USWNT Star Named Best NWSL Player of 2026

0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. There are lot of superstars in the NWSL but one has shined brightest in the eyes of ESPN.

Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman was named the best NWSL player of the 2026 season by ESPN's Jeff Kassouf on Friday. Rodman's 10 goals this season are the third-most in the NWSL in 2026.

"The Washington Spirit were the best team over the first half of the NWSL season, and Rodman was the engine. She has 10 goals and five assists in 20 matches this year. Rodman continues to deliver, and it shouldn't go unnoticed that she has played in every league game after struggling with injuries for the past two years.

She is more consistent than ever. Rodman still has a penchant for audacious moves, although we are seeing less of the famous "Trin Spin" and more of a mature nuance to how she beats defenders. Give her too much space, and she will push the ball past the defender and be free into open space (or draw a foul).

"If defenders continue to backpedal to contain her, they end up deep in their 18 and susceptible to Rodman's hip-swivel dekes. She will wrong foot a defender with that move and slam a shot into the net, as she did earlier this month against North Carolina," Kassouf wrote.

In addition to Rodman, two of her Spirit teammates were also ranked in the top 25 of NWSL players this season. Midfielder Leicy Santos was ranked No. 16, while centerback Tara Rudd earned the No. 18 spot.

Rodman is a key piece of the U.S. women's national team's offense. She was named the U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year in 2021 and has helped Team USA win the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

With the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup set to take place next summer in Brazil, Rodman is expected to be back on Team USA's roster.

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