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Women's Soccer Claudio Villa / Getty Images For the past nine months, the concept of a core group within the U. S. women’s national team has been ever-present as head coach Emma Hayes refines her roster in preparation for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil. January camp featured no first-time call-ups, marking a theoretical conclusion of her experiment phase. The She Believes Cup in March provided more clues as to which players Hayes sees as foundational to her World Cup vision as the team defeated Argentina, Canada, and Colombia on its way to the top of the podium. Advertisement But then the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) season started, and based on how the first three weeks have gone (eight teams have played four games, but the other six still have three), it is hard to imagine the landscape of the USWNT’s core group remaining unchanged. While some players firm up their spots in that coveted roster, others have put on club performances that will make Hayes’ job more difficult. “I have to leave windows where I might have a very good idea of 35 players, 40 players that I think are what we call ‘WNT core players, '” Hayes said in a press conference following the release of the USWNT roster for the Japan friendlies. “But I absolutely have to leave space for players that in over the next 12 to 15 months really, really progress because, as you know, some players drop off and some start to progress into their prime. ” That’s why this week’s “Three Words” column — in which we narrow down a standout player, team, or moment in global women’s soccer to three words and then unpack them — is slippery, stretchy, and a bit mysterious as we head into an international break in which the U. S. faces Japan three times in as many different venues. It’s time to… We made our latest World Cup roster prediction on the heels of the She Believes Cup, and it ruffled feathers as it always does. Predictions are messy, and it is challenging to designate a player on a depth chart when they have not played for an extended period of time, whether due to injury (center back Tierna Davidson and winger Michelle Cooper) or maternity leave (forwards Sophia Wilson and Mallory Swanson). Add to that Hayes’ accelerated developmental track for all USWNT players who have been to camp in the past 15 months, and those calculations get murkier. How does one compare a player like Ally Sentnor, who earned her first national team call-up in November 2024 and now has 18 caps of pure Hayes-ian training and experience, to Wilson, who will make her return to camp for the first time since winning Olympic gold at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, especially when the latter will face a learning curve in the national team’s latest era? Advertisement Wilson was not ready to join the U. S. for the She Believes Cup, but the minutes she’s building with the Portland Thorns four games into the season — both in quantity and quality — show how much has changed in less than a month. She played 15 minutes (plus stoppage time) against the Washington Spirit in her regular-season return, 31 minutes in a bizarre Cascadia Rivalry victory, 45 minutes against San Diego and most recently earned a start and 68 minutes against the Kansas City Current. In each appearance, she has showcased the holdup quality, defensive aggression and laser eye for goal for which she’s long been known. (Her shot in the 10th minute of the Current match could have been a goal if not for a goalkeeper of Lorena’s quality; another that came in the 13th smacked the post, and she won a penalty in the 51st minute. ) Wilson is yet to score this season, and does not appear to be 90-minutes fit, but both feel imminent. Her fitness is enough to justify keeping Wilson on the USWNT bubble for now, but she’s shown enough in her club performance to justify an invitation to camp. Hayes needs to get her into the fold, convening with her teammates and situated on the learning curve as soon as possible. She’s also prioritizing players’ chances to be around the team in a national camp environment, which partly explained her reasoning behind bringing Jaedyn Shaw to camp despite the 21-year-old midfielder having missed her last two games with Gotham FC due to injury. “I think what is important when you’re trying to build connections between the players, we have to. It’s a team, and we have to keep that team, or at least the core of that team together for as long as possible, so that they build up, not just the relationships off the pitch, but on the field, and for me that’s of a higher order, ” Hayes said. The same goes for Davidson, who returned to the pitch on March 21 after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear a year prior. In her absence from the USWNT, Hayes has fancied her Gotham FC teammate Emily Sonnett, the Spirit’s Tara Rudd, or San Diego Wave’s Kennedy Wesley in a center back pairing alongside Naomi Girma, but internally, there had been clear anticipation of Davidson’s inclusion back into the national team when she was ready. Advertisement Hayes believes that time is now. “I think it’s important for her to re-enter the environment. She hasn’t been in it for such a long time, there’s been so many developments, so bringing her back up to speed, ” she said, noting that “she will be used in a limited capacity. ” Like Wilson, Davidson has been accumulating minutes with Gotham FC. Her performances might be less quantifiable as a center back, but her natural left foot and, as Hayes has said in the past, ability to advance the ball into the attacking third should give her a favorable position within the bubble. Beyond Wilson and Davidson, there are others whose bright starts in the NWSL warrant additional looks on the national team. Denver Summit full back Ayo Oke, Thorns striker Pietra Tordin — whom Hayes said Wednesday “has started really, really well” — Gotham forward Jordynn Dudley, Summit center back Eva Gaetino and San Diego midfielder Lia Godfrey have all made compelling cases for themselves — if not for this camp, then future windows, or spots on the under-23 national team. Hayes may have implied the door to the 2027 World Cup is closed for those who have not already received meaningful looks, but the NWSL season is already shaping up to defy expectations and wedge that door back open. “I watch every football match, and I’ve loved the start of the NWSL, ” Hayes said, referring to Angel City’s undefeated start and the Houston Dash’s string of strong performances. “It’s been absolutely fantastic to see teams that maybe have sat in the bottom half of the league starting strong. I think it bodes well for the league. ” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Tamerra Griffin is a women’s soccer writer for The Athletic covering the women’s game around the world. She also hosts the weekly “Full Time” women’s soccer podcast. As a freelance journalist, she covered the 2023 World Cup in Australia and the CONCACAF W Gold Cup for The Athletic, as well as women’s soccer stories for ESPN Andscape, USA Today’s Pro Soccer Wire, and other publications. Prior to that, she was an international correspondent based in Kenya, where she reported on presidential elections and political movements, LGBTQ and women’s rights, climate change, and much more across East and Southern Africa. Follow Tamerra on Twitter @tamerra_nikol