Washington Spirit notebook: Roster news, injury update, WAFCON, & Haley Carter holds court

The Washington Spirit are just days away from kicking off a 2026 season that could see the club play more games than any team in league history, and one where the expectations remain sky-high.

That means more media availabilities, and between the club's Fan Fest event at The Anthem on Sunday and a Tuesday training session, there are plenty of thoughts and updates from players, head coach Adrián González, and (in particular) president of soccer operations Haley Carter to get through.

As will be the case throughout the season, I'll be trying to compile these notebook-style pieces so that a) you get what you paid for, and b) it's actually worth it to brave the Beltway during a weekday rush hour.

These will be a recurring, if not 100% regular, feature at Green Line Soccer. I'm bringing this one out from behind the paywall so you can see what you'd be getting if you subscribe, but in the future these are going to be for paying members only. This one is certainly longer than most of them will be, but that's how it goes when there's so much news coming out in the final days of a given preseason.

Today, that means breaking down the Spirit's roster drop — Friday is the in-depth season preview via roster, done in the same fashion as what I did for D.C. United last month — some injury updates heading into the opener, thoughts from Gift Monday and Deborah Abiodun on the Women's Africa Cup of Nations being abruptly delayed by several months, and notable quotes from Carter on a wide range of topics.

Let's start with the vital on-field news:

Washington Spirit roster for start of 2026 season

NWSL's roster compliance deadline was Wednesday at noon ET, but what that actually means has caused some stress in the past. The deadline applies to when teams have to submit a compliant roster to the league; announcing what those rosters are to the public has been a multi-day affair in the past, with some teams doing so after the season had actually begun.

Credit where it's due: 2026 is different. The deadline arrived at noon, and at 12:30 p.m. ET the Spirit roster had arrived in media members' inbox. Plenty of other teams were sending theirs out as the afternoon went on, allowing media to have the facts needed to avoid speculating before the season starts. That's a low bar, but any longtime NWSL writer or fan can tell you that clearing low bars is not something we take for granted around these parts.

With that out of the way, here's the Spirit roster as of March 11, 2026. For clarity's sake, I'll be sorting these two ways: the position groups, and the international roster situation.

By position:

• Goalkeepers (4): Kaylie Collins, Aubrey Kingsbury*, Sandy MacIver, Sara Wojdelko*
• Defenders (9): Gabby Carle, Lucia Di Guglielmo, Madison Haugen, Casey Krueger*, Paige Metayer, Esme Morgan, Tara Rudd, Élisabeth Tsé, Kate Wiesner
• Midfielders (7): Rebeca Bernal, Deborah Abiodun, Hal Hershfelt, Leicy Santos, Molly Skurcenski, Heather Stainbrook,* Andi Sullivan
• Forwards (8): Tamara Bolt, Sofia Cantore, Emma Gaines-Ramos, Ashley Hatch*, Rosemonde Kouassi, Claudia Martínez, Gift Monday, Trinity Rodman

(What's with the asterisks? We'll get there)

The big news here is that Andi Sullivan — who trained without restriction during the portion of Tuesday's session that media was present for, and who may have been cleared as far back as last month — has been added to the active roster. Sullivan suffered a torn ACL late in a loss to the Orlando Pride back on Oct. 6, 2024, and announced that she was pregnant in mid-February 2025.

That's an unusual one-two for any player, and it's surely been a challenge (even mixed in with such positive news). For the Spirit, it's timely to have a major leader within the club return, as Aubrey Kingsbury is off the active roster as she awaits her first child. While the club has fostered the development of more leaders within the team — Tara Rudd and Paige Metayer have worn the armband at times, while Rebeca Bernal captains Mexico — the experience and importance within the organization of players like Sullivan, Kingsbury, and Ashley Hatch cannot be overstated.

(side note: Hatch spent Tuesday's session doing a workout with a club trainer in the gym the Spirit built for themselves out at Inova Performance Center. There's no current timeline for her return, as the club doesn't like to box people in after long-term absences.)

As for the positions listed, much has been made of Bernal being listed as a midfielder, and you could use the same logic to discuss players who have played on multiple lines like Tamara Bolt (winger/wingback/attacking midfield) or Kate Wiesner (fullback/wingback/winger).

