ORLANDO, Fla. (June 1, 2016) – Seven games into the 2016 season, the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) will see its first break for FIFA matches. Though the Orlando Pride will be without a match this week, six Pride players will be competing with their respective National Teams over the coming days, as all continue preparations for the upcoming Rio Olympic Games.
Alex Morgan and Ashlyn Harris have joined the U.S. Women’s National Team, who will play matches against Japan on June 2 at Dicks Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. (9 p.m. ET on FS1) and June 5 at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland (12:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2).
Defenders Josée Bélanger and Monica have joined Canada and Brazil, respectively, as the two nations face off twice this week – on June 4 at BMO Field in Toronto (4 p.m. ET on TSN) and June 7 (7 p.m. ET on TSN) at TD Place in Ottawa.
Australians Steph Catley and Laura Alleway have been named to a 20-player roster that will host New Zealand for two matches, Australia’s final games before the Rio Olympics. The Westfield Matildas will welcome New Zealand’s Football Ferns on June 4 (3 p.m. AEST/1 a.m. ET) at Morshead Park Stadium in Ballarat before playing its final pre-Rio game on June 7 (5 p.m. AEST/3 a.m. ET) at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne.
All six players will return to the Pride before the Club’s next match, a 7 p.m. ET kickoff at the Western New York Flash on June 11 in Rochester, N.Y. The Pride return to Camping World Stadium on June 23 when it hosts the Houston Dash at 7:30 p.m. ET.
