US Women vs Paraguay 5:30 pm Saturday TNT, HBO vs Chile 10 pm Tuesday TBS, HBO

A young USWNT will kick off in California on Saturday, as the world No. 2 takes on No. 46 Paraguay in the first of two January friendlies to open the 2027 World Cup qualifying year. “It’s really exciting to see the opportunity presented to a lot of players in this camp,” said midfielder Olivia Moultrie prior to Saturday’s match, which will pull from a 26-player USWNT January lineup that boasts an average age of just 24.1 years old. “It’s players that I’ve played with on youth teams, and just seeing kind of start coming into the league.” This month’s camp falls outside an official FIFA window, leaving the US without both European club players and Gotham FC’s squad as the 2025 NWSL champs prepare to contend in the first-ever FIFA Women’s Champions Cup in London next week. “There is no question we will keep — I hope — improving what we’re doing,” said USWNT manager Emma Hayes. “You don’t do that gradually, you don’t do that by changing things all of the time.” Additionally, Saturday’s match will honor two-time World Cup champion Christen Press with a pregame ceremony, after the star forward announced her pro soccer retirement at the end of last season. Really awesome to see Rodman will be on hand after signing her record breaking 2 million dollar deal with the Washington Spirit – great to see her stay home in the US for NWSL!

2026 January Training Camp Roster

GOALKEEPERS (3): Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign FC; 6) Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals; 4), Jordan Silkowitz (Bay FC; 0)
DEFENDERS (8): Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign FC; 5/0), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash; 9/1), Izzy Rodriguez (Kansas City Current; 1/1), Tara Rudd (Washington Spirit; 9/0), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride; 7/0), Gisele Thompson (Angel City FC; 4/0), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave FC; 2/0), Kate Wiesner (Washington Spirit; 2/0)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Croix Bethune (Washington Spirit; 5/0), Hal Hershfelt (Washington Spirit; 3/0), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current; 11/1), Riley Jackson (North Carolina Courage; 0/0), Lo’eau LaBonta (Kansas City Current; 4/0), Sally Menti (Seattle Reign FC; 0/0), Sam Meza (Seattle Reign FC; 2/0), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns FC; 11/5)
FORWARDS (7): Maddie Dahlien (Seattle Reign FC; 0/0), Jameese Joseph (Chicago Stars FC; 1/0), Trinity Rodman (Unattached; 47/11), Yazmeen Ryan (Houston Dash; 15/2), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville FC; 12/4), Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current; 13/4), Reilyn Turner (Portland Thorns FC; 0/0)

USMNT’s Pulisic welcomes world to Milan for Winter Olympics

Click to see – Pulisic Welcomes Winter Olympics

The video kicks off with Zlatan singing Milan’s praises, before Pulisic gives Olympic attendees a quick guide to Milanese coffee etiquette. Modric is charged with capturing the San Siro stadium in oil paints (just before they go and knock it down) while Adrien Rabiot indulges in a fitting for a razor-sharp suit. Soo-Jeong Park from AC Milan’s women’s team also introduces a few local landmarks, notably the gothic splendor of the Duomo cathedral, before Ibra returns to sign off with a hearty “Benvenuti a casa nostra.”

Champions League Final Group Stage Games Wednesday 3 pm on Paramount Plus –

Wow some huge upsets last week as Man City was sliced and diced by Bodo/Glint in the Arctic Circle, Tottenham who is dismal in the EPL dominated Dortmund to move to 5th, Sporting scored twice to beat PSG in the last 20 minutes and Copenhagen puts Napoli on the edge of elimination with a 10 man win vs the Italians. Only Arsenal 1st and Bayern Munich 2nd are guaranteed in the Top 8 and a buy in the round of 16. 30 teams still have a chance at making the knockout stages. Here’s How Teams Can Advance. Grab your popcorn and 30 tv’s for Wed! Mckinney Scores Winner for Juventus again That’s 10 Champs League Goals -3 in his last 5 games. With his goal, McKennie now has 10 career Champions League finishes, putting him two behind USMNT teammate Christian Pulisic for most ever by an American player.

