Latest news with #LilyYohannes
New York Times
07-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
OL Lyonnes complete signing of USWNT's Lily Yohannes from Ajax
OL Lyonnes have confirmed the signing of USWNT midfielder Lily Yohannes from Dutch club Ajax. The Athletic reported on July 1 that Lyonnes were set to sign the 18-year-old and finalise personal terms. She has signed a three-year contract with the French club until 2028. Lyonnes have been very active the transfer market, with Yohannes becoming their fifth arrival of the summer. Yohannes' international teammate Korbin Albert arrived from Paris Saint-Germain on Friday, while the club have also secured the signings of full-back Ashley Lawrence from Chelsea centre-back Ingrid Engen from Barcelona, winger Jule Brand from Wolfsburg and striker Marie Antoinette Katoto from PSG. Jonathan Giraldez has also replaced Joe Montemurro as the team's head coach following the latter's move to the Australia women's national team. 🆕💎 — OL Lyonnes (@ol__lyonnes) July 7, 2025 Lyonnes are one of the most successful teams in the women's game and have won the French league 18 times and the Champions League eight times, both of which are records. A rebrand earlier this year saw the team receive a new name and crest under owner Michele Kang, who acquired the club in 2024. Kang also recently became president at the men's team, Lyon, after John Textor stepped away from the running of the club to focus on Brazilian side Botafogo. Advertisement A native of Springfield, Virginia, Yohannes moved to the Netherlands aged 10 and later joined Ajax's academy, signing her first professional contract with the club when she was 15. She helped the side win the KNVB Women's Cup, the Netherlands' domestic cup competition, in 2024 and made 50 appearances for the team, scoring 11 goals. Though she was eligible to represent the Netherlands internationally, Yohannes opted to play for the U.S. last year. She scored on her USWNT debut in a 2-0 friendly win over South Korea aged 16 years and 358 days old, becoming the third youngest scorer in the team's history, behind Kristine Lilly and Tiffany Roberts. An American contingent has formed at Lyonnes, with Yohannes and Albert joining USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps at the club. ()
New York Times
01-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
USWNT's Lily Yohannes to join OL Lyonnes from Ajax
USWNT midfielder Lily Yohannes is set to complete her transfer to OL Lyonnes from Ajax. Yohannes is expected to finalise personal terms with the French champions in the coming days. The Athletic reported on June 12 OL Lyonnes had expressed serious interest in signing Yohannes and were in talks over a deal with Ajax, who the 18-year-old joined in 2023 and where she has a contract until 2026. Advertisement Yohannes made history in November 2023 when she became the youngest player to start a Champions League group stage game during Ajax's victory over Paris Saint-Germain. The midfielder was born in Springfield, Virginia and has lived in Amsterdam with her family since she was 10 years old, playing her entire professional career in the Netherlands. She had the option of representing the Dutch women's national team, but last year announced her decision to commit to the U.S. at international level. Yohannes made her USWNT debut against South Korea in June 2024 and scored 10 minutes after coming on. Aged 16 years and 358 days old, she became the third youngest scorer in USWNT history, behind only Kristine Lilly and Tiffany Roberts. 'The next two years of development will be important for her,' U.S. head coach Emma Hayes said of Yohannes this year. 'I think it's been an unbelievable development pathway for her to be at Ajax.' Hayes added Ajax's style of play had 'advanced her positional play in a way that I think makes her stand out beyond her years.' OL Lyonnes are one of the most successful sides in the women's game and have won the Champions League a record eight times, most recently in 2023. They recently underwent a rebrand in name and crest under owner Michele Kang, who acquired the club in 2024. Jonathan Giraldez has been named as the club's new head coach ahead of the 2025-26 season following Joe Montemurro's move to the Australia women's national team. OL Lyonnes have already completed the statement signing of France striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto from Paris Saint-Germain this summer. Additional reporting from Jacob Whitehead Analysis by Tamerra Griffin The signing of Yohannes will give even more shape to the OL Lyonnes project under owner Michele Kang. Advertisement Alongside appointing Jonathan Giraldez head coach, OL Lyonnes have made splashy player signings, including Norwegian centre-back Ingrid Engen from Barcelona, German winger Jule Brand from Wolfsburg and French striker Marie Antoinette Katoto, who joins from league rivals Paris Saint-Germain. All three will be competing in the women's European Championship this summer. From a U.S. perspective, Yohannes would be playing alongside international team-mate and captain Lindsey Heaps. Both players, along with most other Europe-based club players in the USWNT setup, have been granted a summer break by head coach Emma Hayes.
