Staying with Canada, Casey Stoney has been named as their new WNT head coach, after the team moved on from Bev Priestman and interim head coach Andy Spence after the spying scandal at last summer’s Olympic Games Final and we present her first roster for the Pinatar Cup in Spain. We also look at the logistics for a new UEFA women’s club tournament, the Europa Cup, starting with the 2025-26 season.
Northern Super League 2025 Season Preparation UpdateWe look again at news from the six franchises of Canada’s NSL for their first season in 2025 (see our previous column with news on the league from late last year: The Week in Women's Football: Examining Northern Super League; update on bomb victim Haidar - TribalFootball.com).
Calgary Wild
English native Lydia Bedford (37) has been named as the new head coach of the Calgary Wild; she was previously with the Brentford (England) Under-18’s men side—she was the first woman ever to hold a coaching position at an English Premier League club at Brentford—and worked in the club’s youth setup since May 2023.
She also is a former Leicester City Women’s manager between 2021 and 2022, where she helped the club avoid relegation from the Women’s Super League in 2021-22 before being fired the following season after starting the campaign with six straight defeats. She also spent time at Arsenal Women on Jonas Eidevall’s coaching staff. Eidevall recently was appointed as head coach of the San Diego Wave of the NWSL for the 2025 season. She has also previously worked as an England Women’s youth team coach at multiple levels and earned a UEFA Pro License in 2019.
Calgary Wild FC signed Toronto-based midfielder Sonia O’Neill (30) for the 2025 season. She has played for Venezuela since 2021, appearing in 13 matches. She played at Niagara University and the University of North Florida. She then has played for eight years in Europe with clubs in Croatia, England, France, Germany, Italy, Scotland and Sweden—the Wild will be her first professional club in North America.
O’Neill talked about her professional career, which has been a goal for her since she was very young: “When I was three, I always had a ball and told my parents I wanted to play soccer professionally because I loved the game. Teachers would often tell me to pick another career that’s more realistic, but I have always been stubborn and would never let anyone say no to my soccer dream. I love the competition, and the pressure of winning.”
Throughout her long club career in Europe, she played for Glasgow Rangers and Roma and became the first Venezuelan player to score in the Women’s Champions League with Split in Croatia. She added: “I believe that I am proof that no matter where you’re from, or what your background is, you can make it and achieve what you want to do even if people doubt you. The path to pro isn’t easy, but it’s worth it. There’s no better feeling than playing the game you love for a living, and I now look forward to representing Calgary Wild FC.”
O’Neill is expected to be very active in the Wild’s youth activities, explaining that: “Having a young daughter, I want to be part of a club that not only wants to win the league and make history, but genuinely wants to help female football grow through providing more opportunities to youth in Canada. The Wild FC are very clear on their goals on and off the pitch, with a focus on making sure the game is inclusive for all.”
Another international signing is defender Ally Green (26), a fullback from Sydney, Australia, who represented Australia at the U-20 level before joining New Zealand at the senior level in 2022. On the club side, she has played with Sydney FC, in Norway with Valerenga and since the 2023-24 season with AGF of Denmark. She won an A-League title with Sydney and two with New South Wales state league side Manly United. She joins her international teammate and defender Meikalya Moore, who was one of the Wild’s first signings.
Defender Talia White (26) joins Calgary from Treaty United of Limerick in the Republic of Ireland. She also played at the state league level in Australia, being named Essendon Royals (Victoria) Player of the Year in 2023 and South Hobart (in Tasmania) Player of the Year in 2022. She played in Canada locally at the University of Calgary and as a youth with the Calgary Foothills WFC organization.
Midfielder Jenaya Robertson (27) previously played for Trinity Western University in Langley. B.C. where she was the USPORTS and Canada West Player of the Year for the 2019/20 season. She has played since 2021 with lower levels clubs in Germany and Spain as well as with Shelbourne of Dublin and Athlone Town—where she won a league title in 2023-24—in the Republic of Ireland.
Halifax Tides
Halifax Tides FC signed Christabel Oduro (32), a forward who has played for clubs in France, Germany, Sweden, Israel, Malta, and Turkey. Oduro represented Canada’s U-20 team at the 2012 CONCACAF Championships, where the team finished second, and then at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Japan in 2012. She has five full caps for Canada.