GAMES ON TV

Sat, Jan 24
7:30 am USA West Ham United vs Sunderland
9:30 am ESPN+ Bayern Munich vs Ausburg
9:30 am ESPN+ Leverkusen vs Werder Bremen
10 am USA Burnley vs Tottenham
10 am NBCSN Man City vs Wolverhampton
10 am Peacock Fulham (Jedi) vs Brighton
12:30 pm USA Bournemouth vs Liverpool
12:30 pm ESPN+ Union Berlin vs Athletic Club
3 pm ESPN+ Villarreal vs Real Madrid
5:30 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Women vs Paraguay
Sun, Jan 25
8 am ESPNd,+ Atletico Madrid (Cardoso) vs Mallorca
9 am USA Chelsea vs Crystal Palace (Richards)
9 am peacock New Castle vs Aston Villa
9:30 am ESPN+ MGladbach (Scalley, Reyna) vs Stuttgart
10:15 am ESPN+,D Barcelona vs Real Oviedo
11:30 am Peacock, Serius Arsenal vs Man United
12 pm Para + Juventus (Mckinney) vs Napoli
2″45 pm Para+ Roma vs AC Milan (Pulisic)
Mon, Jan 26
2:45 pm USA Everton vs Leeds United (Aaronson)
Tues, Jan 27
10 pm TBS, HBO, Peacock USA Women vs Chile
Wed, Jan 28 — Champs League EVERYONE
3 pm Para+ Napoli vs Chelsea
3pm Para+, CBSSN Dortmand vs Inter Milan
3 pm Para+ Monaco (Weah) vs Juventus (Mckinney)
3 pm Para+ PSG vs Newcastle
Frankfurt vs Tottenham
Atletico (Cardosa) vs Glint
Man City vs Galatasaray
PSV vs Bayern Munich
Athletic Club s Sporting CP
Ajax vs Olympiakos P
Arsenal vs Qarabag
Barcelona vs Kobenhavn
Benefica vs Real Madrid
Club Brugge vs Marseille
Thurs, 1/29 Europa Para+ 3 pm
3 pm Para+ Celtic (Trusty)
Aston Villa vs Salzburg
Young Boys vs Lyonnais (Tessman)
Roma vs Stuttgart
Lille vs Freiburg
Nottingham Forest vs Ferencvaros
Porto vs Rangers

Sun, Mar 1 She Believes Cup Starts
5 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Women vs Argentina
Wed, Mar 4 She Believes Cup
7 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Women vs Canada (Columbus, OH)
Sat, Mar 7 She Believes Cup
3:30 pm TBS, HBO, Peacock USA Women vs Colombia
Sat, Mar 28
3:30 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Men vs Belgium
Tues, Mar 31
7 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Men vs Portugal
Sun, May 31
3:30 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Men vs Senegal
Sat, June 6
2:30 pm TNT, HBO, Peacock USA Men vs Germany in Chicago
Sat, June 12 WORLD CUP
9 pm Fox, Tele, Peacock USA Men vs Paraguay World Cup

SMNT weekend viewing guide: Cold results

Results that matter by jcksnftsn an 23, 2026, 2:49 PM EST5Comments (All New)

Juventus v SL Benfica - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD7

NurPhoto via Getty Images

We have more head-to-head matchups this weekend, an American coach making his presence known in Spain, and stars in Italy vying for the top of the Serie A table. There’s all that and more in a packed USMNT weekend, so let’s get to it.

Friday

St. Pauli v Hamburg – 2:30p on ESPN Select: James Sands and St Pauli host Hamburg and Damion Downs on Friday afternoon. Sands scored his first Bundesliga goal for St. Pauli last weekend but they fell to Borussia Dortmund 3-2 while Downs has started his first two matches with Hamburg but has not yet found the scoresheet and his club is coming off a scoreless draw with Borussia Monchengladbach.

Saturday

Middlesbrough v Preston North End – 7:30a on CBSSN: Aidan Morris has started four straight matches for Middlesbrough who have won three straight and are in second place in the Championship, two points ahead of Ipswich town for direct promotion to the EPL. Middlesbrough host sixth place Preston North End who have a one point lead for the final promotion playoff spot.

Bayern Munich v Augsburg – 9:30a on ESPN Select: Noahkai Banks will be serving a one match suspension this weekend due to yellow card accumulation and will miss Augsburg’s matchup with Bayern Munich. Banks has been a starter for Augsburg since October but will miss the teams rematch with Bayern. Banks saw just a minute off the bench in the first matchup of the season, which Augsburg dropped 3-2.

Mainz v Wolfsburg – 9:30a on ESPN Select: Lennard Maloney and Mainz will host Kevin Paredes and Wolfsburg on Saturday. Maloney has come off the bench in three straight matches, seeing just spot minutes for 17th place Mainz. Meanwhile, Paredes is being worked back to fitness for twelfth place Wolfsburg, getting 45 min as a halftime substitute for the team last weekend in their 1-1 draw with Heidenheim.

Bayer Leverkusen v Werder Bremen – 9:30a on ESPN Select: Malik Tillman and Leverkusen fell to Hoffenheim last weekend, their second straight loss to an opponent competing for a top four finish in the Bundesliga. Leverkusen are in sixth place and will be facing a Werder Bremen side that is five points out of the relegation playoff position but played Leverkusen to a 3-3 draw in their first meeting of the season.