New York Times
12-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
OL Lyonnes in talks with Ajax over transfer of USWNT midfielder Lily Yohannes: Sources
OL Lyonnes have expressed serious interest in 18-year-old Ajax and U.S. women's national team midfielder Lily Yohannes, according to multiple sources briefed on the team's discussions, who wished to remain anonymous due to the ongoing nature of the talks. The eight-time Champions League winners from France and the Dutch club are in talks over a potential summer transfer. Yohannes, who signed with Ajax in April 2023, is under contract until June 2026. Advertisement Both clubs declined to comment on the discussions. While ESPN previously reported that Women's Super League champions Chelsea were interested in signing the breakout star, a source with knowledge of the situation said the talks are currently focused on Lyon. However, a deal has not yet been finalized. In 2023, at 16 years old, Yohannes made history as the youngest player to start a UEFA Champions League group stage match, contributing to Ajax's 2-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain in November of that year. Though she has lived in Amsterdam with her family since she was 10 years old and has played her entire professional career there, Yohannes is a U.S. citizen, born in Springfield, Virginia. She had the option of representing the Dutch women's national team, but last year announced her decision to commit to the U.S. Yohannes was first called into the USWNT for the SheBelieves Cup in March 2024; however, she did not see minutes on the field. She made her debut three months later when head coach Emma Hayes called her in for a pair of friendlies against South Korea in June. Ten minutes after subbing on in the second half of their June 4 meeting, Yohannes scored her first goal for the U.S. (Due to their nature as international friendlies, Yohannes was not cap-tied for competing.) Since declaring for the U.S., Yohannes has played in the 2025 SheBelieves Cup and four other friendlies this year: two against Brazil in April, and in the USWNT's most recent friendlies against China on May 31 and Jamaica on June 3. Hayes has continually spoken highly of Yohannes, who celebrated her 18th birthday on Thursday, and has made clear her intentions to invest in her growth as a young player. 'The next two years of development will be important for her. I think it's been an unbelievable development pathway for her to be at Ajax,' Hayes said recently, noting the team's style has 'advanced her positional play in a way that I think makes her stand out beyond her years.' Advertisement Hayes has been equally clear about her patience with Yohannes as she grows into her career, saying, 'she's got unbelievable maturity and coachability and [is] someone who I know is going to become an important part of our program, but I'm invested in that development, and we have to be patient with that considering her tender age and her lack of international and high level experience.' OL Lyonnes, one of the most decorated and dominant teams in women's football, recently underwent a rebrand in name and crest under owner Michele Kang, who acquired the club in 2024 and announced, along with the club's new crest, the construction of a performance center designed for female athletes. The team will also play its matches at the 59,000-seat Groupama Stadium next season. The club has also announced major personnel moves to further strengthen its team, which was a Champions League semi-finalist this season and Premiére Ligue champions for the eighteenth time. With the departure of former OL Lyonnes manager Joe Montemurro, who accepted a head coaching job with the Australian women's national team, Washington Spirit's Jonathan Giraldez has stepped in, leaving the DC club after less than two years. On June 4, OL Lyonnes announced the signing of French striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto, who will join the club after 10 years with PSG's senior team, adding one of the most prolific strikers in the women's game to a frontline that already includes Melchie Dumornay, Tabitha Chawinga, and Kadidiatou Diani. (Top Photo:)
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Brazil start preparations for Paraguay clash
U.S. Women's Soccer Team returns to Allianz Field [RAW] The U.S. Women's Soccer Team is in St. Paul this week, hosting China in an international friendly on Saturday. The Americans had training on Tuesday at Allianz Field. Players Lily Yohannes and Sam Coffey spoke with reporters after. 11:26 Now Playing Paused Ad Playing
Times
01-06-2025
- Business
- Times
World Sevens: DJs, ‘party deck' — and the millions to revolutionise game