They also signed Gianna Creighton, who played at the University of California-Irvine in Southern California. She set school records for games played (87), games started (87) and minutes played (7,789) over five seasons. The Tides also added American defender Kiley Norkus (29). Norkus is from San Luis Obispo, California, and played her NCAA Division 1 soccer at California State University, Northridge and Eastern Washington University. Following her graduation in 2018, she played professionally in Malta for Hibernians FC in Sweden, Spain, Iceland, Turkey and Israel. She played in 2024 with Amed in Turkey and WFC Calgary Foothills of UWS.
Other import signings include forward Milly Clegg (19), a New Zealand international, has been signed on loan from the NWSL’s Racing Louisville. She is in the second year of a three year contract with Racing but only played in one regular season game last season as she recovered from an injury. She played as an amateur in the A-League Women for Western Sydney and Wellington as she was considering playing collegiate soccer in the U.S. She made three FIFA WWC sides within a year, for the 2022 U-20 World Cup in Costa Rica, the U-17 World Cup in India and the senior World Cup in Australia-New Zealand. Japanese striker Megumi Nakamura (24) moved to Halifax from Japan’s WE-League side AC Nagano Parceiro, in her first stint abroad. French national defender Éva Fremaux (22) comes from FC Nantes, who she helped win promotion to the top tier league for 2024-25, has joined the Tides. She also played for Lille OSC and RC Strasbourg and played with new Tides signing Christabel Oduro at Nantes in 2023-24.
Signings with ties to Nova Scotia or Eastern Canada include forward Syd Kennedy (23), a Halifax native, played at the University of Florida and Acadia University. Saoria Miller is a native of Halifax who played at Halifax West High School and then played at the University of Memphis, scoring 24 goals with 14 assists in five seasons. In 2021, she helped the team to the final 16 of the NCAA’s College Cup. She then played for Keflavik in Iceland. Midfielder Daphnee Blouin (26) is from Quebec City. Blouin won multiple Quebec university conference titles for the Universite de Laval and was the league MVP, as well as a U SPORTS All-Canadian. She played professionally in Turkey for Fatih Vatan in Istanbul earlier this year, scoring once in eight appearances.
Montreal Roses FC
The Montreal Roses FC signed a pair of homegrown players for their first season in 2025. Winger Mégane Sauvé has been playing in Portugal’s Campeonato Nacional Feminino, with Valadares Gaia FC and Sporting CP, where she won the Portuguese Supercup. Forward Noémi Paquin scored 15 goals and 4 assists last season at Florida International University. They also signed Quebec native goalkeeper Anne-Marie Laroche (24), who is a child psychiatry nurse clinician and played at the Universite Laval in Quebec City.
Two Americans are joining the Roses: forward Alexandria “Allie” Hess is the former captain of MSV Duisburg in the Frauen Bundesliga. Over three seasons, she made 53 appearances, starting 47 matches, and contributed 10 goals and 4 assists. Duisburg was relegated to the second division after the 2023-24 season. She grew up in Missouri and played at the University of Missouri. Defender Jodi Smith (22) from Pembroke Pines, Florida played at Florida Atlantic University. In the summer of 2024, she played with South Georgia Tormenta FC of the USL W League. The Tormenta won the league title in the league’s first season in 2022.
Winger Claire Monyard (24) comes from London, Ontario—two hour’s drive west of Toronto—and she played at Florida International University after beginning at the University of Arkansas for two seasons. She played in the USL W League with Miami City FC.
Off the field, Montréal Roses FC will play at Centre Sportif Bois-de-Boulogne this season, making it Canada’s first venue designed specifically for a professional women's soccer team. With a 5,581-seat capacity, premium seating, and a fully renovated training center, this stadium, located in suburban Laval, offers an unparalleled experience for both players and fans.
Ottawa Rapid
The Rapid signed goalkeeper Mollie Eriksson (24) from DePaul University in Chicago. Eriksson has represented Sweden internationally at the youth level. Born in Stockholm, Eriksson moved with her family to Ottawa when she was eight years old. She also qualifies to play for Canada. Most recently, Eriksson was named to a U-23 Swedish national camp. She also was named to Canada’s U-20 national program, participating in three training camps, as well as two U-17 training camps.