Fulham v Brighton and Hove Albion – 10a on Peacock: Antonee Robinson went the full 90’ last weekend as Fulham fell to Leeds 1-0, their first loss since Robinson returned to the lineup in December. Fulham are in eleventh place now, one point ahead of this weekend’s opponent, Brighton & Hove Albion who are coming off a 1-1 draw with Bournemouth.

Le Havre v Monaco – 1p on beIN Sports: Folarin Balogun and Monaco have dropped four straight matches, and seven of eight to fall from second place in Ligue 1 to ninth place, a nineteen point gap to their prior position, now held by PSG. They will be facing fourteenth place Le Havere, who are just four points behind them at this point. Monaco was also embarassed 6-1 by Real Madrid on Tuesday in Champions League play and need to find their confidence again.

PSV v NAC Breda – 2p on ESPN Select: Sergino Dest missed the past two matches for PSV, including Wednesday’s Champions League match against Newcastle which PSV lost 3-0. The Dutch side look to continue their march through the Eredivisie when they face seventeenth place NAC Breda who are looking like a relegation candidate though they played PSV close in their first matchup, falling 1-0.

Olympique Marseille v Lens – 3:05p on beIN Sports: Tim Weah scored for Marseille last weekend in the team’s 5-2 win over Angers in league play and went the full 90’ midweek in Champions League action though the team fell to Liverpool 3-0. They remain in third place in league play, eight points back of their opponent this weekend, league leading Lens.

Sunday

Atletico Madrid v Mallorca – 8a on ESPN Deportes and ESPN Select: Johnny Cardoso got his first start since August last weekend in Atletico Madrid’s 1-0 win over Deportivo Alaves and then played 35’ off the bench midweek in the team’s 1-1 draw with Galatasaray in Champions League group play. Atleti are tied for third, eight points back of league leading Barcelona, heading into their matchup with Mallorca.

Crystal Palace v Chelsea – 9a on USA Network: Chris Richards was back in the starting lineup for Cyrstal Palace last weekend after missing the past four matches. Palace fell to Sunderland 2-1 and have now lost five of their past seven matches and haven’t won since early December, falling from fourth place down to thirteenth place in the table. six points back of their opponent this weekend, sixth place Chelsea.

Atalanta v Parma – 9a on Paramount+: Yunus Musah started last weekend and has played in the past seven league matches for Atalanta though he didn’t come off the bench on Wednesday in their Champions League loss to Athletic Club. Atlanta are in seventh place, ten points back of the top four and a return trip to Champions League action.

Borussia Monchengladbach v Stuttgart – 9:30a on ESPN Select: Joe Scally started and Gio Reyna played 21’ minutes off the bench in Borussia Monchengladbach’s scoreless draw with Hamburg last weekend. Gladbach will host fourth place Stuttgart on Sunday.

Brest v Toulouse – 11:15a on beIN Sports: Mark McKenzie was not included in the squad last weekend as eight place Toulouse handled Nice 5-1. The team travels to tenth place Brest this weekend.

Metz v Olympique Lyon – 11:15a on beIN sports: Tanner Tessmann started Lyon’s 2-1 win over Brest last Sunday as well as their midweek 1-0 win over Young Boys in Europa League action. Lyon are within striking distance of a Champions League qualifying spot as they prepare to face last place Metz this Sunday.

Freiburg v Koln – 11:30a on ESPN Select: Kristoffer Lund was a halftime substitute for Koln last weekend as they defeated Mainz 2-1 to move into the top ten in the Bundesliga standings. This weekend they will face eighth place Freiburg who they trail by four points.

Juventus v Napoli – Noon on Paramount+: Weston McKennie scored again for Juventus in Champions League play on Wednesday in the teams 2-0 win over Benfica. It was McKennie’s third straight Champions League match with a goal. McKennie has also scored twice in league play in January for Juve, adding an assist as well. The team did suffer a shock loss to sixteenth place Cagliari last weekend, dropping to fifth place in the standings and four points back of this weekend’s opponent, Napoli.

Real Sociedad v Celta Vigo – 12:30p on ESPN Deportes and ESPN Select: Pelegrino Matarazzo has picked up seven points from his first three matches with Real Sociedad, including a 2-1 win over league leading Barcelona last weekend. Sociedad moved into the top ten of the La Liga standings though they are still eight points back of seventh place Celta Vigo, who they face this weekend.

Roma v AC Milan – 2:45p on on Paramount+: Christian Pulisic is in a bit of a dry patch having failed to score in Milan’s past five matches. That doesn’t sound like an incredibly long stretch but it is the first time this season where he has gone more than one match without scoring a goal. Milan has still been able to find results over the period, they remain in second place in the Serie A table. They will have a difficult test this weekend as they visit fourth place Roma who’s twelve goals conceded leads the league through the first twenty-one matches.

