Sophia Wilson, Tierna Davidson return to USWNT for friendlies against Japan | OneFootball

Sophia Wilson will make her long-awaited return to the US women’s national team next week, as part of a 23-player roster named by Emma Hayes for a trio of friendlies against Japan.

Wilson last appeared for the US on 27 October 2024, entering as a sub against Iceland in a friendly. She announced her pregnancy in March 2025 and did not appear for the US or club team Portland Thorns that year. Her daughter Gianna was born in September 2025. The 25-year-old Wilson made her return from maternity leave for the Thorns last month and started her first game last weekend in a win over the Kansas City Current.

Gotham FC defender Tierna Davidson also returns to the USWNT after missing about a year with a torn ACL. She has come off the bench in each of Gotham’s last three matches in NWSL play.

Japan won the AFC Women’s Asian Cup earlier this year in dominant fashion, conceding only one goal and scoring 29 en route to the regional crown. The US first play Japan on 11 April at 5.30pm ET in San Jose, California, then again on 14 April at 10pm ET in Seattle. The series finishes on 17 April in suburban Denver, where the teams will kick off at 9pm ET.

Here’s what to know about this roster.

You again!

After multiple windows of international debuts, callups elevated from the youth national teams and testing somewhat unknown quantities, Hayes’s most notable inclusions are a trio of reigning gold medal winners.

Davidson has proven a natural complement to Naomi Girma along the back, offering a veteran’s awareness in all phases, capable aerial defending and dangerous line-breaking distribution.

Jane Campbell is also back among the goalkeepers, having seemingly supplanted Casey Murphy as this cycle’s resident veteran. Campbell has long been among the NWSL’s best goalkeepers with the Houston Dash, and is a viable contender to earn starts.

Inevitably, the brightest spotlight will fall on Wilson. She has shown ample initiative off the ball and in pressing as she works to get back to her world-class best in front of goal. While she has yet to score , she’s already logged 158 minutes across four games, including 67 minutes last weekend against Kansas City.

A crystallizing core

While Hayes’s grand experiment of examining the depth of the USWNT pool gave 27 players their international debuts, the nearing Concacaf W Championship – and, through it, qualification for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil – has forced her to establish some continuity. Given the ample turnover since the Paris Olympics, it’s worth identifying the players who have been selected more often than not in recent windows.

Campbell joins Phallon Tullis-Joyce and Claudia Dickey in the goalkeeping corps. Tullis-Joyce has had a strong season with Manchester United, and held Bayern Munich scoreless in the opening leg of their Women’s Champions League quarter-final. Dickey is back between the sticks with Seattle Reign, having performed well enough in US camps to keep Tullis-Joyce from cementing herself as Alyssa Naeher’s successor. All three are viable options to start next summer.

Davidson always felt like a core member even after her latest year-long absence, but seeing her on this squad helps reinforce the program’s faith in her fitness despite logging just 74 minutes in the young NWSL season. Girma and Emily Sonnett are fellow Olympic holdovers who Hayes trusts, while Emily Sams (who won a gold medal as an unused substitute but debuted after the Olympics) and Kennedy Wesley round out the center-backs. Emily Fox is steady as they get at right back, while Lilly Reale is the reigning young player of the year and a frontrunner to start on the left. Avery Patterson and Gisele Thompson are capable of fitting in both full-back spots.

Midfield sees the fewest surprises. Sam Coffey and Claire Hutton are top-level defensive midfielders, able to screen the backline and retain possession with tidy passing. Olivia Moultrie brings a box-to-box approach to central midfield, while Lily Yohannes offers world-class diagonal playmaking and helps the forwards attack space behind the backline. Rose Lavelle is in arguably the finest form of her storied career over the past year, while Lindsey Heaps and Jaedyn Shaw offer different looks in the No 10 role.

Wilson was sorely missed as this team struggled to identify a second surefire striker, but Ally Sentnor’s dynamism and ability to drop deep toward midfield make her a danger in starts and substitute shifts alike. Alyssa Thompson and Trinity Rodman are among the world’s most dynamic wingers, while Michelle Cooper and Jameese Joseph offer multi-role flexibility and growing end product. Emma Sears is a menace dribbling down the flank, able to beat low defensive blocks with her world-class ball control at top speed.

The kids are all right

While the goalkeepers are in their athletic primes between 26 and 31, the other position groups all include quite a few up-and-comers. Full-backs Patterson, Reale and Thompson are all 23 or younger. Girma, Wesley, Davidson and Sams are 27 or under. Moultrie (20) and Yohannes (18) are the pool’s best midfield progressors, while Hutton (20) can go toe-to-toe in any midfield battle. Shaw (21), Sentnor (22), Joseph (23), Cooper (23) and Sears (25) all seem to have untapped potential in spite of their consistent performances. And, given their successes in the NWSL and WSL, it boggles the mind to remember that Rodman and Thompson are just 23 and 21, respectively.

World, be warned: the USWNT is built for now and the foreseeable future.

US roster

Goalkeepers: Jane Campbell (Houston Dash), Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United)

Defenders: Tierna Davidson (Gotham), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Naomi Girma (Chelsea), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Lilly Reale (Gotham), Emily Sams (Angel City), Emily Sonnett (Gotham), Gisele Thompson (Angel City), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave)

Midfielders: Sam Coffey (Manchester City), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes), Claire Hutton (Bay FC), Rose Lavelle (Gotham), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes)

Forwards: Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Jameese Joseph (Chicago Stars), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea), Sophia Wilson (Portland Thorns)

Header image: [Photograph: Al Sermeno/ISI Photos/Getty Images]