Defender/midfielder Ellen Gibson is a Swedish youth international who was born in Stockholm, playing with Hammarby IF as a youth and senior player. As a senior player since 2011, she played in 230 games across all competitions. She played at Santa Clara University for two seasons (2015-16). With Hammarby, she won the league and Swedish Cup in 2023. Gibson represented Sweden internationally from 2011 to 2014, as part of the U-17 and U-19 youth teams, appearing in 19 matches. She captained the team that won the silver medal at the UEFA European Women's U-17 Championship in 2012-13 and was named to the Team of the Tournament for her play. Gibson was also part of the squad that captured silver while competing at the Nordic Games in 2011 (U-15 level).
The Rapid also signed forward Jazmine Wilkinson. Wilkinson was born in Chicago but moved to B.C. when she was four and grew up in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. She is a Canadian youth international who finished her college career at Texas A&M. She first played three years at Arizona State University, primarily as a holding midfielder, making 53 appearances. She then spent her last two years at Texas A&M, where she primarily played at striker, scoring 13 goals in 40 games. She played for Canada at the 2018 FIFA U-17 WWC in Uruguay where Canada finished fourth. In 2020, Wilkinson again represented Canada at the CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Championship in the Dominican Republic, tallying two goals and two assists in five matches.
Midfielder Emily Amano (24) is a native of Ottawa and played collegiately at Colgate University and in Sweden with Umea and in Iceland with Íþróttafélagið Grótta.
Rapid FC signed Canadian international veteran and Olympic gold medalist Desiree Scott, who had announced late last year that she was retiring from the game (see our extensive profile in: The Week in Women's Football: NWSL review - PI; Hines guides Orlando Pride to First - TribalFootball.com). A native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Scott played in four Olympic Games Finals, winning the gold medal at Tokyo 2020 to go with her bronze medals at Rio 2016 and London 2012. Scott played for the University of Manitoba Bisons from 2005 to 2010. During her career, she was named team MVP three times and earned the title of Bison Sports Female Athlete of the Year for the 2009-2010 season. It is tremendous to see her continue her career and she will be a huge asset to the team and league in its first season.
Ottawa Rapid also signed defender Liv Scott, who recently graduated from Quinnipiac University in 2024 and is a Canadian youth international. Midfielder Miranda Smith (28) played in Finland, Iceland, France, and Israel. Smith played collegiately at the University of Memphis and was with the University of Ottawa’s 2018 U SPORTS National Championship side, for which she was named Tournament MVP.
Defender Susanne Haaland, who played for Norway at the youth level (U-15, U-17 and U-19 levels), joined Ottawa for the league’s first season. She began in Norway’s top-tier Toppserien with Stabæk, De Blaa, and Kolbotn (since 2021), where she was the team captain during the last two seasons. Outside of soccer, Haaland obtained her Master’s Degree in law from the University of Oslo in 2023. Since graduating, Haaland has been working part-time with a think tank, focusing primarily on environmental issues and legal and human rights.
Another import is Nigerian international midfielder Ngozi Okobi-Okeoghene, who has played in two Women’s World Cup Finals and won four Women’s Africa Cup of Nations titles (2010, 2014, 2016 and 2018); she was also named to the IFFHS CAF Women’s Team of the Decade (2011-2020). She was a member of Nigeria’s U-15, U-17 and U-19 youth teams, scoring 10 goals in 38 games. While with the youth teams, Okobi-Okeoghene played in the 2008 and 2010 (U-17) and 2012 (U-20) Women’s World Cups. She was first capped at the senior level in 2010 at the age of 17 and has played 75 games, with 18 goals, and played in the 2015 and 2019 WWC Finals.
In 2015 in Canada, she was named MVP of the game versus Sweden thanks to her goal and two assists in a 3-3 tie. At the club level, she was with the Delta Queens for six seasons before joining the Washington Spirit of the NWSL after the 2015 WWC. She then played with Swedish side Vittsjö GIK in 2016, and after two seasons, moved on to Eskilstuna for five seasons, appearing in 168 games with 16 goals, before joining Levante in Spain’s Liga F for the 2023 season. She gave birth to a son in 2024 and her family will relocate to Ottawa for the season.