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US Ladies

USWNT Kicks Off 2026 with Saturday Friendly Against Paraguay
2026 USWNT Friendly: Preview – USA vs. Paraguay
USWNT star Trinity Rodman’s record deal: Why it’s a boon for her, but NWSL worries linger
Hayes: Rodman contract a win for NWSL, USWNT
Hayes: Returning Rodman ready for ‘next steps’
Rodman contract saga ends with record Spirit deal
Emma Hayes with Donovan & Tim Howard
2026 USWNT Friendly: Scouting Paraguay
Trinity Rodman upended traditional soccer norms and now controls her destiny
Trinity Rodman becomes highest-paid women’s soccer player in the world
Trinity Rodman re-signs with Washington Spirit, smashing records

US Men

McKennie Goal Gives Juventus Win Over Benfica
Good news and bad news for Tyler Adams injury: U.S. midfielder tears his MCL
Watch: Rising American star Cavan Sullivan looks scary in new Man City training highlights

Richie Ledezma and Brian Gutierrez finalize switch to Mexico from the USMNT

World

Record Goals and Wins in Champions League Match Day 3
Champions League MD7: Arsenal still perfect; top-8 fight getting messy

Most-viewed soccer teams by state 2025: Liverpool and Arsenal battle for first place

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Champions League projections: Arsenal strong favourites for overall win, improving Liverpool up to third

The Arsenal players celebrate Gabriel Jesus' second goal against Inter on Tuesday

Arsenal celebrate Gabriel Jesus’ second goal in their 3-1 away win against Inter on Tuesday Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

By Anantaajith Raghuraman Jan. 22, 2026

We are down to next Wednesday’s final-day bonanza in the Champions League, with 18 simultaneous games to close out the initial league phase. Seven matchdays in, only Arsenal and Bayern Munich have guaranteed spots in the round of 16 in March. Third-placed Real Madrid and Juventus in 15th are separated by just three points, and with some of the teams in-between them playing each other in the final round of matches, expect the table to undergo a bewildering amount of change during Matchday 8.

Before Matchday 8

How teams stack up in the race for automatic qualification and the playoffs in the Champions LeagueCHANGE PROJECTIONS:Before Matchday 8 (Jan. 28)Before Matchday 7 (Jan. 20-21)Before Matchday 6 (Dec. 9-10)Before Matchday 5 (Nov. 25-26)Before Matchday 4 (Nov. 4-5)Before Matchday 3 (Oct. 21-22)Before Matchday 2 (Sept. 30-Oct. 1)Before Matchday 1 (Sept. 16-18)

TEAM
Arsenal21 pts	24	<1%	<1%	>99%	31%
Bayern Munich18 pts	19	<1%	<1%	>99%	17%
Liverpool15 pts	18	<1%	5%	95%	8%
Barcelona13 pts	16	<1%	20%	80%	8%
Real Madrid15 pts	16	<1%	16%	84%	4%
Atletico Madrid13 pts	15	<1%	51%	49%	2%
Tottenham Hotspur14 pts	15	<1%	49%	51%	1%
Manchester City13 pts	14	<1%	40%	60%	9%
Paris Saint-Germain13 pts	14	<1%	46%	54%	6%
Chelsea13 pts	14	<1%	63%	37%	4%
Newcastle United13 pts	14	<1%	74%	26%	3%
Sporting CP13 pts	14	<1%	63%	37%	1%
Atalanta13 pts	14	<1%	87%	13%	<1%
Internazionale12 pts	13	<1%	94%	6%	2%
Juventus12 pts	13	<1%	93%	7%	<1%
Borussia Dortmund11 pts	12	<1%	99%	1%	1%
Galatasaray10 pts	11	<1%	>99%	<1%	<1%
Bayer Leverkusen9 pts	10	8%	92%	<1%	<1%
Olympique Marseille9 pts	10	5%	95%	<1%	<1%
Monaco9 pts	10	27%	73%	<1%	<1%
Qarabağ10 pts	10	<1%	>99%	<1%	<1%
Napoli8 pts	9	49%	51%	<1%	<1%
PSV8 pts	9	45%	55%	<1%	<1%
Olympiakos Piraeus8 pts	9	43%	57%	<1%	<1%
Athletic Club8 pts	9	49%	51%	<1%	<1%
Club Bruges7 pts	8	58%	42%	<1%	<1%
København8 pts	8	89%	11%	<1%	<1%
Benfica6 pts	7	73%	27%	<1%	<1%
Union Saint-Gilloise6 pts	7	91%	9%	<1%	<1%
Pafos6 pts	7	81%	19%	<1%	<1%
Bodø / Glimt6 pts	7	88%	12%	<1%	<1%
Ajax6 pts	7	92%	8%	<1%	<1%
Eintracht Frankfurt4 pts	5	>99%	<1%	<1%	<1%
Slavia Praha3 pts	4	>99%	<1%	<1%	<1%
Villarreal1 pt	2	>99%	<1%	<1%	<1%
Kairat1 pt	1	>99%	<1%	<1%	<1%

