This weekend marked our favorite anniversary: yet another year in which U.S. midfielder Rose Lavelle reminds us that her sister was chased by a dog.
Today in Full Time:
🏆 Bonmatí wins another Ballon d’Or
💔 A tribute to Matt Beard
🔵 KC Current can’t be stopped
Let’s start with the news of the day …
Golden Honor: Was there a Ballon d’Or snub?
Aitana Bonmatí has just won her third consecutive Ballon d’Or, for being the best women’s player in the world. There is no denying that the World Cup and Champions League winner is one of the best in the world. But was she the best this season? Tamerra Griffin doesn’t think so:
I am shocked that Bonmatí’s Spanish teammate and fellow midfielder Mariona Caldentey didn’t win.
I can’t emphasize enough the difficulty and the imperative of writing that sentence. You need only glance in the direction of Barcelona or Spain to understand how exceptional a player Bonmatí is.
Her stats this season read like standard procedure:
20 goals and 16 assists across all competitions
Led Barcelona to a domestic treble of trophies, only missing out on the Champions League title to Arsenal.
Helped Spain reach the finals of the Euros, where they ultimately fell to England, having recovered from meningitis only days before the tournament.
Watch Bonmatí for five minutes, and those numbers will pale in comparison to the magnitude of her presence on the pitch. Bonmatí is, and has been, the best female footballer in the world for years.
But this was a season that most, including Bonmatí, would describe as tepid by her otherworldly standards. Barcelona did not win the Champions League as Caldentey did with Arsenal.
Bonmatí is a singular player in a team sport, and this season she was surrounded by familiar faces at Barcelona, which was not the case for Caldentey in her first season with the North London side in the Women’s Super League.
I’m not sure the debate over the weight of a Champions League title in a Ballon d’Or decision ever truly cools, but Caldentey finishing second this year will surely reheat it.
A brief history and lack of diversity
A quick reminder on the old (and new) award’s history: “France Football” magazine and UEFA co-organize the event, which is very much like the Met Gala meets the Oscars for soccer players.
Though it was started in 1956 and expanded in 1995, women were only given their own Ballon d’Or starting in 2018. Ada Hegerberg of Norway won the first, followed by the only American woman to win it, Megan Rapinoe. And then Spain’s Alexia Putellas and Bonmatí each won back-to-back years.
These types of awards for the women’s game too often go with name recognition rather than on-field accomplishments. Bonmatí herself seemed shocked that she had won again. The Ballon d’Or, in particular, has been very European-centric, but this year’s shortlist seemed to give us a glimmer of change — even if the top 10 and ultimate winner did not.
REWIND (from 2024): Former The Athletic writer Steph Yang wrote about what it was like to have voting power for the prestigious award.
Tribute to a Legend: A coach who transformed women’s soccer
Matt Beard, the most successful manager in the history of Liverpool’s women’s team, tragically passed this weekend. He was 47.
Beard was a staunch believer in women’s football before the support we see today existed. It was his friendship and smile that players, fans and colleagues remember most.
Beard spent two stints with Liverpool’s women’s team:
In his first go-around, he won back-to-back WSL titles in 2013 and 2014 (the only two in the team’s history).
His second time with the team, he brought them back to the WSL, winning promotion in 2021 and helping mold 21-year-old Olivia Smith in her first season in England. (The Canadian forward was moved this past summer from Liverpool to Arsenal for a record £1 million transfer fee.)
Beard was appointed as Burnley’s head coach after he parted ways with Liverpool in June, but left the club only about a month ago.
Beardy, as he was affectionately known, left his career as a real estate agent to follow his passion for coaching at a time when the women’s game in England was underfunded and overlooked.
In 2011, the eight-team WSL was semi-professional.
A maximum of four players per team could be paid over £20,000 annually when the new league began in 2011.
The Football Association was giving away the broadcast rights free of charge — a distant past compared to the £65m TV deal the WSL agreed to with Sky Sports and the BBC last year.
Beard took players like England defender Lucy Bronze and midfielder Fara Williams to title wins. He also coached Chelsea for four years (2009-12) before the arrival of the famous Emma Hayes era, along with West Ham (2018-20) and the Boston Breakers in NWSL (2016-17).
What was abundantly clear from the tributes over the weekend was that his friends, family, players and fans will miss Matt Beard, the person, the most.
KC Keeps Winning: A header, hair dye and trophy
It’s hard to be surprised when Temwa Chawinga scores a goal. In awe, sure, but surprised?
