US coach Emma Hayes is looking to reframe women's soccer through a female lens

LAFAYETTE, Ga. (AP) — As much as U.S. coach Emma Hayes loves winning, she has even loftier ambitions for the national team — and women’s soccer overall.

Hayes wants to fundamentally reframe the entire women's soccer ecosystem, which she laments is just the men's game applied to women. Instead, she suggests a holistic approach through a female lens, looking at how athletes are managed and trained across all levels of the sport.

"I want every little girl and woman, no matter what your practice is in our sport, to feel like this is more than just playing a game,” Hayes said. “I actually think we can impact society in some way.”

When Hayes first took over as coach of the national team shortly before the 2024 Olympics, there was little time to fully realize her vision. But early last year she spoke about the WNT Way, which is now taking shape in the run-up to both next year's Women's World Cup in Brazil, and the 2031 tournament, which is likely to be hosted by the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica.

Recently she hosted the “herLENS” conference for some 300 people from across the sport at U.S. Soccer’s new headquarters in Georgia. Among the topics were keeping young girls in the game, the impact of menstruation and hormones on performance, and training practices designed for women.

Of course, there are still games to play. The U.S. faces a major test starting Saturday at Washington, D.C.'s Audi Field in the first of two games against defending Women’s World Cup champion Spain. The second game is Tuesday in Chester, Pennsylvania. The matches are part of the team’s preparation for World Cup qualifying later this year.

"My head’s switched on to preparing for Spain and wanting to beat Spain, but this isn’t about me. This is about the whole ecosystem around taking a mission, a vision, and bringing it to life," Hayes said.

The United States is uniquely positioned to reimagine the women's game as a leader on the world stage, U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone said.

“I feel as president and as a coach and as a former player that we have a responsibility to grow this game, not only here domestically but internationally as well. And when I say grow it, I don't just mean more, right? More is only part of it," Parlow Cone said. "But how do we help everyone create a more developmentally appropriate, fun, engaging environment for the female player across the landscape, regardless of the level.”

Hayes came to the national team after 12 successful seasons at Chelsea, where she started to look at how her players were impacted by their menstrual cycles. After she was named U.S. coach, she surveyed her players to gain insight into their needs.

"Having a coach care so much about the holistic person and player, I think, was something that we all were like, 'Oh, this is very new. This feels very different.' I think it’s been incredibly important,” former national team player Crystal Dunn said. “It’s been really helpful for everyone to feel like it’s a safe place to be vulnerable and speak about things that affect us all but you are always too afraid to speak about in the sense of like, you’re not feeling too good, you’re on your period. How do you voice that to a coach that hasn’t once asked you about any symptoms you have or what your cycle is like?”

Hayes' plan includes considering women's physiology to determine best practices around menstrual cycles, nutrition, sleep, mental health and intentional training to avoid injury. That means supporting research into women-specific issues. Currently only about 6% of published research into athletes focuses solely on women.

U.S. Soccer has partnered with Michele Kang, owner of the Washington Spirit in the National Women's Soccer League, the London City Lionesses in the English Women's Super League and France's OL Lyonnes. The Kang Women's Institute was founded with a $55 million donation from Kang to create standards for women and girls across soccer based on evidence.

The institute is already looking at why girls ages 8 to 18 either drop out or stay in sports, and what factors are at play in those decisions. The institute has also partnered with the University of North Carolina on a study to look at how women's health and performance data is collected and applied in soccer.

Hayes said she plans to continue to grow herLENS project, while also leading the U.S. team. She's already made structural changes within the team itself, combining the senior and under-23 teams during training camps to help evaluate talent.

“I don’t want to waste my life just talking about winning, and I don’t mean that in the derogatory way,” Hayes said. “I love winning, but it’s just not enough for me, to be honest.”

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