Each team plays eight matches in the new league phase, four at home and four away. They play eight different opponents, rather than facing the same teams home and away, as was the case in the previous format. The top eight sides in the league qualify automatically for the round of 16. Teams finishing from 9th to 24th in the league compete in a two-legged knock-out phase play-off, with the winner of each match-up advancing to the last 16 of the competition. Teams that finished 25th or lower in the league phase are eliminated from the competition. No teams drop down to the Europa League.

Methodology

Opta’s win prediction model estimates the probability of each match’s outcome (win, draw or loss) by using a combination of betting market odds and Opta’s team power rankings. The odds and rankings are based on historical and recent team performances and the competition in its entirety is simulated 10,000 times to produce a final projection for each side.

Credits

Editing: Duncan Alexander, Charlie Scott

Design and Development: Ryan Best, Elliot Jordan | Editing: Skye Gould, Marc Mazzoni, Laura Pelton

Illustration: Eamonn Dalton

Below, we will use our updated projections after Matchday 7 to look at the key teams and fixtures heading into those decisive games.

Match of the week

Athletic Club’s chances of league-phase elimination stood at 82 per cent ahead of Matchday 7 after just one win in their first six matches. Conceding an opener to Atalanta’s Gianluca Scamacca on 16 minutes in Bergamo on Wednesday would not have helped their odds either.

But a spirited second-half comeback with three goals in 16 minutes from Gorka Guruzeta, Nico Serrano and Robert Navarro put them in control on hostile territory. Nikola Krstovic’s 88th-minute strike for the hosts was a mere consolation.

The win dropped the Bilbao club’s odds of elimination to 49 per cent, while their chances of making the knockout play-offs next month have risen to 51 per cent (from 18). As for Atalanta, they are one of eight teams on 13 points, but their odds of finishing in the top eight dropped drastically from 61 to 13 per cent after this loss.

Athletic host Sporting CP while the Italians travel to Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise on Matchday 8.

Athletic Club’s players celebrate in BergamoPiero Cruciatti/AFP via Getty Images

The favourites

After the first two rounds of the league phase, our projections hinted at eight contenders for this season’s title. They will all still be fancied in the knockout rounds, but Matchday 7 hurt the chances of three of those sides in particular.

Manchester City had a 13 per cent chance of a second European crown in four years halfway through the opening stage, with 10 points from four matches. However, their 3-1 loss at Bodo/Glimt on Tuesday — and the Norwegian hosts could have scored more — means they are the only one of the five Premier League representatives outside the top eight with a game to go.

City’s overall chances are still rated highly — the third-best at nine per cent — but they have seen their odds of finishing in the top eight drop from 90 per cent before the Glimt game to 60 per cent now. Visitors Galatasaray, who drew 1-1 with Atletico Madrid in Istanbul yesterday and defeated Liverpool there on Matchday 2 in September, will not be an easy final game.

Defending European champions Paris Saint-Germain have once again had a wobbly league phase, after winning one of their first five matches last season and only finishing 15th. This time, they began with nine points out of nine but have had two losses and a draw in the four matches since. Tuesday’s 2-1 away defeat to a Luis Suarez-inspired (not the one you’re thinking of) Sporting CP meant PSG’s title odds dropped from 14 per cent before that trip to Lisbon to just six per cent. Their probability of a top-eight finish dropped from 84 to 54 per cent too, with a home match against Newcastle United, who are one spot behind them in seventh, to come on Matchday 8.

Holders PSG suffered defeat against Sporting in Lisbon on TuesdayOctavio Passos/Getty Images

Inter have never ranked high for title odds, peaking at five per cent after winning their first three matches by a combined score of nine goals to nil. A 3-1 beatdown by visitors Arsenal on Tuesday in a game where they spurned chances but also could not keep up with the Premier League and Champions League leaders has seen that dip to two per cent. A return of three points from their past four matches, including three losses in a row, also means Inter now have a 94 per cent chance of landing in the play-offs, up from 26 per cent before Matchday 4.

Arsenal, who saw Gabriel Jesus (twice) and Viktor Gyokeres get on the scoresheet at San Siro, are now the outright favourites for the title per our projections, which now give them a 31 per cent chance of lifting the European Cup for the first time. That is an eight per cent increase from before Matchday 7 and nearly double the 16 per cent they were given before the competition began in September. Arsenal could become the first team to win all eight league-phase games in the new format introduced last season when they host Kazakhstan’s already-eliminated Kairat next week.