The Kansas City Current striker has amassed 13 goals across 20 games this season, tied with Gotham FC’s Esther Gonzalez in the NWSL’s Golden Boot race.
The 27-year-old is on track to earn a second consecutive MVP title with her performances, including helping the Current secure the NWSL Shield for most regular-season points this weekend with five games to go.
Yet for all those tallies, the player known for her blue hair and ability to maneuver around any defender had never scored with her head in NWSL — until yesterday.
After the goal, Chawinga sprinted 60 yards directly toward head coach Vlatko Andonovski. The normally reserved coach cracked a grin wider than I’ve ever seen. The goal sealed a 2-0 victory for the league’s No. 1 team over the Seattle Reign.
The Current collapsed around Chawinga and Andonovski in celebration. It turns out it carried a little extra. The day before, on her birthday, Chawinga challenged her coach, saying that if she scored with her head, he had to dye his hair blue like hers.
Andonvski, with full confidence in his player, did not accept the challenge.
However, it seems his players are putting pressure on the coach to get the matching hairdo. Come on, coach!
Intent To Stay: NWSL commissioner wants to stick around
NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman’s four-year contract is coming to an end this year; however, she told reporters last week, “I intend to stay.”
The comments came days after the league’s board of governors meeting in New York. Whether the league’s owners agree remains private, as we await official word on her future.
When Berman stepped into her role in April 2022, the former NHL executive inherited a league rife with controversy in the wake of the NWSL’s 2021 abuse scandal. As part of that reckoning, she was the first commissioner in the league whose hiring process included player interviews.
Berman led the league side of negotiations for its first collective bargaining agreement and a historic $240 million broadcast media rights deal that ushered in a new era of visibility for the NWSL and its players.
The league also saw expansion fees soar from $2 million before Berman to $110 million for the latest team, Denver Summit, joining in 2026. Valuation had the same hockey-stick growth, reaching $250 million when Willow Bay and Disney CEO Bob Iger joined Angel City FC last year.
Berman’s time hasn’t been without its difficulties.
In May, Angel City defender Savy King collapsed on the pitch before being transported to a nearby hospital. The league chose to resume the match, prompting fierce backlash from fans and the NWSL Players Association.
In August, Berman came under fire again for threatening to fine the Current for postponing its match against the Orlando Pride 3.5 hours, which had been paused due to extreme heat.
Earlier this month, Racing Louisville’s Savannah DeMelo collapsed during her team’s match against Seattle Reign, prompting the league to quickly suspend the match. Play resumed behind closed doors a few days later.
On Thursday, Berman reflected on how lessons from past emergencies informed the league’s decisions. She said the league “streamlined” its “decision-making tree” so that it was better prepared for these types of emergencies, and that she has ultimate say.
If Berman is renewed, one of the biggest issues she’ll have to tackle head-on is the recent string of top U.S. players leaving the league. The NWSL is filled with plenty of international and domestic talent, but it’s hard to argue that the loss of players like Naomi Girma and Alyssa Thompson to Chelsea didn’t hurt its current marketing strategy.
You can read more about what Berman shared in her fall address here.
Full Time First Looks
Moving forward: Boston Legacy FC has secured more than $100 million in financing for the revitalization of White Stadium in Franklin Park, the NWSL expansion club announced last week. The loan from Bank of America will allow the team to stay on track for a 2027 home opening. In the meantime, Boston will spend its inaugural 2026 season playing at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.
Try-outs: The NWSL will host two combines for youth and college-age players as a new pathway to the league in a post-college draft world. The combines will take place over three days in December in the lead up to the 2026 preseason.
Access denied: FIFA sanctioned an officially recognized team of Afghan women refugee footballers to participate in matches overseas earlier this year. However, U.S.-based players will not have access to organized training camps that determine the selection process for the newly created team. There are still unknowns to sort out, but right now it looks like some players are facing yet another setback.
Back home: After a scary couple of weeks for Racing Louisville and aforementioned DeMelo, who collapsed on the field during a match, the midfielder is finally back home and recovering. The team shared that she was discharged from the hospital last week and is with family in Louisville. Sending all our best!
📫 Love Full Time? These stories can also be found on Yahoo’s women’s sports hub, in partnership with The Athletic. Also, check out our other newsletters.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
NWSL, Full Time Newsletter
2025 The Athletic Media Company
