The 2023 World Cup is now over for the United States women's national team. The tournament will be remembered as a failure, but perhaps a failure that served as a reboot point for a program that probably needed it.
But as we enter this first post-World Cup camp, it is fair to say that that reboot is on hold, at least for a little while. The USWNT is a team in transition, yes, but that transition hasn't quite happened yet. Instead, the U.S. has a squad full of World Cup veterans for these two friendlies against South Africa, including two legitimate legends that will be saying goodbye.
These games will serve as the swansongs for Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz, two historic figures for this program. They'll be surrounded by many of the players they competed with this summer as they prepare to say goodbye and move onto the next stage.
While those two will get the headlines, though, this camp is about more than just that. The farewells are nice, yes, but there are several new faces in this camp that could be very, very important as the U.S. puts this World Cup behind them and begins looking ahead to the 2024 Olympics, as well as the 2027 World Cup.