Winger Stella Downing is a former Canadian youth national team member who debuted for the U-17 WNT at the age of 14 in 2017 and won a bronze medal at the 2018 CONCACAF Women’s U17 Championship. She played collegiately at the University of Memphis, the University of Mississippi and then Crieghton University in Omaha, scoring three goals with one assist in 17 games in 2024. She grew up in the Vancouver area.
Midfielder/forward Florence Belzile graduated from the University of Nebraska after the 2024 season and is a native of Montreal. She had 28 assists in her career with the Huskers, a school that has always been a destination for Canadian internationals.
Forward Melanie Forbes (25) was born in the U.S. but moved to Canada when she was seven and qualified to play for either country as well as Portugal. She played at the University of Indiana from 2017-2021. Professionally she has played in Portugal with Damaiense and Keflavik in Iceland.
Midfielder Julia Benati (28) played at the University of Buffalo, and in Norway with Medkila and in Portugal with Valadares. Before and after playing in Europe, she has played nine seasons with FC London of League1 Ontario. Off the field, she is a Chiropractor.
The Rapid assistant coach is Soren Killerich of Denmark. He has a UEFA A License and has been a dedicated soccer coach for 10 years.
AFC Toronto
AFC Toronto has signed Hong Hye-ji, a defender with 40 caps for South Korea’s WNT. At the club level she played for Changnyeong WFC and Hyundai Steel Red Angels and also in Japan with INAC Kobe Leonessa.
Finland youth international goalkeeper Sofia Manner (27) played for the NWSL Orlando Pride in one Summer Cup game last season after being transferred from FC Honka of Finland’s Kansallinen Liiga—the first player to ever be transferred directly from Finland’s national league to the NWSL and she also set the Kansallinen Liiga record for the highest ever transfer fee that a club has received for a player. She played at Stony Brook University in New York State and Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida as well as in Iceland in 2022 with Foljnir of Reykjavik.
The NWSL’s North Carolina Courage loaned midfielder Victoria Pickett to AFC Toronto for the 2025 season. Pickett played 29 regular-season games for the Courage over two seasons, scoring one goal and adding one assist. She also appeared in eight cup competition matches, including the 2023 NWSL Challenge Cup—which the Courage won—and the 2024 NWSL vs. Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup, helping the Courage reach the semifinals.
The Courage acquired Pickett via trade from Gotham FC in 2023, after appearing in 35 games with Kansas City across two seasons. She was drafted 15th overall by the Kansas City Current in 2021 out of the University of Wisconsin, where she was a two-time, first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2017 and 2018. She has played for Canada at the senior level in the 2015 Pan American Games in Ontario (where Canada lost to Mexico 2-1 in the third place match) as well as at the youth national team level.
Canadian youth international Nikayla Small played at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In 2024, Wake Forest made it to the College Cup Championship Game, but lost to the University of North Carolina, and Small was unable to play due to an injury. She played at one U-20 WWC and has been called into two full national team camps.
Another Canadian youth international who played collegiately in the U.S. is Ashley Cathro (25), who played at the University of Illinois. Cathro returns to the game after working on a PhD after her college eligibility expired. She explained: “When this opportunity presented itself, it was one I couldn’t turn down. A professional women’s soccer league in Canada was always in the talks for a long time coming, but seeing it come to fruition is extremely exciting.”
She is a native of Victoria and moved to Vancouver during high school to play with the Whitecaps Girls Elite REX program—one of their clubs qualified for the inaugural 2024-25 CONCACAF W Champions Cup. She went on to represent Canada at the under-17 and under-20 level, including the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Jordan. Cathro was also invited to two training camps with the senior side in 2017 and 2021.
A third Canadian youth international signed by Toronto is forward Kaylee Hunter (17) is a Calgary native who has been playing in the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Girls Elite organization and this fall in the CONCACAF W Champions Cup tournament. She played in League1 British Colombia with the Whitecaps in 2023 and 2024, winning league titles both years, and was named the MVP at the 2024 Women’s Inter-Provincial Championship. She previously played at home in 2023 with Calgary Blizzard SC in League1 Alberta. She has been capped by Canada at the U-17 and U-20 levels. She is recognized as a key young scorer to watch in the Canadian game.
