The U.S. women’s soccer team is set to kick off the Emma Hayes era with two friendly matches against South Korea in June. The matches are scheduled to take place in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park and in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4 at Allianz Field. This will mark the first encounter between the two teams since October 2021, where the USA emerged victorious with a 6-0 win.
Emma Hayes, the newly appointed coach of the USWNT, will lead the team following Vlatko Andonovski's resignation after the team's disappointing last-16 exit at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Hayes, who currently manages Chelsea, is set to become the highest-paid women’s football coach globally, with reports indicating a salary of 1.6 million pounds ($2m), equivalent to the US men’s national team coach Gregg Berhalter.
Interim coach Twila Kilgore is currently overseeing the USWNT at the CONCACAF W Gold Cup, with the team scheduled to face Canada in the semi-finals. Kilgore will continue in her role until Hayes officially takes charge ahead of the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
The upcoming friendlies against South Korea will serve as crucial preparation for the USWNT as they gear up for the Olympics. With the final international matches before the Olympic Team selection, the games in Colorado and Minnesota are expected to provide a competitive edge for the players.
Looking beyond the friendlies, the USWNT will play two more matches before heading to France for the Olympics, with details to be announced by U.S. Soccer in the coming weeks. The team will be aiming for a resurgence under Hayes' leadership following their early exit at the previous World Cup, where they were eliminated by Sweden in the last-16 stage.
