The USWNT have restored the U23 camp, creating an environment to cultivate the next crop of future stars
It was the Dutch midfield that sparked the idea for Emma Hayes. The USWNT coach watched her side narrowly beat the Netherlands at the end of 2024, but the result didn't accurately reflect the performance. The Netherlands out-possessed, out-passed and outshot the USWNT.
After the game, when breaking it all down, Hayes came to a clear realization: that Dutch team, one that ran rings around the U.S., had simply been playing together for longer. And while she couldn't change that in the present, she could certainly piece together a brighter future.
And so, the United States' U23 national team was reborn. Previously a power at the youth level, Hayes has converted the squad into the ultimate reserve team, a top-to-bottom system that draws on her club background to help keep the national team op top of the game for years to come.
And so far, the results are encouraging.
"She's definitely prioritized us developing this pool of players," Lisa Cole, who is running the current U23 camp for Hayes, told GOAL. "We're a very large country, so this just provides us with an opportunity see players that are up and coming in another environment that is replicating what WNT is doing in their environment."
Getty ImagesA camp steeped in history
Youth camps, historically, are a tricky thing to figure out. To some, the perception is that they are sympathy call-ups, a place where those who didn't quite make the cut for the big time kick a ball around for 10 days.
Prior to January, the U.S. women U23s hadn't had a single camp in more than a year. Their last fixture was in 2023. That was in stark contrast with the past, when the USWNT made good use of their U23 setup. They won nine Nordic Cups, the annual tournament organized for U23 teams at an international level. Legends in the women's soccer space such as Jill Ellis, Laura Harvey and Randy Waldrum coached the sides, while some of the best talent in college soccer made the roster.
Hayes has only been in the job for 11 months, but has quickly made changes to restore the program. Cole, a long-time youth scout who has worked with college, club and international teams, knows how valuable it can be.
"Each environment teaches you something else. So if I go into the WNT and I'm a young player, then how I interact with the other players and my role within team is one thing, but we need these players to potentially start to develop their leadership. We need them to start to be impact players and not to defer," she said.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesAn eye towards the future
Hayes' work, in full, started at the beginning of 2025. With the U.S. completing their goal of winning the Olympics last summer in Paris, it was time to look towards the future. The next major round of fixtures doesn't come until the 2027 World Cup. This U.S. team will need to evolve and take form by then. One of the easiest ways to ensure everything is in place, then, is to take the youth camps seriously.
That began with the advent of the Futures Camp in January. Effectively a revamped U23 side, it gave Hayes the opportunity to see the scope of talent available to her in full. She took back-to-back training sessions, overseeing the senior and youth sides – while also going about the standard details of preparing for matches.
“I love developing,” Hayes said. “I almost feel like we’ve had a little bit of a lost generation that might not have had some of the exposure that some top nations. I’m desperate to look at ways to bridge that gap because we can’t wholeheartedly just rely on domestic play to do that… we have to give international experiences to these players."
That camp wasn't easy for the players. Everything, top to bottom, emulated the sessions Hayes would run with the first team. The only difference? Only 14 of the 24 called up were full time pros – the rest played in the U.S. college or club systems.
"There were definitely a lot of learning opportunities," Angel City defender Savy King told GOAL. "Which I think was really great, and especially being coached in that camp, specifically by Emma and Denise [Reddy] was awesome to kind of get the full experience with exactly what it would be like to be a part of the full team."
USA TODAY SportsTraining sessions
This time out, Hayes couldn't run both camps. The USWNT endured a disappointing SheBelieves Cup showing in February. Flaws needed to be addressed. So, her focus is sternly on the full team. But she and assistant coach Denise Reddy have still been involved. Hayes addressed the players on day one, and has watched the first two training sessions. She is also in constant communication with Cole. Meanwhile, Reddy has ensured that the two training sessions line up.
"The only thing that changes is the number of people standing around the pitch. Everything we're doing on the pitch looks exactly like what we would do within the WNT environment," Cole said.
This whole thing is meticulous. They go through similar cycles of training: preparation, passing drills, and exercises. The language used to describe training sessions is similar, while the basic tactical principles remain intact.
"We want to be aggressive, we want to dominate the game, and getting to see that early on is very helpful for these younger players," PSG center back Eva Gaetino said. "And I also think that in terms of the cultural piece, like having a very high standard for ourselves and holding us to that, and pursuing us to be the best versions of ourselves."
The players, ultimately, can feel the impact.
"The same exact principles are being instilled in us that are being instilled in the full national team, it's really great to have," Gaetino said.
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Getty ImagesAn already established pipeline
And the early results are already being shown. After Tierna Davidson dropped out due to injury, Hayes called upon one of her January Futures Camp attendees, Gisele Thompson, to fill her spot. Meanwhile, Gaetino and King have appeared with both teams – and experienced both sides of things. Mia Fishel, returning from an ACL injury, is playing with the U23s while she recovers, and figures to have a spot in the full team once she's back to her best.
But there's an understanding that the whole setup is fluid. Going from one to the other is neither promotion nor relegation. King trained with the first team in February, and is now with the U23s.
"I think it's just about exposure, and then obviously also being here and getting international games at the highest level is also super important. So I think that it's kind of run side by side," King said. "Obviously the goal is to get to the first team, but I think that being here is a great gateway."
There is the added benefit, of course, that those who have gone from the first team to the U23s are able to guide a younger generation.
"You have to be vocal," Gaetino said. "You have to direct the people around you. So I think just naturally I've kind of stepped into that role, and again, like I've just had some more time with the principals and with the structure of what they're asking of us. So I just, I'm trying my best just to help everyone around me."
And that's part of the appeal for Cole and Co. The whole camp is as much about mentality as it is about technical quality.