Two Americans are recently signings by Toronto: midfielder Colby Barnett (21) played at Santa Clara University in Northern California. She spent time with the U.S. at U-15 national team camps. Forward Shaina Ashouri (28) played at the Universities of Pittsburgh and Wyoming and has played in Croatia, Iceland and in the 2024 season with Vikingur of Norway, where she scored eight goals in 23 matches. In 2020, she was on a short-term contract with the Houston Dash but did not play in any regular season matches.
Vancouver Rise FC
Midfielder Quinn (29) has joined the Rise from the Seattle Reign. Quinn has been an institution for years with Canada’s WNT and won an Olympic Gold Medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and a Bronze Medal in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro; she has over 100 caps with the senior team. She spent six seasons with Seattle Reign FC, winning the NWSL Shield in 2022. She was the highest drafted Canadian in NWSL history when the Washington Spirit selected her third overall in 2018.
She also played two seasons in Europe, first with Paris FC in 2019, and then during a loan from Reign FC to Swedish side Vittsjö GIK in 2020. She has been an inspiration globally, becoming the first openly non-binary transgender athlete to both compete, medal, and become a gold medalist at an Olympic Games in 2021, and to play at the FIFA World Cup in 2023. The Toronto native played college soccer at the University of Duke, winning ACC Midfielder of the Year in 2017. Quinn was also selected to the United Soccer Coaches First Team All-America team, All-ACC First Team, and was a finalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy as the top college player.
American midfielder Nikki Stanton (34) has played in over 100 NWSL matches with the Reign, Chicago Red Stars and Sky Blue FC, as well as playing with Perth Glory in the W-League as well as short spells in France and Norway. She grew up in North Bend, Washington—about 40 minutes from Seattle and only a few hours south of Vancouver. She played collegiately at Fairfield University in Connecticut.
Other signings include forward Nedya Sawan, who scored 34 goals in her college career at the University of Portland from 2020-23 and then played her graduate season in 2024 at the University of Alabama.
Swedish midfielder Sofia Hagman (27) has played for top clubs in Sweden, including FC Rosengård, Kristianstad DFF, and Vittsjö GIK, in Cyprus with Apollon Ladies and in Spain with Sporting de Huelva, scoring twice in 44 appearances. She won league titles with Rosengard in 2015 and Apollon in 2021-22.
Canadian international midfielder Samantha Chang (24) is from Mississauga, Ontario. She played at the University of South Carolina and in Portugal with Torreense and in Denmark with HB Koge. She has been capped at multiple youth levels by Canada and once by the full national team in 2021 against Australia at the She Believes Cup in the U.S., a 1-0 victory for Canada.
Fullback Kayla Goncalves (24) played locally at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver and played abroad in France, Luxembourg and this season in Portugal for FC Famalicão. In 2022, she played in League1 Ontario for Unionville-Milliken Soccer Club and in League1 British Colombia for Altitude FC in North Vancouver before moving to Europe.
Former Manchester United and San Diego Wave head coach Casey Stoney named as Canada’s Women’s National Team Coach
On January 13, 2025, Casey Stoney has been named as Canada’s new WNT head coach, after the team moved on from Bev Priestman and interim head coach Andy Spence after the spying scandal at last summer’s Olympic Games Final, which cost Priestman her job. Stoney was a full international for England, earning 130 caps, and in two-and-a-half seasons with the San Diego Wave, she took the team to the playoffs both seasons and they won the NWSL Shield in 2023 after finishing top of the regular season table.
She was surprisingly let go by the Wave mid-season after being out of the playoff spots this season, but then, after her departure, the team collapsed and is in the process of a massive rebuild (see more at: The Week in Women's Football: NWSL club review (P2); Stoney axed; Haracic makes Bosnia call - TribalFootball.com). Stoney was always bright and very insightful to talk to. The Wave’s loss is Canada’s gain and the sixth ranked team in the world should continue to be competitive on the world stage. She played at the club level with Arsenal (winning two league titles), Chelsea, Charlton Athletic, Lincoln City and Liverpool. With England, she was on the 2009 Women’s European Championship side in Finland and the team that finished a surprising third in the 2015 WWC in Canada.
