A year from now, the USWNT will be in Brazil preparing to open their World Cup campaign. They do not have a confirmed roster, a settled goalkeeper, or a guarantee that two of their best players will even be fit. That is where things stand.
Spain claimed the 2023 trophy and reached the 2025 European Championship final. They sit No. 1 in the FIFA rankings. The U.S. are No. 2, still carrying the sting of a round-of-16 exit from that same 2023 tournament. October brings two friendlies between these sides — in Washington D.C. and Chester, Penn. — making it the first meeting since Spain won 2-0 in Pamplona in 2022. The USWNT's World Cup preparation is about to get serious fast.
Emma Hayes has spent two years reshaping this program. The depth chart is broader than it's ever been. But broad and settled are two different things, and right now, this roster has more open questions than answered ones.
The injury problem nobody wants to talk about
Naomi Girma hasn't played since April — calf injury, no confirmed return date. Catarina Macario hasn't played since December 2025, managing a heel problem with San Diego Wave staying notably quiet about her timeline. A year ago, both would have been automatic inclusions on any 2027 roster. Now? Neither is a lock.
The USWNT beat Japan and Brazil without Macario. They can probably get by. But Macario was the team's top scorer in 2025 and has no real like-for-like replacement in this squad — Croix Bethune or Jaedyn Shaw peaking at the right moment is the realistic contingency, not an upgrade. Girma's cover is more straightforward: Kennedy Wesley, Stanford-trained like Girma and Tierna Davidson, is a credible option. But credible cover isn't the same as having Girma.
The window for Macario to force her way back into camp, log meaningful minutes, and rebuild chemistry with this group is genuinely closing. That matters for anyone tracking U.S. attacking depth when pricing up their World Cup chances.
The goalkeeper situation remains unsettled
Hayes pushed back on the obsession with naming a No. 1 keeper — "we don't say the same about outfield players" — but the question doesn't go away just because she finds it tiresome. Claudia Dickey has more caps under Hayes. Phallon Tullis-Joyce has Champions League experience against top European opponents that Hayes clearly values. As of June 2026, neither has pulled clearly ahead.
Gut feeling: Tullis-Joyce has a narrow edge for that opening group-stage start. But "narrow edge" 12 months out isn't the kind of certainty a World Cup contender wants at the position that decides knockout matches.
Triple Espresso, the bubble, and who gets squeezed
Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson, and Mallory Swanson were all called up together for the first time in nearly two years during the most recent window. Their collective return is good for the team's ceiling. It is not good news if you're Emma Sears, who has been a regular call-up but whose finishing hasn't been consistent enough and whose club, Racing Louisville, has struggled this season to give her the platform to change that perception.
Swanson herself is technically on the bubble — she joined camp in Brazil for the first time in over a year and hasn't yet played meaningful minutes in a U.S. shirt. Hayes has earned trust through this whole process, but the forward pool is crowded and patience has limits. Ally Sentnor, Michelle Cooper, Alyssa Thompson — who has arguably been the most consistent U.S. attacker since the Paris Olympics — and now the Triple Espresso trio all want minutes. Someone gets left home.
The locks, if you're building a roster today: Emily Fox at left back, no debate. Rose Lavelle in midfield, injury history and all — a healthy Lavelle changes what this team can do creatively. And Thompson, who has played with practically every combination Hayes has tried and keeps delivering.
The 2027 Women's World Cup kicks off in Brazil next summer. The atmosphere in São Paulo and Fortaleza — as the USWNT learned firsthand in June — will be nothing like a neutral venue. Planning for that environment isn't optional. Neither is answering these questions before qualifying begins in November.