The contenders

Chelsea huffed and puffed their way to a narrow 1-0 win at home to Pafos of Cyprus last night in new head coach Liam Rosenior’s Champions League debut. The performance could do with improvement, but their top-eight odds have now risen to 37 per cent (from 24 before the match), while their title odds have marginally risen from three per cent to four.

A visit to Napoli will be challenging, given Antonio Conte’s side, after being held to a 1-1 draw at 10-man Copenhagen on Tuesday, have a 49 per cent chance of a humiliating first-phase elimination. A draw could be enough to see the Serie A champions through to the play-offs, but it would require other results to all go their way.

Tottenham Hotspur, for all the negativity around them heading into Matchday 7, are fifth with 14 points after seeing off Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at home. Tuesday’s win nearly doubled their odds of a top-eight finish from 26 to 51 per cent, and they will be confident of securing a round-of-16 spot when they face more German opposition in eliminated Eintracht Frankfurt, who have only one win from their seven matches.

Their Champions League games have been a refuge for Spurs this seasonShaun Botterill/Getty Images

Atletico Madrid missed an opportunity yesterday to leapfrog teams in the table, drawing 1-1 with Galatasaray in Istanbul. Diego Simeone’s side have overcome a sluggish three-points-from-nine start to the league phase for the second season running, though, and have nearly equal chances of making the top eight (49 per cent) and finishing outside those spots (51 per cent). Their final game could prove tricky as they host Glimt fresh off their greatest-ever night in Europe.

Newcastle United were comfortable 3-0 winners at home against PSV and boast the competition’s second-best defence behind Arsenal (two) with six goals conceded. At the other end, they are averaging more than two goals per game (16), with Anthony Gordon (six) and Harvey Barnes scoring 11 times between them.

Eddie Howe’s side have a 26 per cent chance of finishing in the top eight, though that will almost certainly require them to avoid defeat against PSG in Paris. A play-offs place may not be the worst outcome, though.

Surprise packages

Qarabag headline this group of clubs, with their 3-2 home win against Eintracht Frankfurt this week the latest chapter of a successful league phase which has now brought them 10 points. The Azerbaijani club were given just a 13 per cent chance of reaching the knockout stages before the competition began. That rose to 83 per cent after the first four matches and now, having beaten Frankfurt, they have a less than one per cent chance of league-phase elimination. It is an incredible story which began in the second qualifying round last July and is almost certain to continue beyond the trip to Anfield next week.

Sporting recorded arguably the biggest surprise of this season’s league phase with their win against champions PSG, which they can add to home successes over Marseille and Club Brugge. They are yet to win away from home, though, and Athletic Club in Bilbao will pose a stiff challenge. Coach Rui Borges’ side had just a seven per cent chance of making the top eight after their first four matches, which yielded seven points. Two wins in the three since (with the other match being a loss at Bayern) has seen that rise to 37 per cent.

Galatasaray were given a 45 per cent chance of league-phase elimination heading into the tournament. That dropped to 30 per cent after Matchday 2, when they beat visitors Liverpool 1-0. Following their 1-1 draw with Atletico this week, like Qarabag, the Istanbul side have less than a one per cent chance of elimination, so are virtually guaranteed a spot in next month’s play-offs regardless of what happens against Manchester City at the Etihad on Wednesday. They will be a challenging prospect for anyone in that round, too.

Galatasaray should now make the play-offs, despite a tricky-looking final-day trip to Manchester CityBurak Basturk/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Finally, our projections were down on Ajax before the season began, giving the Netherlands’ four-time European champions a 58 per cent chance of being eliminated before the knockouts. A run of five losses to begin their campaign, by a combined score of 15 goals to one, saw that figure rise to over 99 per cent.

But this league-phase format always gives you a second (or in their case, sixth) chance.

Ajax have won their past two, defeating Qarabag 4-2 and Villarreal 2-1 on their own pitches to reduce their odds of an exit, albeit marginally, to 92 per cent. A win against Olympiacos, who are 24th with eight points, in Amsterdam and a series of other results going their way could now see them sneak into the play-offs.

It is a slim possibility but even keeping themselves in the mix via back-to-back away victories deserves credit.

Trinity Rodman’s new Spirit deal and what it means. Plus: Robertson to Tottenham?

Rodman warms up prior to Washington Spirit’s NWSL match against Houston Dash Jamie Sabau/NWSL via Getty Images

By Phil Hay

Jan. 23, 2026Updated 7:25 am EST

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Hello! One of women’s football’s brightest stars is sticking with the NWSL. Her contract didn’t come cheap — but she’s worth it.

Coming up:

💰 Rodman’s $2m-a-year deal

🆕 Robertson to Spurs?