However, here's some advice from a few decades of puzzling over many a roster designation: they don't really matter. Coaches aren't thinking about what the roster said when they fill out the teamsheet, and players aren't thinking "but I'm listed as a midfielder" when they're in matches.

International status

Here are the current players occupying the Spirit's eight international roster spots:

• Sandy MacIver
• Gift Monday
• Sofia Cantore
• Deb Abiodun
• Tamara Bolt
• Lucia Di Guglielmo
• Élisabeth Tsé
• Claudia Martínez

This was an offseason story to monitor, with the Spirit having to give back international spots rented from the Orlando Pride and Racing Louisville once the calendar rolled over.

NWSL teams are granted seven international spots, and the Spirit are holding eight due to a trade with Bay FC last summer. However, at full time of the 2025 championship match, they had no fewer than 13 internationals under contract, leaving the front office with plenty of work to sort out for today's compliance deadline.

Two players were sorted by simply allowing time to take its course: Ouleye Sarr's contract expired, while Kysha Sylla's loan from OL Lyonnes was only for the 2025 season.

Narumi Miura requested a trade, joining the Utah Royals on Jan. 12, while the club announced that Shadia Nankya would be departing on Jan. 27 (Nankya has since joined Première Ligue side Le Havre...which is where Élisabeth Tsé was last year).

In the meantime, Washington added Tsé, Lucia Di Guglielmo, and Claudia Martínez, while the conclusion of Tamara Bolt's loan to Dallas Trinity meant finding a spot for the Brazilian attacker as well. Effectively, the departures and arrivals balanced one another out.

The solution came via the deeply unglamorous but very necessary field of immigration law, with Carter continuing a long-standing habit of getting internationals their resident visas. Green cards came for Bernal, Rosemonde Kouassi, and Leicy Santos, leaving the Spirit at nine internationals and eight spots as of last week.

However, at the Fan Fest, Carter teased that one more player had gotten final approval from all relevant parties, and Wednesday's roster drop confirmed that Esme Morgan no longer counts as an international.

OK so what's with the asterisks?

Thank you for your patience.

Washington produced a roster with 28 players listed, because that's everyone under contract with the club. However, only 23 are on the active roster, which is in keeping with NWSL rules that require clubs to stick between 22-26 players during the season.

Aubrey Kingsbury, Casey Krueger, and Ashley Hatch are all on Maternity Leave, which functions more or less like the Season-Ending Injury (SEI) designation the NWSL uses. While Kingsbury is expected to miss the entire 2026 season, Washington can re-activate Krueger and Hatch whenever they're ready. Here's the relevant passage from the 2025 NWSL competition manual:

A Player on the Maternity List may return to the Team’s Roster at any time during the calendar year upon clearance to return to full participation by the Team’s physician or Player’s personal doctor (i.e., the Player’s OB/GYN).

Meanwhile, Heather Stainbrook and Sara Wojdelko are away on loan, meaning they do not require a roster spot and gaining the Spirit some cap relief in the process. Stainbrook has started every game for Dallas Trinity since joining the USL Super League side on loan this winter, while Wojdelko posted a shutout after becoming an immediate starter for DC Power after joining in a recent loan.

With a right-of-recall in place, teams can bring loanees back when they'd like, provided they have cap and roster space.

Wojdelko's loan is a less traditional arrangement, with Carter explaining how the rookie is still largely training with the Spirit and living in team housing.

"Wojo's loan is a really special deal. And I think for me, having been a goalkeeper, I can actually really appreciate it," Carter told reporters on Sunday. "I'm really thankful that the league worked with James Hocken, our sporting director, worked with DC Power, [and] worked with Wojo to get this across the line.

"Essentially the way that it works is, she spends her time in our environment. She trains with us every day. Her housing remains the same, so it's consistent. She trains with them on matchday minus-one, and she gets games with them. For goalkeepers — especially young goalkeepers — the best way for them to develop is to get game time...

"We obviously have the right to recall [Wojdelko] and those sorts of things, the traditional stuff you think of, but it's a really, really good setup for Wojo, because not a lot of young goalkeepers that age coming out of college are getting minutes right away in a pro environment. So to be able to offer her that is, it's good stuff."