Canada will play at the Pinatar Cup (Murcia, Spain) in the spring in Stoney’s first internationals with Canada. They will face China PR, Mexico and Chinese Taipei in closed-door matches on February 19, 22 and 25. Stoney said: “I’m really excited to get started. This camp is the first step in building the foundation for what we want to achieve in 2025 and beyond. Each of these teams will present unique challenges, and it’s a great opportunity to assess the players and see where the team is at.” Canada is 8-5-14 (W-D-L) overall versus China, 22-3-3 versus Mexico—they played two matches last summer just before the 2024 Olympic Games, winning 2-0 in Montreal and tying 1-1 in Toronto. Canada and Chinese Taipei have played only once before, with the Maple Leafs falling 2-0 in 1987.
The roster for the 2025 Pinatar Cup was released on February 6, with 26 players traveling for the tournament:
GK - Sabrina D’Angelo | ENG / Aston Villa WFC
GK - Lysianne Proulx | ITA / Juventus FC
GK - Kailen Sheridan | USA / San Diego Wave FC
DF - Gabrielle Carle | USA / Washington Spirit
DF - Vanessa Gilles | FRA / FCF Olympique Lyonnais
DF - Ashley Lawrence | ENG / Chelsea FC
DF - Ella Ottey | USA / University of Wisconsin-Madison
DF - Megan Reid | USA / Angel City FC
DF - Jayde Riviere | ENG / Manchester United FC
DF - Jade Rose | USA / Harvard University
DF - Bianca St-Georges | USA / North Carolina Courage
DF - Shelina Zadorsky | ENG / West Ham United FC
MF - Marie-Yasmine Alidou | POR / SL Benfica
MF - Simi Awujo | ENG / Manchester United FC
MF - Samantha Chang | CAN / Vancouver Rise
MF - Jessie Fleming | USA / Portland Thorns FC
MF - Julia Grosso | USA / Chicago Red Stars
MF - Emma Regan | CAN / AFC Toronto
FW - Janine Beckie | USA / Racing Louisville FC
FW - Jordyn Huitema | USA / Seattle Reign FC
FW - Clarissa Larisey | ENG / Crystal Palace
FW - Adriana Leon | ENG / Aston Villa WFC
FW - Nichelle Prince | USA / Kansas City Current
FW - Nyah Rose | USA / Southern Methodist University
FW - Olivia Smith | ENG / Liverpool FC
FW - Evelyne Viens | ITA / AS Roma
The 26 players come from the following countries: U.S. (12—9 in the NWSL and 3 in American colleges), England (8), Canada (2—the Northern Super League), Italy (2), France (1) and Portugal (1).
Kadeisha Buchanan from Chelsea FC, Sydney Collins from NC Courage, Cloé Lacasse from Utah Royals FC, Quinn from Vancouver Rise, and Deanne Rose from Leicester City WFC were all unavailable for selection due to injury.
UEFA will start a new pan-European Women’s Club Tournament—the UEFA Europa League—next season (2025-26 season)
UEFA will launch the UEFA Europa League in 2025-26, a second tier continental competition for European women’s sides, much as they do on the men’s side with the Europa League, which is done on a group basis. The women’s tournament will consist of two knockout or qualifying rounds, and then Round of 16, quarter finals, semi-finals and final, all played on a home and away basis.
A total of 44 teams will be included in the tournament—including thirty-one teams eliminated early in the UWCL qualifiers in the first and second qualifying rounds of the same season’s Women's Champions League—with the first round comprised of 24 teams with 7 second place sides from associations ranked 18-24, along with 6 third place teams from associations 8-14 depending on their league’s rankings in previous seasons, as well as 7 third place teams from the second round champions path mini-tournament and 4 third-place teams from the second round league path mini-tournament.
The second round will include 32 teams—the 12 first round winners along with 4 losers from the third round champions path, 5 losers from the third round league path, 7 runners-up from the second round champions path mini-tournaments and 4 runners-up from the second round league path mini-tournaments. The winners advance to the Round of 16, played on a home and away basis.
Tim Grainey is a contributor to Tribal Football. His latest book Beyond Bend it Like Beckham on the global game of women’s football. Get your copy today. Follow Tim on X: @TimGrainey