Club: Washington Spirit
World Cup Wins: Washington Spirit
Instagram: @trinity_rodman
After being named the NWSL Rookie of the Year and the U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year in 2021, Rodman is now considered one of the top up-and-coming players on the national team. She made her senior debut in February 2022 at the age of 19. At the age of 18, she was the youngest player (at the time) to be drafted in NWSL history.