Injury situation

Washington trained on a lovely Tuesday afternoon with a virtually complete group of players active in the portion of training open to media. Hatch, as was mentioned already, worked in the gym, while Kingsbury took shots on Collins, MacIver, and Wojdelko. Per team comms, she's participating as much as she can, in consultation with doctors.

That said, two players enter the week with a cloud hovering over them in terms of availability. Kate Wiesner departed U.S. women's national team camp before the SheBelieves Cup with what U.S. Soccer called a "minor calf issue," while Abiodun told reporters on Sunday that she has an unspecified injury.

At Tuesday's training session, both participated during the portion open to media, with Abiodun donning a leg sleeve. The Nigeria midfielder remained on the pitch after the session, doing some running in the background while González addressed reporters.

On Sunday, Wiesner sounded a positive note, characterizing her departure from camp as more being mindful of the long season ahead.

"[It was] obviously disappointing to not be able to participate in camp," explained the 25-year-old. "I think it was the right decision for me physically, to be able to come back and be able to compete sustainably this year for the Spirit, right? And that's the goal. Things are trending in the right direction for me physically and so [I'm] happy with the progress that I'm making."

González didn't close the door on either player being available for Friday's opener against the Portland Thorns.

"They are doing good," said the Barcelona native. "Little things. Especially with Kate, she felt something in her calf when [she] was with the U.S.,. Obviously, great job — and great communication — with the [USWNT] coaching staff, just avoiding any type of risk. So, we've been managing her, I think pretty good, and let's see how she evolves during the week.

"Deb was carrying something from last season, and a hamstring situation also. She started the season the preseason feeling that, and we wanted to be cautious about it and try to prevent any major injuries. She has been training really good. And again, let's see how the the week goes. I think they can be in a good spot."

One player who is not injured is Trinity Rodman, who offered some clarity on what happened with her early departure from the USWNT's 2-0 win over Argentina during the SheBelieves Cup. Rodman went on to play 70 minutes in a 1-0 win over Canada, and 62 in a 1-0 victory against Colombia in the tournament finale.

Despite that, plenty of speculation bubbled due to Rodman's long-running battle with a complex back issue. The 23-year-old confirmed that her departure wasn't physically linked to that past problem, though she added that this doesn't mean there's zero connection.

"I just got kneed really hard on the tailbone," explained Rodman. "I think there's a element of, it hurt really bad, and then there's also an element of mental, traumatic response. So, I think [the reaction] was just a combo of both. And I'm again, really grateful that I was able to bounce back and know my body, and then be able to play 60-plus minutes going into the next two games."

Mixed thoughts on Women's AFCON delay

The Spirit had entered the season expecting to be one of the many NWSL sides missing stars during the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, which was initially scheduled to run from March 17 to April 3. With a pre-tournament window where clubs would be obliged to release players for the event, players like Abiodun, Kouassi, and Monday were expected to be missing for at least the first five matches of the season.

However, the event was controversially postponed just 12 days before it was set to begin, with precious few details being confirmed by the Confederation of African Football. It's unacceptably shabby treatment for any continental tournament, and it applies doubly this time since this edition of WAFCON will serve as the continent's qualifying process for the 2027 World Cup.

Abiodun and Monday were called up by Nigeria for pre-tournament friendlies against Cameroon, but will now have to fight for their places later this summer.

The pair addressed the situation Sunday, not long after Abiodun doled out roses to fans from the stage during the Fan Fest event. For the midfielder, the delay was something she felt compelled to call out.

"It's quite sad and heartbreaking, honestly," said Abiodun. "I feel it rubs us African players the wrong way, because I think we deserve better. It wouldn't happen in AFCON, the male football, so it doesn't have to happen in the female [version]. We deserve better, especially being the qualification [process] for the World Cup. It's something that should be done and done well."

There's not much more to add on that front, with the CAF and host nation Morocco needing to show respect for their own event and the teams participating.

That said, Monday analyzed the topic from a different perspective, noting that this means she has more time to get sharp with NWSL play. Given that the Super Falcons had puzzlingly dropped Monday for much of 2025 before recalling her for the pre-tournament run-up, it's an understandable thought.

