Chris W Henderson

📣 As #FIFA prepares to award its first-ever “FIFA Peace Prize” at the #WorldCup draw in Washington, DC, a coalition of human rights organizations, unions, and fan groups is calling for real action to protect the people who make global football possible.
🔗 sportandrightsalliance.org/world-cup-20...

HERE YE HERE YE

A wager has been set by representatives of supporters of NJ/NY Gotham FC and Washington Spirit regarding the outcome of the 2025 NWSL Final:

If Gotham wins, Spirit supporters donate $200 to the Ali Forney Center

If Spirit win, Gotham supporters donate $200 to SMYAL

Journalists; we have an incredible immigration attorney friend who is trying to make the World Cup safer for undocumented people in the US. If you’d like to chat with her about her org’s ideas and the pushback they’re getting, DM us or @jessielosch.bsky.social

The American Exceptionalism of it all.

Beautiful @rosecityriveters.org tifo for the home playoff match 🌹❤️ #BAONPDX

Part 2:

The Black Women’s Player Collective is aware of the hateful and discriminatory comments abuse and harassment directed towards black women with our soccer community. This is unacceptable. We have listened. We are exhausted and once again, we are deeply disappointed. Nonetheless, we continue on to be clear the players at the center of these comments are sis women. However, the BWPC stands firmly in support of the trans community. The BWPC was founded to protect and uplift, black female athletes in and out of soccer, we denounce any ideology that seeks to detract from that purpose, and are exhausted by efforts to derail our access and to impact the beautiful game. As NWSL playoffs begin, our focus remains on increasing access to soccer and celebrating our community. We choose to focus on the incredible black women paving the way in our sport and our inaugural BWPPC combine for the next generation of Black soccer talent at the Allstate next wave national showcase. Sports are strongest when they every athlete is free to compete express themselves and exist authentically.

The Black Women’s Player Collective has dropped a statement as well this morning on their Instagram in light of the recent comments made this week.

The way we win isn't by correctly phrasing our rebuttals to the people who hate us. It's by insisting on inclusion for all of our queer siblings

It’s interesting to see how the responses today have been framed, whether it’s focusing on a player’s exceptional talent, or that if they were assigned female at birth.

No one in this league should be subject to transphobic hate because transphobia is based on hateful rhetoric and trash science.

Banda’s accolades, while impressive, are not relevant in the face of racist and transphobic attacks. If the league cannot be specific in naming what those "hateful attacks" are, this statement just noise.

Some of y'all are fine with Sarah Gorden being the one who gets the smoke because of who she plays for, and you're not doing that good a job of hiding it. And if that offends you, take it to the altar. It should. These folks are coming for your league and your sport. Get over yourselves and FIGHT!

Love the labor security and solidarity that enables a player to name this for what it was. Hate the silence from management that makes it necessary.

One of the strengths of woso space has always been clear-eyed journalists who know the players and the fans and use their platforms to call the league to account.

National Women’s Soccer League must adopt gender standards to keep growing Recent controversies across women’s sports — from swimming to track and field — have highlighted professional soccer lacks clear eligibility policies, unlike a growing number of other competitions.…

Deeply disappointed in Liz Eddy here, who I've always liked and respected. A reminder that we have a lot of work to do when it comes to educating the public about why trans inclusion isn't just morally correct, but competitively sound share.google/Gjf9a1Sl01eL...

The Choice is Yours. (I made mine.) icarusfc.com/collections/...

How long is this league going to survive despite itself

The home team just seems to invent new ways to lose.

Dearest Isabelle, We have taken refuge with thousands of fellow citizens at the town stadium in war ravaged #Portland, as drums pound and smoke fills the air, along with the cries of the citizenry. Around us we see the horror of empty beer cups and insufficient hot dog relish. #BAONPDX

Two banners. One asks “is this banned” and the other refers to three different states of water.

New art not on the rails today. #BAONPDX

if you’re a visual learner i made you some maps of where the people quoted in this article as supporting portland being occupied by troops live

Ok one more. I'm not in management and never have been, but I will say, leaders who function through threats are roundly ineffectual. We're at a conjunctural moment for this league, this sport, this fandom. If it's gonna remain the place we all love(d), we each need to use our power to get rid. 5/

Also, as fandom is where I focus, the inclusion of @kcbluecrew.com shows that locals and the union knew months ago that this would be a problem. It's telling that this is the one facility that NWSL has full control over and could have gotten their prime time slot at another date. 4/ fin (for now)

This is incredible journalism. one of the great things about the NWSL has been the amount of paid and unpaid folks who do their utmost to hold leadership accountable and have since the league started more than a decade ago.

The union had to negotiate the league down to FIFA(!)'s standards and still has not been contacted by the league is a clear indication of where priorities lie. 2/

The broadcast deal that sent valuations into the stratosphere and attracted a new class of owners is also the driving force behind nonsense like this. In 2020, MLB, NBA, and NFL valuations all went up w/ no fans in the stands and a lethal virus not under control when players returned to play. 1/

Every Blade of Grass: In the wake of the dangerous conditions during this weekend's Current-Pride matchup, @southernsylvs.bsky.social vs makes an impassioned plea to the league:

Protect this league. Protect its players.

#NWSL

fearlesssc.com/protect-your...

Something, something "no duty of care" something, something. Their lack of ability to pay attention, learn, and change is exhausting.

Mo Salah said: "Can you tell us how he died, where, and why?" In response to a tweet from UEFA that said: "Farewell to Suleiman al-Obeid, the 'Palestinian Pelé'. A talent who gave hope to countless children, even in the darkest of times."

This is an incredible tweet for someone of his influence to make, and even more so as a direct question to UEFA

not enough to allege that racism has no place here, clearly it’s found one. the question is only when will white people be willing to categorize and punish racism as not just words but the promotion of the world’s most violent and inhumane ideology

100%. Not (or no longer) a reporter. But if I didn't (willingly and lovingly) pay out of my own pocket to do this project right, it would not exist.