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Happy Monday! The “Full Time” podcast answered your burning questions. From developments in Denver’s NWSL bid to favorite cheeses for the charcuterie board, it’s essential holiday listening.
A Year of Goodbyes
USWNT says farewell to 2019 World Cup winners
For many of us, the leap from 2019 to 2024 was so aggressive it should come with a jump-scare warning. Even the U.S. women’s national team wasn’t immune.
With Becky Sauerbrunn’s emotional retirement last week, seven of the starters from the 2019 Women’s World Cup-winning team have now retired. In 2023, Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz stepped away from the game, and this year it was Sauerbrunn, Alyssa Naeher, Kelley O’Hara, Sam Mewis and Alex Morgan’s turn.
From winning back-to-back World Cups to signing a major agreement that brought equal pay to the women’s and men’s national teams, the group amassed:
- 1127 combined appearances for the U.S.
- 233 goals
- 69 clean sheets
- Two Olympic gold medals
- Two World Cup titles
“All I can do is hope that you got to share in some of the joy I felt every time I stepped onto a field — that you got to dream with me, even if just…