"I feel like for me, [the delay is] to my advantage, and I'm using that opportunity to start the season, get used to tough games and then being prepared for what is ahead of me," said the 24-year-old. "It has been quite a long time [since] I was with the national team. I don't feel like I am completely ready to get straight into the national team and straight into the AFCON, because it's actually like a playoff to the World Cup."

The tournament is now provisionally scheduled to begin July 25 and run until August 16. Should the Spirit's Nigerian duo and Kouassi all get called in (and don't forget Tsé, who remains eligible for Canada and the Ivory Coast), they would miss at least seven matches in that span. More than likely, that number would expand out to at least eight games, or nearly one-third of the NWSL regular season.

Carter on Martínez, Bethune, and the job of an NWSL CSO

Edited lightly for clarity and cutting quotes already used in this piece, here are more notable quotes from club CSO Carter's chat with reporters at The Anthem on Sunday:

On the club's plans for Claudia Martínez after what ESPN reported as a $950,000 transfer from Club Olimpia:

Claudia is a very, very young player. If you guys don't know, she comes from a rural environment. She comes from farmland. She just recently started speaking Spanish, about three years ago.

(Ed. note: Guaraní and Spanish are the two official languages of Paraguay, and for much of the rural population it is their mother tongue.)

So making sure that she transitions well into the environment off the field, first and foremost: she starts to settle in, she builds relationships with her teammates, with the staff. That is the priority. I can tell you, we are not putting any expectations on her. She is a long-term project, for lack of a better word, but her potential is exceptional. I think you guys saw it in the Copa América Femenina last year. She's a special athlete, very, very talented.

But, when you have young athletes like that coming into a new environment — this is her first time she's playing professionally overseas — you have to make sure that they can settle in and find time. I think it would be wise for everyone to give her the opportunity to adjust. Certainly there will be opportunities, I would imagine, for her to get playing time this year. But we're being very, very careful not to levy unrealistic or unfair expectations on a young player like that, because if you don't manage it right, it can do some pretty serious damage to them as people, as athletes, their careers. So you have to be very, very responsible when you sign up a young athlete like that.

On where the team's roster build is heading into the season, and her philosophy on that front:

I don't think roster work is ever done. I'm always thinking, 'what's next?' James Hocken, our sporting director, Adrián, Nate Minion, our general manager, very much are of the same mindset. We always have to be evolving, and if you're not evolving, you're going to fall behind. Thinking about positions of interest and need, and also trying to balance [things] like transfer economics, and what that looks like.

I've been criticized a little bit lately for being pretty dispassionate about how we're doing business, but it's pro sports. I think as a woman athlete and as a player who played in the early days of this league, we have asked for so long for people to take our league and our clubs and our profession seriously, and this is part of that: trying to be more thoughtful around how can we participate in the movement of athletes in a way that makes the game financially sustainable, but also allows us to compete for championships every year?

I think because of the nature of the NWSL being a cap-constrained league — as much as we all hate the salary cap — it's possible, right? It's possible. If you look at what is happening on the men's side at Brighton, for instance, Brighton has always done exceptionally at bringing in young, talented athletes and then selling them for much [more] than they paid to acquire them, but you don't see Brighton competing for Premier League championships every year. Well, it's because it's not a cap-constrained league, right? There's the haves and the have-nots. In the NWSL, everyone has the same finite number of resources that you can spend and invest in your athletes.

So I think it is possible, and that's part of our next strategy, too. So whenever we're talking about rosters and preparing for that, we're already thinking about: What can we get in the summer or winter already? What can we get at the end of this season already? Who can we bring in? What are opportunities that we have, where players might want a new environment or a new experience, and to be open to that.

So, the work is never done. To answer the question in very clear terms, the work is never done, but I feel good about where we're at, and I'm excited to get the season started. It's been a long—I feel like it's been the longest preseason ever. It's been a long preseason, so I'm excited to actually get into to match play and get our internationals back into the environment again,. We had 13 people at one point — Kate came back, and a couple others came back — but at one point we had 13 athletes that were [away on international duty], which is significant.

