Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman, OL Lyonnes midfielder Lindsey Heaps and Gotham FC's Rose Lavelle headline the United States Women's National Team squad selected by coach Emma Hayes for the 11th annual SheBelieves Cup March 1-7 in Tennessee, Ohio and New Jersey.
The 26-player squad includes 19 domestic players and seven performers based in overseas clubs. Six of those players – Heaps, Manchester United goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce, Arsenal defender Emily Fox, OL Lyonnes midfielder Lily Yohannes and the Chelsea duo of defender Naomi Girma and Alyssa Thompson – are currently competing in the UEFA Women's Champions League.
The USWNT aims to win the tournament for the eighth time. Only 13 players from last year's SheBelieves Cup squad return for this year's edition.
“The SheBelieves Cup is a fantastic tournament that gives us the opportunity to replicate the group stage of a FIFA tournament,” said Hayes.
“Three quality matches in quick succession also allow us to replicate the conditions that will prepare us for the World Cup qualifying campaign this autumn. As always, we want to continue developing our group of players to be better and better prepared. As we gain more experience, I expect our standards to continue to improve.”
Rodman is looking to build on her performances in a pair of January friendlies against Paraguay and Chile, scoring twice and even convincing Hayes to join her in a celebratory dance in the final match.
Sophia Wilson and Mallory Swanson, the other two parts of the Triple Espresso forward line that was so successful at the 2024 Olympics, are still regaining fitness after each player welcomed a baby into the world last year. Both Heaps and Lavelle will look to make their first USWNT appearances in 2026.
“Sophia and I talked and she's just not ready,” Hayes said. “The return-to-play protocol just hasn't given her enough time, I think, to get her to the place she wanted to be. So it's only right that she's not a part of this team as much as I want her to be…the reality is that Portland doesn't consider her ready, so that takes care of itself.
“For Cat Macario, I understand that there has been a heel injury which I think he is getting closer to every day, but he is still not available for selection at Chelsea. I don't know when it will happen. I don't know if it is a week, two, three weeks away, but I know he is not available for selection.”
The SheBelieves Cup includes matches against Argentina, Canada and Colombia, all of which are currently in the top 30 of the FIFA world rankings.
The USWNT will play Argentina on March 1 at GEODIS Park in Nashville, Tennessee, followed by their next game three days later against old rival Canada at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in Columbus, Ohio. The USWNT's final game in the competition is March 7 against Colombia at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey.
This edition of the tournament will also feature a change in format: all matches tied at the end of regulation time go directly to penalties. Therefore, although the tournament winner will still be determined by total points, teams will receive three points for a win, one point for a draw after regulation time, and one point for winning the penalty shootout.
If the teams are tied on points after the round-robin phase, the following tiebreakers will be applied in order: overall goal difference, total goals scored, and head-to-head results at the end of regulation time. If the head-to-head match ended in a draw, that result will stand regardless of the outcome of the penalty shootout. The final tiebreaker, if necessary, will be the Fair Play classification.
The squad has its share of young players, and 12 of those called up have 10 caps or less. The average age is 24.4 years, slightly higher than the 24.1 that were delivered during the recent January camp.
The naming of sisters Gisele and Alyssa Thompson to the roster marks the fourth time the two have been selected together, with the first being the 2025 SheBelieves Cup.
The Thompson sisters are the third set of sisters to represent the USWNT.
The first USWNT sister case occurred in the late 1990s, when twins Lorrie and Ronnie Fair were called together. Most recently, Samantha and Kristie Mewis were named to the 2021 Olympic team.
US Women's National Team Roster by Position (Club; Caps/Goals)
SheBelieves Cup 2026
GOALKEEPERS (3): Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign FC; 7), Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals; 5), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United, ENG; 4)
DEFENDERS (9): Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign FC; 6/0), Emily Fox (Arsenal FC, ENG; 71/1), Naomi Girma (Chelsea FC, ENG; 50/2), Lilly Reale (Gotham FC; 6/0), Tara Rudd (Washington Spirit; 10/0), Emily Sonnett (Gotham FC; 113/2), Gisele Thompson (Angel City FC; 5/0), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave FC; 3/0), Kate Wiesner (Washington Spirit; 3/0)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Sam Coffey (Manchester City, ENG; 42/5), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes, FRA; 170/38), Claire Hutton (Bay FC; 13/1), Riley Jackson (North Carolina Courage; 1/0), Rose Lavelle (Gotham FC; 116/27), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns FC; 13/5), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham FC; 9/31), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes, FRA; 1/13)
FORWARDS (6): Maddie Dahlien (Seattle Reign FC; 2/0), Jameese Joseph (Chicago Stars FC; 2/1), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit; 49/13), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville FC; 14/6), Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current; 15/6), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea FC, ENG; 26/3)