Rodman retained: Spirit star brings saga to close with $2m-a-year deal to stay in NWSL

Jeff Dean/NWSL via Getty Images

It would be wrong to say that Trinity Rodman is bigger than the NWSL — but entirely fair to argue that the NWSL has no bigger player in it. Not for anybody would a league go so far in fighting to cling on to an individual footballer.

A competition’s prestige depends on the calibre of athlete in it, which explains why Major League Soccer has bent so far backwards in accommodating Lionel Messi. Messi is box office, the same as Rodman. Recruiting them and retaining them makes total business sense.

The NWSL ran the risk of losing Rodman ahead of the 2026 season and realised its profile would suffer if she upped sticks and continued her club career abroad. It would be worse again if the drain of talent from America to Europe or elsewhere became incessant. And so, concessions were made.

Late last year, not long after the NWSL championship game, Rodman’s contract at the Washington Spirit expired. For months, and in the knowledge that teams outside the NWSL could use the 23-year-old’s free agency to offer her more money than the Spirit, strings were pulled to manufacture a deal which Rodman was happy to accept. Yesterday, at a live event in Los Angeles, she signed it.

It’s great news for the Spirit and the league, both of whom threw everything at retaining the USWNT forward. It will be a relief for Rodman, who had been stuck in the renewal cycle for longer than she would have liked. This is what she’s negotiated:

The Spirit are handing Rodman a new three-year deal. That takes her through 2028, by which point she should be absolutely in her prime.
According to her agent, the contract is worth in excess of $2m (£1.5m) a year and makes her the highest-paid player in women’s football.
That’s a sharp increase on her previous four-year deal which, in its entirety, was worth $1.1m. She’s one of the world’s best, and she’s been highly valued ever since the Spirit made her the youngest player to be drafted in the NWSL at 18 in 2021.

“The league, all of us, all the governors and the league leadership, work very, very hard to ensure that we not only attract the best talent, but we keep them here,” said Spirit owner Michele Kang. They’ve gone out on a limb in preventing Rodman from slipping through their fingers.

Salary cap dispute

The NWSL’s established salary cap would not have allowed the Spirit to pay Rodman what she thought she was worth. It’s why this process dragged on. So to create some extra wiggle room, the NWSL effectively moved the goalposts.

It created the High Impact Player rule (already nicknamed the ‘Rodman Rule’) which allowed NWSL teams to pay up to $1m above the wage cap to any footballer who met certain criteria. The league says it is thinking about the future of the competition as a whole — but it’s hardly coincidental that the new mechanism arrived when it did.

The NWSL Players Association isn’t happy. Last week, it filed a grievance over the High Impact Player rule, something the NWSL will have to address, though Rodman will get paid regardless of what happens. The scenario underlines a problem with salary caps: they’re created with the best of intentions, in the interests of financial stability or fair competition, but in the end, and in a sport as global as football, they’re prone to market forces. Last year, Alyssa Thompson and Naomi Girma left the United States for Chelsea for large fees. The NWSL seems acutely aware of Europe’s growing spending power.

“This is a monumental moment, not only for the Spirit, but for NWSL as well,” Kang said. They’re making no secret of it. The league wants the brightest and the best to be playing there — and while it might not win that war long term, it won the battle with Rodman.

Our head of global women’s soccer, Emily Olsen, gave us her take on yesterday’s big-money resolution:

“Everyone wants to ‘grow the game’, yet few agree how to do that. This contract is an inflection point after a battle between those investing millions to grow the business and those investing their lives and bodies. While many will want to take credit for Rodman staying in NWSL, you can’t overlook the role of the community.

“Her rookie season involved overcoming the challenges of a pandemic, an ugly ownership battle, and a coach being removed over allegations of emotional abuse. That year, the team won a championship. The players and the fans rallied around each other in a way that’s still visible. The end result is what happens when you use investment to pay the players and foster community on and off the field.”

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Trinity Rodman, Washington Spirit agree on record three-year deal to keep USWNT star in NWSL

Trinity Rodman in a Washington Spirit uniform during an NWSL match

Jeff Dean / Getty Images

By Tamerra Griffin and Emily Olsen

Jan. 22, 2026Updated Jan. 23, 2026 4:22 am EST

U.S. women’s national team forward Trinity Rodman is staying with the Washington Spirit, signing a new three-year contract to stay with the team through 2028, the team announced on Thursday in a special event at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.

Rodman’s new deal is set to make her the highest-paid women’s soccer player in the world, worth in excess of $2 million annually, according to her agent, Mike Senkowski of Upper 90 Sports Group.

The forward’s previous four-year, $1.1 million extension signed in 2022 after her rookie season lapsed on Dec. 31, 2025.

