USWNT’s U-23 roster set to compete in Brazil friendlies

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On the heels of Wednesday’s announcement of the U.S. women’s national team senior roster for June, the program’s under-23s manager, Heather Dyche, has invited 20 players to travel to Brazil next month to compete against a Brazilian club in São Paulo.

Several of the players named to this U-23 roster have experience with the senior USWNT: center backs Jordyn Bugg and Eva Gaetino, fullback Ayo Oke, forwards Maddie Dahlien and Mia Fishel, and goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz. Others are older than 23, which has occasionally been the norm for this team.

Both factors point to Dyche — and USWNT head coach Emma Hayes — still wanting to cultivate a core group, even if the core extends across generations. It also suggests they still want players who’ve enjoyed recent success on the pitch to have opportunities to train and compete at an international level. Though the USWNT will face Brazil, hosts of the 2027 World Cup, twice in two different cities, the under-23s will play two matches against the storied Brazilian professional club SC Corinthians Paulista on June 5 and 9.

U.S. Under-23 June roster, in full​

Goalkeepers (2): Neeku Purcell (Seattle Reign FC; Seattle), Jordan Silkowitz (Bay FC; Fairfax, Va.)

Defenders (7): Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign FC; El Cajon, Calif.), Carolyn Calzada (Portland Thorns FC; Sugar Hill, Ga.), Kate Del Fava (Utah Royals; Kenosha, Wis.), Eva Gaetino (Denver Summit FC; Dexter, Mich.), Leah Klenke (Houston Dash; Houston), Ayo Oke (Denver Summit FC; Lawrenceville, Ga.), Evelyn Shores (Angel City FC; Atlanta)

Midfielders (5): Sofia Cook (Gotham FC; Huntington Beach, Calif.), Ally Lemos (Orlando Pride; Glendora, Calif.), Yuna McCormack (Denver Summit FC; Mill Valley, Calif.), Taylor Suarez (Angel City FC; Charlotte, N.C.), Pietra Tordin (Portland Thorns FC; Miami)

Forwards (6): Trinity Byars (San Diego Wave FC; Richardson, Texas), Maddie Dahlien (Seattle Reign FC; Edina, Minn.), Jordynn Dudley (Gotham FC; Milton, Ga.), Mia Fishel (Seattle Reign FC; San Diego), Madison Haley (Brighton & Hove Albion, ENG; Dallas), Kat Rader (Houston Dash; Stuart, Fla.)

Prioritizing experience over age​

Hayes has been inclined to decenter age as a barometer for any given camp invitation, whether at the senior or youth level. Five players over the age of 23 have made this roster: Silkowitz (born in 2000), Gaetino (2002), Del Fava (1998), Haley (1998) and Fishel (2001), emphasizing that point from a different angle. Del Fava and Haley, both 27, have never been called up to the USWNT. Just as younger players can gain more experience playing with the senior team during any given window, older players can learn from training and competing with their juniors. They’re all professionals anyway, and this method could also allow Hayes to assess them without disrupting the chemistry of her own core group just yet.

Rookie performances earning national team invites​

Seven of the 20 players called up to this team are in their first professional seasons: Calzada, Klenke, Cook, McCormack, Suarez, Dudley and Rader. Each has transitioned seamlessly from collegiate play, either by scoring goals or earning regular starts on their NWSL teams. Though clubs such as Gotham FC (to whom Cook and Dudley are signed) and Portland (Calzada) are known to sign top college prospects with or without a draft, it is promising to see some of these rookies come from less expected clubs like the Houston Dash and the expansion side Denver Summit.

Women’s Super League standout​

Haley played at Stanford across similar years as Catarino Macaio, Naomi Girma, Sophia Wilson and other USWNT players, but she took a decidedly different path to the pros, beginning her career in Australia before signing with Brighton & Hove Albion in the Women’s Super League. Typically, players selected for the USWNT represent the “top four” of the WSL: Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United. Haley’s Brighton finished seventh this season in the WSL, but Haley had a standout campaign, scoring four goals and recording three assists. She was similarly prolific in the FA Cup, scoring three times across four fixtures, including against Arsenal.

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

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