Five additional clubs — Bay FC, the Chicago Stars, the Houston Dash, the North Carolina Courage, and the Portland Thorns — have released their initial preseason roster for the 2025 National Women’s Soccer League season, leaving just Gotham FC as the only team to not officially publish their roster list.
The most curious nugget from those five clubs’ press releases is a note that Chicago Stars and United States Women’s National Team forward Mallory Swanson will not be with the Stars “for the start of training camp” due to unspecified “personal reasons”. Chicago’s roster release also included a quote from Swanson. At this point in time, this situation is just something to note and is only a slightly significant story.
All five clubs have at least one non-roster invitee:
- Bay FC has just one unsigned player, forward Catherine Paulson, who signed a short-term contract with the club in October 2024 after previously being a National Team Replacement Player.
- The Chicago Stars have seven invitees, including two Jamaican internationals: goalkeeper Sydney Schneider, who was with the Stars in 2024, and Ohio State midfielder Peyton McNamara.
- The Houston Dash have five non-roster players, including UVA midfielder Alexis Theoret, who was called into a U-23 USWYNT camp back in February 2023.
- The North Carolina Courage have invited six recent collegiate players. Among them is defender Emerson Elgin, who won a 2024 NCAA Division I title with the North Carolina Tar Heels last December.
- Of the six non-roster players invited by the Portland Thorns, two are goalkeepers: Morgan Messner, who was with the San Diego Wave during the 2024 NWSL season, and Stanford’s Haley Craig.
Women's Soccer Express 