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Jeff Kassouf
Multiple Authors
The self-proclaimed “Triple Espresso” of United States women’s national team forwards Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson and Mallory Swanson trained together this week for the first time since the 2024 Olympics as the Americans prepare for a pair of rare away games against Brazil.
“I’m very excited to have them back, especially off the field,” Rodman told reporters on a video call on Wednesday that featured all three players.
“Their personalities are amazing to have in camp and just, like, having my sisters back is amazing. And then on the field I just feel like our connection is so good.”
That connection was on display throughout the 18-minute call as the trio finished each other’s sentences while laughing and crying through some of their answers.
They last shared the field in a USWNT jersey on Aug. 10, 2024, when they beat Brazil 1-0 to win the program’s fifth Olympic gold medal.
Swanson scored the winning goal in that match.
Swanson and Wilson were on maternity leave throughout 2025 and gave birth in November and September, respectively, while Rodman battled various injuries.
Swanson just returned to playing for her club, the Chicago Stars FC, in recent weeks, but USWNT head coach Emma Hayes said last week that it was important to get the 28-year-old forward into this training camp to rebuild connections with a roster that has changed significantly since those Olympics.
Wilson and Rodman returned to the USWNT earlier this year. If Swanson plays on Saturday against Brazil, it will be her first appearance for her country in 604 days.
“This is Day 2 so it’s been a lot, but it’s been super exciting just to see everyone again and getting caught up to speed,” Swanson said.
The trio accounted for 10 of the team’s 12 goals scored at the 2024 Olympics.
It was there, in France, that they coined the name “Triple Espresso” for themselves, evoking memories of the famous “Triple-Edged Sword” USWNT forward line of Michelle Akers, Carin Jennings-Gabarra and April Heinrichs that helped win the inaugural Women’s World Cup in 1991.
“I feel like it’s a fun name among everyone,” Wilson said on Wednesday. “I feel like we do a good job of keeping our own identity and being individuals and bringing what makes us unique to the field, while also playing really well together and having that chemistry.
“So, I feel like the name just happened and then just” — “took off,” Rodman interjected, before Wilson further finished the sentence with “like a rocket.”
Hayes said last week that “we cannot waste a single minute” in preparing for World Cup qualification in November and the World Cup next summer, including reestablishing this dangerous combination of forwards.
“We have been able to develop the depth, but those three players, they’ve developed credit in the bank,” Hayes said. “We won a gold medal with these players. They are top, top players. Together, we have to start re-creating their connections again and I am very excited for that.”
Both Swanson and Wilson are without their infants for the trip to Brazil, due to the long travel from the United States.
“Mal and I have spent every waking moment over the last six and nine months with our babies, so it’s definitely hard to be away from them,” Wilson said.
“I feel like it’s the hours that you’re not busy that it gets tough, but their dads are getting very good quality time with them, and they are loved and well taken care of, and that’s what we just have to keep telling ourselves.”
Swanson held back tears while Wilson, sitting between her teammates, spoke about their kids.
Rodman then laid across the laps of both players and said “I’ll be your guys’ baby,” producing a laugh from the trio.
The USWNT will play Brazil on Saturday in São Paulo on again on Tuesday in Fortaleza. Both are 2027 World Cup venues.
The two teams last played in spring 2025 in a pair of games in California.
The United States won the first meeting, with Rodman scoring an early goal in her initial return from a post-Olympics injury.
Brazil won the rematch a few days later against a more experimental USWNT.
“Brazil’s always a really hard opponent,” Rodman said.
“For us, I think the biggest thing is controlling the game. They are really good on the mind side. They’re good at getting set pieces and throw-ins and getting the ball out of bounds, so I think being able to take the control and have it in play and kind of dictate things will be important.
“They’re a talented team, they’re really aggressive, and they always start out really fast, so I think it will be important the way that we come out against them.”