Don't be fooled by the funky rules, loud music and late-season scheduling. Women's football's new seven-a-side tournament is not a cheap gimmick. Granted, a walk around the venue within the modest Estadio Antonio Coimbra da Mota in Estoril, Portugal, made last week's inaugural World Sevens Football (W7F) event feel frivolous. One of the three temporary stands is a plush players' lounge, from which participants watched their rivals on comfy sofas or plastic chairs. At the other end lies the comically named 'party deck', in which the atmosphere was sedate despite residing next to a tent serving alcohol. On one side of the ground, either side of a DJ playing in-game music, the VIPs were sitting grandly in cabanas. Meanwhile, the action on the pitch was often bizarre. Before each game, the teams lined up opposite each other as though they were about to break into rugby-style war dances, only to advance jovially and shake hands with one (weirdly, always only one) opponent. No offsides meant players popped up in random places. When Ajax's Lily Yohannes strode up to a penalty, the Jaws theme music started playing. Yet W7F's wacky elements signal its championing of fun, and the disdain for convention characterises its potential to transform. With its financial heft, truncated format and existence separate from traditional competitions, the impact on women's football could be seismic. This was no end-of-season jolly for the participating eight clubs, which included Manchester City and Manchester United. Fronted by Jennifer Mackesy, a Chelsea minority owner, US-based investors have committed $100million (about £75million) to a W7F series over the next five years. That is a huge sum, as is the $5million prize pot in Estoril. The first W7F winners, Bayern Munich, won $2.5million (about £1.86million), four times more than the £430,000 Chelsea got for winning the Women's FA Cup this month. Even Arsenal took their cumulative prize money to only £1.1million by winning the Champions League — and that was for a whole season's work, rather than three days. Players and staff received 40 per cent of the prize money, encouraging them to compete seriously. Nicola Keating, who was in Estoril watching her 20-year-old daughter Khiara play for City, hinted at the high stakes. 'It's a life-changing opportunity for whichever team wins,' she said. 'For men, this would probably be a drop in the ocean, but for women that could be how many months' wages? It's life-changing money.' Participants were reluctant to discuss the potential winnings but thinking about the payday would only be natural. 'As you get closer to the prize money and being the first winner, the jeopardy starts to come in and tactics start to change,' City's head coach, Nick Cushing, said. Manchester United's situation epitomises the money's power. Marc Skinner, their head coach, has stressed that his squad needs investment but Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the United co-owner, has cited the relative lack of turnover when explaining his limited focus on the women's team. Pocketing £740,000 in three days, as United did by finishing runners-up to Bayern, could fund Skinner's transfer plans and display the potential of women's football to Ratcliffe. Equally, the tournament is not a soulless pursuit of cash. The small pitch (half the size of an 11-a-side one), rolling substitutes, 15-minute halves and no offsides create attacking football compatible with Gen Z attention spans and enjoyed by players. 'It's a higher intensity, but more free,' Grace Clinton, the United midfielder, said. 'You can play, be skilful, link up, and it's very unpredictable. You just don't know what's going to happen, but it's more enjoyable [than 11-a-side].' There were 16 goals in 120 minutes on day one, and so great is the commitment to fun that Bayern Munich's Tuva Hansen had her yellow card rescinded after taking off her shirt in celebration. Yet amid so much money, fun and innovation, it may seem too good to be true. So what's the catch? The starting point is financial. Only 3,500 tickets were sold over the three days, and the broadcast deal with DAZN alone will not move Mackesy's group into the black. The tournament must enhance revenue streams. 'We would love to see cities around the world want to bring us into their communities and partner with them,' Mackesy said. Indeed, W7F needs to live up to its global identity. While all eight teams in Estoril are European, the second event at the end of this year will be held in the Americas. Justin Fishkin, Mackesy's co-founder, detailed plans for four 'regional' events before the fifth served as a world championship. Cracking the enormous women's football market of the United States, the expected location for the second event, is also crucial. Nonetheless, Mackesy and Fishkin were guarded over their business strategy, so W7F's road to sustainability remains uncertain. The fan experience could improve too, because the atmosphere at the 5,100-capacity stadium rarely turned lively before the Friday night final. Mackesy mooted using bigger stadiums, or springing up a venue in a large park. Organisers perhaps sacrificed hosting in a bigger women's football nation to be on the Champions League final's doorstep, but this move was symbolic. While there is a desire to co-operate with governing bodies such as Fifa and Uefa, W7F is disturbing women's football's status quo. Expansion beyond eight teams is envisaged and the women's football calendar is already packed. Fiskin emphasised working around the existing schedule but Tobin Heath, the former United States international who chairs the W7F advisory council, was more combative. 'The schedules are going to clear, just look at the prize pool we set,' she told the Full Time podcast. With the successes tangible and concerns mostly hypothetical, W7F's genesis in Portugal was pretty good. And when an event is this lucrative and eyebrow-raising, a qualified success is enough to ignite revolution.
