NWSL rivalries heat up | UWCL semis kick off | USA Hockey eyes the final
The NWSL is back, with an action-packed weekend channelling rivalries both new and old, plus Champions League ups the stakes and more news to know
NWSL’s Cascadia Clash returns
Portland looks to build on their first 2025 win against their rivals. (Soobum Im/Imagn Images)
This weekend’s NWSL lineup pairs a budding top-table rivalry with one of the league’s longest regional feuds as 2025’s fifth matchday gets underway.
With the slimmest of margins separating teams in the middle of the standings, clubs will be focused on taking all three points as they strive to keep up with the seasons’s three remaining undefeated teams.
What to watch: While the NWSL’s official Rivalry Week is still months away, this weekend’s matchups provide a sneak peek showdown.
Seattle Reign vs. Portland Thorns, Friday at 10 PM ET (Prime): In the first Cascadia Clash of the season, the Thorns — fresh off their first win of the season — face a Seattle team trying to turn around a two-game losing streak.
Angel City vs. Gotham, Friday at 10:30 PM ET (NWSL+): A classic East Coast-West Coast battle sees Gotham chasing Angel City up the table, as LA tries to keep their unbeaten streak alive against one of the league’s more dangerous rosters.
Orlando Pride vs. Washington Spirit, Saturday at 5:05 PM ET (ION): The Pride downed the Spirit at the 2024 NWSL Championship before Washington got their revenge in the 2025 Challenge Cup, with both powerhouses now aiming for regular-season bragging rights.
Bottom line: As teams push for early-season positioning, this weekend’s action promises to up the stakes by tapping into rising tensions — both old and new.
Champions League semis kick off
Chelsea looks to gain an advantage over Barcelona this weekend. (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
The UEFA Women’s Champions League semifinals begin this weekend, as four clubs familiar with the UWCL spotlight kick off the first match of the round’s two-leg tie.
France’s Olympique Lyonnais, Spain’s Barcelona FC, and England’s Arsenal and Chelsea will battle it out, with a ticket to May 24th’s winner-take-all final in Portugal on the line.
“The coolest thing about big tournaments and high-stake games is you might be expecting something, and you get something completely different,” Olympique Lyonnais midfielder Lindsey Heaps told reporters this week. “That’s when you see the best teams come out, and they’re able to adjust.”
The lineup: Defending champs Barcelona are in the running for their fourth UWCL title in five years, taking on a stacked Chelsea team hungry to lift their first-ever Champions League trophy — and getting one step closer to a historic quadruple.
With both the men’s and the women’s sides reaching this year’s Champions League semis, Arsenal squares off against eight-time champions Lyon in a quest to claim their first UWCL title in over 15 years.
Both UK clubs are chasing history, with Arsenal still the only WSL team to ever win Champions League.
Setting the stage: Arsenal has already sold upwards of 40,000 tickets to tomorrow’s UWCL matchup, set to be held inside the team’s 60,000-capacity Emirates Stadium.
“Playing at the Emirates, and the hunger and the belief that we have as a team at the moment, we’re going to go and play our game to the best we can,” said Arsenal manager Renee Slegers.
Tune in: Arsenal hosts Lyon tomorrow at 7:30 AM ET, before Chelsea travels to Barcelona to take on the reigning champs on Sunday at 12 PM ET, with both games airing live on DAZN.
US and Canada skate toward the final
The US beat Germany 3-0 on Thursday. (International Ice Hockey Federation/Andrea Cardin)
USA Hockey is looking to advance to the 2025 IIHF World Championship title game for the 23rd straight year tomorrow, taking on host nation Czechia after defeating Germany 3-0 in yesterday’s quarterfinal round.
“They have the home crowd, so it’s definitely going to be a gritty game,” US forward Lacey Eden said of Saturday’s matchup. “It’s going to be a battle, but we’ll be ready for it. We can use the fan energy and kind of go off that.”
Big picture: This year’s tournament mirrors Team USA’s path in 2024, when the US downed Canada in the group stage and reached the title game undefeated — only to lose 6-5 to their North American rivals in an OT thriller of a championship match.
“It’s everything to us,” US defender Cayla Barnes said earlier this week. “We want to be in that final and obviously want to be back on top of the podium, seeing as we fell short last year.”
Road to the rematch: Canada has their own semifinal ahead of them, as the 2024 champs take the ice against Finland in Saturday’s IIHF closer.
Finland is the only other country besides the US and Canada to ever play in a Women’s World Championship final, earning silver in 2019 after taking down Canada in the semis.
Tune in: The IIHF World Championship semifinals begin tomorrow at 9 AM ET, with the winners squaring off in the final on Sunday at 12 PM ET, with all matches airing live on NHL Network.
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Angel City picks a coach
Alexander Straus will join ACFC from Bayern Munich. (Daniel Löb/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Angel City has found a new manager, tapping current Bayern Munich head coach Alexander Straus to take over the Southern California squad after the Frauen-Bundesliga’s season ends on June 1st.
Straus is busy vying for his third straight Frauen Bundesliga title with the German club, after getting knocked out of Champions League in last month’s quarterfinals.
Angel City, on the other hand, remains undefeated under interim manager Sam Laity, with an eye on making the playoffs for just the second time in club history.
“When we set out to hire our head coach, we looked for specific characteristics such as a dominant style of play, a proven winner at the highest level, a focus on player development, a collaborative mindset, and a leader in high performance,” said ACFC sporting director Mark Parsons in a team statement.
Listen: ”Angel City: the Good and the Bad” on The Late Sub with Claire Watkins
SEC shakes up NCAA softball
Oklahoma sits in fourth place after joining the SEC. (BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN/USA TODAY NETWORK)
NCAA conference realignment has drastically altered the college sports landscape this year, from volleyball to basketball and now softball, as former titans lose ground while others rise to the occasion — with May’s World Series on the horizon.
After years of Big 12 dominance, four-time reigning NCAA softball champions Oklahoma have been riding the ups and downs of the SEC, dropping this week’s three-game series to No. 22 Alabama 2-1 to fall to No. 4 in the ESPN/USA Softball rankings.
However, Texas A&M has taken over the No. 1 spot for the first time in program history after a 12-game winning streak, while No. 2 Tennessee’s strong performance against former No. 1 Texas sent the Longhorns sliding.
The SEC now lays claim to the NCAA’s top four teams — plus seven in the top 10 — with all five of the Sooners’ losses coming in conference play.
Tune in: Catch the SEC action as Texas A&M wraps a three-game series with unranked Missouri at 1 PM ET today (SEC Network) before Oklahoma kicks off their own three-game slate against No. 15 Mississippi State at 5 PM ET (SoonerSports).
Quote of the day
“In high school is when it kind of hit me — the game could be taken away from me… The history will come, and that comes with day-in, day-out work.”
Connecticut Sun rookie Aneesah Morrow
speaking to JWS about what drives her ahead of the 2025 WNBA Draft.