On Thursday, Rodman signed her contract during the live event, flanked by Spirit owner Michele Kang, president of soccer operations Haley Carter and CEO Kim Stone in L.A., where the forward is training with the U.S. ahead of Saturday’s friendly against Paraguay.

“This is one of the biggest moments, for me personally, as well as for the Spirit. I flew all the way from London to be here today,” Kang, who also owns London City Lionesses in England and OL Lyonnes in France, said. “I can’t tell you how excited I am. I had to wait for this for a long time.”

The 23-year-old Rodman has spent her entire professional career with the Spirit. The team selected her second overall in the 2021 NWSL draft and made her the youngest player to be drafted (18) at the time. That same year, Rodman was named Rookie of the Year and the Spirit went on to win the NWSL championship. She provided the assist for Kelley O’Hara’s game-winning goal.

Before this current deal, the club had made Rodman a different multimillion-dollar offer that the NWSL rejected because it failed to honor the “spirit” of the league’s rules, according to sources who spoke with The Athletic at the time.

The NWSL’s rejection of that offer prompted the NWSL Players Association to file a grievance on Rodman’s behalf, the league denied that filing and now could head to arbitration with the union.What You Should Read NextTrinity Rodman negotiations explained: Why did NWSL reject the Spirit’s offer and what’s next?The Spirit and Trinity Rodman agreed to an offer. A league source says that deal had a buyout clause that circumvents the NWSL salary cap.

Rodman’s deal utilizes the new High Impact Player rule, which the league introduced on Dec. 23. The mechanism, colloquially known as the “Rodman Rule,” allows NWSL teams to spend up to $1 million above the salary cap on players who meet certain criteria, including USWNT minutes and appearances on various media lists. The NWSL insists the rule was created with the future of the league in mind, but with its timing — in the midst of the conversation about Rodman, one week before her free agency started — sources have said the player was a key factor in its creation. The rule does not take effect until July 1, but teams can start signing players to deals now.

“The league, all of us, all the governors and the league leadership, work very, very hard to ensure that we not only attract the best talent, but we keep them here,” Kang said. “Trin’s contract certainly is benefiting from it. But it was not just for Trin. It’s much bigger than (one player). It’s for the league-wide efforts.”

Last week, the NWSL Players Association filed a formal grievance opposing the High Impact Player rule, arguing that it “circumvents the collective bargaining process” and should be rescinded. Players, through the union, also communicated their concern that the criteria “privileges a biased voting system that heavily favors European players” and does not account “for the high impact that Brazilian, African, and Japanese Players (sic) have had and will continue to have on NWSL.”

Washington is the first club to publicly announce signing a player to an HIP deal. Denver Summit general manager Curt Johnson, who signed U.S. captain Lindsey Heaps last week, said the expansion team is considering using the feature on Heaps.What You Should Read NextNWSL adds rule allowing stars to be paid $1m above cap despite players’ union oppositionThe High Impact Player rule was created in part as a way to try to keep Washington Spirit and U.S. forward Trinity Rodman in the league.

Rodman’s landmark move to stay narrowly avoids a foray into European soccer after what would have been a short but explosive career in the U.S. that included an NWSL Championship and Rookie of the Year award in 2021 and two finalist appearances. Her signing also concludes more than three months of tense back and forth between the NWSL, the Spirit, the NWSL Players’ Association (NWSLPA) and Rodman’s representation about her future; however, discussions over Rodman’s future at the club started as early as the start of 2025.

“This is a monumental moment, not only for the Spirit, but for NWSL as well. But personally, my involvement with this Spirit literally started with Trinity. I still remember the Draft Day,” Kang said. “I can’t think about Washington Spirit without her, and I hope she can’t think about her career without Washington Spirit.”

The Spirit reached the NWSL Championship twice more in 2024 and 2025, losing to the Orlando Pride and Gotham FC, respectively. Overall, Rodman proved an irreplaceable force and a highly marketable icon. She amassed a total of 28 goals and 17 assists in 97 appearances across all competitions.

Rodman’s previous season with the Spirit was plagued by injuries: first a persistent back issue that kept her out of action for four months, and then a minor MCL strain that took a month to rehab. Despite her absences, she still scored five goals, including a game-winner in August upon her return from her back injury, and recorded two assists. She returned to the U.S. this week for her first camp under Emma Hayes since April 2025.

“It’s a monumental and game-changing moment right now,” Rodman said. “Everyone’s gonna have their different thoughts and opinions about it, but I’ve never really cared. That doesn’t change anything for me. I think I’ve always had a vision and kind of an idea of what I wanted my legacy to be and continue to be.

“This is just opening opportunities for American girls with dreams, and I am one, and was one of them. I’m just very grateful about that. And it’s perfect timing with the World Cup happening in the U.S., too.”