Emma Hayes supports a new wave of USWNT players moving to big European clubs

There’s nothing new about American women’s soccer players moving to Europe, even if it sometimes seems that way.

Yes, a lot of them have gone over this winter, but open up the history books for a moment. Before U.S. captain Lindsey Heaps (née Horan) joined France’s Lyon in 2022, she was preceded by Americans as far back as 2005. When Catarina Macario went to Chelsea in 2023, she followed footsteps left by Crystal Dunn in 2017. When Emily Fox went to Arsenal a year ago, she knew Tobin Heath and Heather O’Reilly had already starred there.

Penn State product Ali Krieger and Lehigh Valley native Gina Lewandowski went to Germany’s FFC Frankfurt in 2007, and became the first Americans to win what’s now known as the Champions League. Sweden’s Tyresö welcomed Americans for decades, all the way back to Michelle Akers in the 1990s. Some players even found clubs in Europe in the 1980s, predating the first women’s World Cup in 1991.

Why, then, have there been alarm bells about the latest wave of players crossing the Atlantic?

» READ MORE: Emma Hayes’ goals for the USWNT’s next few years go far beyond winning games

It’s not as big of a batch as went over during the COVID-19 pandemic, which happened mainly because England’s league played when the NWSL didn’t.

There’s not even anything new about Americans crossing the pond in the months after an Olympics, as has happened this winter. With three years from a Games until the next World Cup, it’s a natural time to try something different.

After the 2016 Games, O’Reilly went to Arsenal, Delran’s Carli Lloyd went to Manchester City, and Alex Morgan went to Lyon. After 2012, Megan Rapinoe went to Lyon, then became the fifth American woman to play in a Champions League final.

So, again, what’s all the noise about? Well, there are some differences this time.

First, European clubs didn’t just splash on big-name veterans. Paris Saint-Germain did in signing Dunn, but Arsenal and Chelsea signed rising stars in Jenna Nighswonger and Naomi Girma, respectively. Chelsea also looked at a move for Penn State grad Sam Coffey before she decided to stay in Portland.

» READ MORE: The next women’s World Cup isn’t until 2027, but the USWNT has much to do — including a bid to host in 2031

It also mattered that Nighswonger and Girma went for transfer fees instead of as free agents. That’s nothing new in men’s soccer, but it is in the women’s game, so the numbers made headlines. Arsenal paid Gotham FC $100,000 for Nighswonger, and Chelsea paid the San Diego Wave $1.1 million for Girma — the largest transfer fee in women’s soccer history.

The free market calls that competition, and that’s good for the sport. NWSL teams took their turn last year, signing stars from European clubs, including France’s Delphine Cascarino (from Lyon), Canada’s Jessie Fleming (from Chelsea), Colombia’s Leicy Santos (from Spain’s Atlético Madrid), and Germany’s Ann-Katrin Berger (also from Chelsea). Now, the old continent has fired back.

When U.S. players move, that always makes more noise. Still, one can still wonder if the current alarm is a false one — and if the English helped pull it so they could boast about their clubs’ big spending.

Tuesday brought a good moment to check for fingerprints. U.S. manager Emma Hayes announced her roster for this month’s SheBelieves Cup, and seven of the 23 players are based in Europe: Dunn, Fox, Heaps, Macario, Nighswonger, Korbin Albert (Paris Saint-Germain), and Lily Yohannes (the Netherlands’ Ajax). An eighth American abroad, Phallon Tullis-Joyce (England’s Manchester United), will join the camp as a training player.

» READ MORE: Emma Hayes used rival countries’ criticism of the USWNT to fuel winning Olympic gold

U.S. Soccer hasn’t kept a tally of the record for one squad, but eight undoubtedly is up there. Hayes would know as well as anyone: She recruited Dunn, Macario, and Mia Fishel to Chelsea in her 12 years there before taking the U.S. job.

So it was natural to ask her opinion in a news conference Tuesday, and she had plenty to say.

“There’s always an assumption that the national team coach either encourages that to happen or stops that from happening,” Hayes said, alluding to predecessors such as Jill Ellis who wanted players to stay home. Hayes also gave a reminder that until 2021, U.S. Soccer paid the salaries of national team stars in the NWSL, which led to further influence.