On Croix Bethune's trade to the Kansas City Current:

I think people have to understand, [that] Croix requested the trade. Outside of this profession, people change jobs all the time. They move all the time. I don't believe in restricting athlete movement, and athletes choose to move for any number of reasons. When I was in Orlando, you guys probably recall [that] Messiah Bright requested a trade right at the beginning of the 2024 season. I believe very much in two things: Number one, if an athlete believes that they need another environment — not necessarily because there's anything negative about here, that they're not developing here — but people want to change things, again for any number of reasons. You're just looking for a fresh start.

She feels like she can get other tactical opportunities and influences in Kansas City, [then] we can support that. Because the reality is, so long as we can get something in return, and the business side of it winds up being covered, but now you can plan [your actions], right? We felt like we got value in return, but now an athlete gets to explore what they wanted to explore. I know that fans can be upset about it, but the way we look at it is one, I cannot base my decisions and the club's decisions on on fandom, necessarily. I love our fans and and I think that they're critical to everything that we're building. You guys know how much the fanbase here in Washington means to me. But I work with these athletes day-in and day-out, and I'm very, very serious about advocating for them and giving them the opportunities to develop in their career. When a situation like that is presented, I will do whatever I can in my power to find a solution that works for everyone.

And so for us, you ask about moving forward, that's exactly what we're doing, right? So [when] we talk about transfer economics, the reality is that Croix's transfer fee covered [the fee for] Claudia Martínez, and then turned around and we used some of the additional money that was left over to re-sign Tara [Rudd]. That is an immediate turn and re-investment into the roster. I think Croix is an incredibly special and very talented athlete, and we will miss having her in the environment. But I also think that presents an opportunity for us, to find someone else to come in and influence the club and the city in the similar way that she did. I'm optimistic with our scouting team and the things that we're working on, that we can fill that out. But I also care about supporting players when players are looking for a change, because when I was a player, that's the kind of leadership I would want.

On balancing the need for veterans with the benefits of bringing in young players as the transfer market in women's soccer rapidly develops:

I think you have to have a balance of both. So if we talk about transfer economics, in order to do that successfully, you have to have a pipeline. In order to have a pipeline that works effectively, you have to give players the opportunities for development. So, obviously Adrián is responsible for picking the roster that goes on to the pitch every single [game], but making sure that we're setting him up for success, that he has a balance of younger athletes and veterans that we can start to to lead and mentor and filter into those roles is, is really important. It's a good balance, and I think we have it.

On whether the High Impact Player rule, which is the subject of pending arbitration after the NWSL instituted the rule over the objections of the NWSL Players Association, is still in place:

As far as I know, that is the law of the land.

On the differences between the Spirit and her former club, the Orlando Pride:

They're different clubs. To be fair, there are a lot of commonalities, just within the league. The chief soccer officers within the league, most of us are friends outside of soccer. We may compete with each other, but we will call each other quite frequently as well, just about things that are happening with the league: the schedule footprint in 2027, what that's going to look like with the women's World Cup, and things that we all sort of share in common.

I would say those challenges are very similar, whether it's Washington or it's Orlando. I actually spent a lot of time on the phone with Caitlin Carducci in Orlando, and I spent a lot of time [talking] with her when I was in Orlando and she was at Kansas City. I think sometimes from the outside, you can assume that a general manager or a president or sporting director, [their] focus is the roster and the athletes, but the focus is so much bigger than that, to be honest with you. Managing a roster and signing players and transferring players and dealing with all of that is like, the easiest part of the job, right? But that's the sexy part of the job! Everybody loves talking about that, because signings [get] everybody excited and moves, it gets people talking, gets people sliding into my DMs when I make a decision that they don't they don't agree with.

But it's about managing our staff as well, and in coaching our coaches, and mentoring our leadership, and ensuring that every person in our environment has an opportunity to grow and develop. We are so intentional about everything we do with our athletes, [and] we have to do the same with our staff too. So I think the biggest challenge — or maybe difference — is how much more committed I am in this role, because it's a slightly more senior [position] than it was in Orlando. Focusing on, how do we create a space where everyone in our environment is getting an opportunity to be their best selves, and to grow and develop and learn and make mistakes. Have the space to make mistakes, but also to be really serious about encouraging each other and holding each other accountable to living and performing at a really high standard. So, it's fun.