National Teams

One of the best subplots to follow throughout the course of a Concacaf Gold Cup is the evolving power rankings of the nations looking to end the United States and Mexico's hegemony of the region. 

And with the USMNT sending a B Team under the direction of an interim manager and El Tri in disarray with their own interim boss, this summer looked as good a time as any for the likes of Canada and Jamaica to strive for glory.

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa's Women's World Cup preparations were plunged into chaos on Sunday when a shadow national team including a 13-year-old took on Botswana in a friendly as the squad selected for the finals were locked in a dispute with the national association.

The match was supposed to be a send-off for the squad going to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand before they continue their preparations outside the country.

Henry Martin's goal just after halftime sent Mexico on its way to a 3-1 win over Haiti on Thursday in Group B play at the CONCACAF Gold Cup in Glendale, Ariz.

This seems familiar

Mexico scores 45 seconds into the start of the second half pic.twitter.com/KxgTmmDHIq

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 30, 2023

Of all the men’s national soccer teams in the world, the United States has the 11th best according to the latest FIFA rankings.

This is the highest ranking for the U.S. since December 2021 when they were also 11th. August 2021 was the last time the USMNT were among the top 10.

The latest edition of the rankings that everyone definitely takes seriously and certainly doesn’t laugh at has the USMNT above the likes of Germany, Morocco, Switzerland and Uruguay.

It's been almost a year since two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas went down with an ACL injury that cost her a place at last summer's European Championship and almost the entire 2022-23 club season with Barcelona.  

Her last appearance for Spain was actually July 2, 2022, when she received her 100th cap and scored her 27th goal in a friendly against Italy.

Now, after a long and demanding road to recovery, Putellas made her long-awaited return to the national team Thursday during a friendly against fellow World Cup participants Panama. 

United States men’s national team striker and FC Dallas star Jesús Ferreira became the fastest player in USMNT history to reach double-digit goals. On Wednesday he netted a hat trick in the Gold Cup vs. Saint Kitts and Nevis to bring his goal tally for the national team up to 11 in just 20 games.

The U.S. women's national soccer team will receive the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage at next month's ESPYs in recognition of their fight for equal pay with their male counterparts, ESPN said on Wednesday.

The award, which is given to an individual or group in the sporting world that makes a difference beyond the field of play, will be presented on July 12, before the women's squad kick off their bid for a third consecutive World Cup title on July 22.