“The reality is, the players — first of all, they’re their own people, they have their own minds,” Hayes said. “If the player wants that [move abroad] and the club [sanctions] that, then the players will always have my blessing. Because I ultimately just want them to be happy and I want them to feel developed.”

» READ MORE: Carli Lloyd elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame

Hayes put her politician hat on for a moment when she called the NWSL “arguably the most competitive league in the world, from top to bottom — I don’t think even it’s arguably, it is the most competitive league from top to bottom.” And she said it likely will remain “a league where the vast majority of our players want to be.”

She acknowledged the perception issue when players leave. But if a player asks her opinion on moving, as Nighswonger did, Hayes won’t tip the scale.

“Who am I to tell them they can and can’t do those things?” she said. “It’s not my job to do that, and I just want to make sure they’re supported either way. … But I don’t think it’s an unhealthy thing. Far from it.”

If not for all the transfers this winter, Tuesday’s biggest news would be Macario’s return after the latest of many knee issues. She hasn’t played for the U.S. since last June and returned to action for Chelsea in September. The 25-year-old forward has been in good form, with five goals and two assists in 13 games.

» READ MORE: These longtime friends from Montco have played soccer against each other from youth to the pros

There will be a spotlight on the goalkeepers in the Americans’ first games since Alyssa Naeher’s retirement. Hayes picked just two for the tournament squad, veteran Jane Campbell (Houston Dash) and relative newcomer Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals).

Two young players earned their first senior U.S. call-ups, 19-year-old midfielder Claire Hutton and 22-year-old forward Michelle Cooper, who are teammates on the Kansas City Current. The duo and Angel City defender Gisele Thompson made this squad after being in last month’s future prospects camp.

Along with all the transfers this winter, it was a season for weddings. Heaps, Sophia Wilson (Smith), Lynn Biyendolo (Williams), Tierna Davidson, and Emily Sams got married recently.

Four major players are absent because of injury rehabs that have gone on through the winter: Girma, Wilson, Trinity Rodman, and Rose Lavelle. Mallory Swanson also is out because of personal commitments, which she announced last month.

This year’s SheBelieves Cup field includes No. 8 Japan, No. 15 Australia, and No. 21 Colombia. Games will be played in a round-robin format across three days: Feb. 20 in Houston, Feb. 23 in Glendale, Ariz., and Feb. 26 in San Diego.

» READ MORE: Sophia Wilson opens up about her arrival as a U.S. women’s soccer superstar

Goalkeepers (2): Jane Campbell (Houston Dash), Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals)

Defenders (8): Tierna Davidson (Gotham FC), Crystal Dunn (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Emily Fox (Arsenal, England), Tara McKeown (Washington Spirit), Jenna Nighswonger (Arsenal), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham FC), Gisele Thompson (Angel City FC)

Midfielders (6): Korbin Albert (Paris Saint-Germain), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Lindsey Heaps (Lyon, France), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Jaedyn Shaw (North Carolina Courage), Lily Yohannes (Ajax, Netherlands)

Forwards (7): Lynn Biyendolo (Seattle Reign), Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Catarina Macario (Chelsea, England), Yazmeen Ryan (Houston Dash), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Utah Royals), Alyssa Thompson (Angel City FC)

Training camp players (3): GK Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United, England), D Savy King (Angel City), M Hannah Bebar (Bay FC)

» READ MORE: How Lily Yohannes kept cool amid the hype before deciding to play for the USWNT

Thursday, Feb. 20: Japan vs. Australia, 5 p.m. (Universo, Max, Peacock) and United States vs. Colombia, 8 p.m. (TBS, Universo, Max, Peacock) in Houston

Sunday, Feb. 23: Colombia vs. Japan, 2 p.m. (Universo, Max, Peacock) and United States vs. Australia, 5 p.m. (TBS, Universo, Max, Peacock) in Glendale, Ariz.

Wednesday, Feb. 26: Australia vs. Colombia, 7:30 p.m. (Universo, Max, Peacock) and United States vs. Japan, 10:30 p.m. (TBS, Universo, Max, Peacock) in San Diego