Human Interest

Former United States goalkeeper Hope Solo pleaded guilty to driving while impaired on Monday and said that she is "slowly coming back" after receiving care at an in-patient alcohol treatment program following her arrest in late March.

Solo was found passed out behind the wheel of her car in a parking lot in North Carolina on March 31 and charged with impaired driving, resisting arrest and misdemeanor child abuse. Her two children were in the car at the time of the arrest.

Processions across the Midwest came to a rest at Wisconsin’s most hallowed ground on Saturday night. Fans of Germany’s Bayern Munich and England’s Manchester City packed into Lambeau Field to watch the first-ever soccer match played at the home of the Green Bay Packers.

As thousands of spectators arrived, streams of fans in sky blue and bright red paraded through the small town with the behemoth that is Lambeau Field lying in their sights. For many who see soccer as their religion, this was about to be their evening service. 

As many states ban abortion across the United States, soccer fans could find more than their reproductive freedoms disappearing. They might also lose their ability to watch top-flight soccer.

NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said this week full access to healthcare — including birth control, in-vitro fertilization and abortion — is one of the league’s values. As the NWSL seeks to increase by two teams up to 14 by 2024, states that deny women and those who may become pregnant full healthcare rights could find themselves left out of the growing women’s soccer party. 

Chelsea midfielders N'Golo Kanté and Ruben Loftus-Cheek will not feature in the club's preseason tour to the United States due to their COVID-19 vaccination status, the Premier League side said on Saturday.

Entry rules for the U.S. say that all visitors over 18, barring American citizens and other limited exceptions, must be double vaccinated against the virus.

It was unclear whether the two players were unvaccinated or had received only one dose.

Megan Rapinoe became the first soccer player to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, President Joe Biden bestowing the highest civilian award in the country on the USWNT star on Thursday at the White House. Biden also explained why Rapinoe was given Presidential Medal Of Freedom honors.

Italy's Serie A has appointed Maria Sole Ferrieri Caputi for the 2022-23 season as its first female referee.

The 31-year-old Ferrieri Caputi became the first female to referee a match involving a Serie A team last year — Cagliari’s Italian Cup clash with Cittadella.

She will now referee a top-flight match for the first time next term after joining the league's officiating team on Friday.

Serie A has appointed its first female referee.

History was made on Friday when U.S. Soccer announced USWNT star Megan Rapinoe will become the first soccer player to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. U.S. President Joe Biden will award Rapinoe, along with 16 other recipients including gymnast Simone Biles, the medal on July 7 at the White House.