A familiar cast of characters will make up the 18-player roster the United States women’s national soccer team will send to the delayed Tokyo Olympic Games next month.
Carli Lloyd, who at 39 years old will become the U.S.’s oldest women’s soccer Olympian ever, and Tobin Heath are headed to the competition for the fourth time, while the roster features 11 total players who also made the trip to Brazil in 2016. Lloyd, the two-time FIFA Player of the Year, scored the winning goals for the U.S. in the gold-medal games at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.
Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Becky Sauerbrunn and Kelley O’Hara are set to become three-time Olympians, while Crystal Dunn, Lindsey Horan, Julie Ertz, Christen Press and Alyssa Naeher are headed to the Olympics for the second time.
The team includes 17 players who were part of the 2019 squad that won the FIFA Women’s World Cup and will look to become the first team to win Olympic gold immediately after hoisting the World Cup.
The list of first-time Olympians on the roster includes Abby Dahlkemper, Tierna Davidson, Emily Sonnett, Samantha Mewis, Rose Lavelle, Adrianna Franch and Kristie Mewis, who doubles as the lone member of the team who didn’t go to the 2019 World Cup.
Ertz and Heath were questionable for selection because of injuries but are expected to be ready to play, according to U.S. Soccer. Should the U.S. need to make any roster changes during the tournament because of injuries, four players — forward Lynn Williams, midfielder Catarina Macario, defender Casey Krueger and goalkeeper Jane Campbell — will also make the trip as alternates.
The U.S. opens against Sweden on July 21, two days before the opening ceremony, and will play New Zealand (July 24) and Australia (July 27) in the other group-stage matches. Before heading to Japan, the team will play Mexico on July 1 and 5 in East Hartford, Connecticut.