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Jeff Kassouf discusses Emily Fox’s move to Arsenal and whether it could lead to more USWNT players going to Europe. (1:58)
United States women’s national team defender Emily Fox was among the more than 59,000 spectators at Emirates Stadium on December 10 to watch Arsenal’s 4-1 victory over Chelsea, a victory for the Gunners in a race for the name of three teams in the WSL in England.
Fox was a free agent and thinking about his next move, and betting on Europe was a matter of when, not if, he said. Sopping up that crowd and rediscovering the thrill of a race for a name was “the icing on the cake” in her resolution to leave the National Women’s Football League after 3 seasons and sign for Arsenal. For years, he thought about being part of this kind of environment.
Fox, 25, is already one of the most productive full-backs in the world, playing in an inverted role and being able to attack warring parties in unpredictable ways. Her move to Arsenal, she said, is about getting comfortable and further refining her game, and is a mandatory step in her particular quest to become the most productive full-back in the world.
“I feel like I need to expand my attacking game more and that’s why I think Arsenal’s style of play allows me to have freedom, especially by reversing the inside game or staying up and out, which I think is more important than the away game. back, which we’re doing now because the game is changing,” Fox told ESPN.
“And then betting on big stadiums like the Emirates and being in a culture and an environment where football is everything, and that tension as well. I also feel like it’s going to be favorable for me to have that other kind of tension. “Where football is just culture, that’s it. “
The timing was everything for Fox, too, having established a foundation as a pro player in the NWSL. Her move abroad also comes at an inflection point for the U.S. national team. The Americans’ round-of-16 exit at the 2023 World Cup was the program’s worst showing in history, a result that thrust scrutiny upon the entire U.S. development system and called into question whether the U.S. player pool was too reliant on the NWSL and its more direct style of play.
New U. S. head coach Emma Hayes wrote before taking office that the NWSL “does not offer enough diversity” in its playing tastes for U. S. players, and that the group of U. S. players “lacks artistic talent. “Hayes argues that the other styles of play in Europe prepare players to face anything on the global stage.
Even one of the players on the USWNT team for the 2023 World Cup played in the NWSL, and the team’s poor functionality there warned that soon more players would be looking for varied development, even if it didn’t take place en masse. At least not yet. Fox’s move to Arsenal is the biggest departure from the U. S. Women’s National Team. UU. de the NWSL, however, most U. S. free agents are not the only ones in the NWSL. The U. S. Navy has signed this window of movement within the National League. (NWSL champions NJ/NY Gotham FC have signed 4 more sensible U. S. players. )
Fox said he would have moved to Arsenal even though he had just enjoyed his first World Cup. The effects of the USWNT on New Zealand and Australia motivated the team to improve, he said, but “he was always looking to go overseas, it was just a matter of timing and choosing the right club. “Fox said he even thought about betting overseas when he turned pro and was the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NWSL Draft, but he still hasn’t reveled closer to home first. temporarily he has become one of the USWNT’s clear starters as a front back at the World Cup.
“I think I think the experience itself was amazing — being there and being able to represent the U.S.,” Fox said. “But then the result and how it ended, and then having to come back [to the NWSL] mid-season, that was really challenging. But I think, again, I knew I had always wanted to go overseas.”
Fox became an NWSL limited free agent after the 2023 season, which she spent with the North Carolina Courage after being traded there last year from Racing Louisville FC. Thanks to the ratification in 2022 of the NWSL’s first collective bargaining agreement, it had the opportunity to explore offers: the appeals claim that Courage made a “significant offer” to remain Fox, but Arsenal’s offer was comparable to some of the NWSL’s most significant contracts.
Courage head coach Sean Nahas told ESPN he knew how complicated the resolution was for Fox based on their conversations. The Braves knew when they traded for Fox last year that they could lose her when her contract expired, but they were willing to live with it. The year in combination has been right for both sides, with North Carolina betting on the NWSL’s possession-based max taste in 2023.
“I completely help her make a resolution that she feels is most productive for her and anything she wanted to try, and I think that maybe doesn’t happen in today’s world, where everyone is looking to tell other people what to do. “Nahas says, “But it’s her career and all I can do is help her. Yes, it sucks to lose it, don’t get me wrong. But I need Em to be satisfied, and we think we’ve helped her grow and expand. “”In the last year, and that opportunity came here because of that. I get it. And she probably wouldn’t be the last player to have those talks with European clubs. Let’s be honest. That’s the reality. “
A confluence of personal reasons led to Fox’s decision to join Arsenal specifically, she said. There is her friendship with former University of North Carolina teammates Alessia Russo and Lotte Wubben-Moy, who both now play for Arsenal. The Gunners have other ties to North Carolina, like former U.S. midfielder Heather O’Reilly, who played for the club from 2017-18 and was in the stands for Fox’s first league game earlier this month. Two-time World Cup winner Tobin Heath, a longtime Arsenal fan and another UNC alumna, texted Fox to congratulate her on the move.
Sam Mewis discusses Emily Fox’s to Arsenal and Ashley Sanchez’s to North Carolina Courage.
Current U. S. captain Lindsey Horan can best relate to Fox’s decision-making process. Horan, who plays for Olympique Lyonnais, is the only player on the U. S. roster to play for a club outside the NWSL.
“She was simply saying that it’s vital to talk to your brain and not be afraid to say what you feel,” Fox said. “And indeed it is. You have to be smart in your communication, let other people know how you feel, especially when you’re traveling from Europe to the United States, going to camps, going out of camps, and then playing big games. So just pay attention to your body, don’t be afraid to say how you feel. “
Horan recently expressed a preference for seeing more U. S. players leave the “comfortable” NWSL, where she played for six years, for more exposure in Europe. Fox joins Horan, forwards Mia Fishel and Catarina Macario at Chelsea and 20-year-old former PSG midfielder Korbin Albert is one of the top Americans overseas.
U. S. soccer officials have already collaborated and communicated with Arsenal regarding FIFA’s foreign windows and long-term calendar plans, Fox said, adding that he spoke primarily with U. S. interim coach Twila Kilgore about the move.
Those are relatively new developments that have made it easier for U.S. players to go abroad. U.S. Soccer was the manager of the NWSL for the first eight years of the league, which gave the federation an unusually large influence over the league and its players, including directly paying U.S. national team players’ league salaries. U.S. Soccer’s authority allowed the federation to hold women’s national team camps outside of international windows, a practice at odds with global standards. The federation’s positioning has changed dramatically, and U.S. Soccer is now mostly aligned with global practices and calendars. The end of NWSL federation contracts made it “a lot easier” for U.S. players to make moves abroad, Fox said.
“There are so many amazing leagues and I think the NWSL is developing and it’s one of the most productive leagues in the world,” Fox said. “Again, I think a lot of things are very personal, like what you want, what you’re looking for, and then the moment. But I wouldn’t be surprised if more people [from the USWNT] were interested in going. Because I know that, with assignments and things like that, it’s a little harder. “
Investment from top global clubs in their women’s teams has also increased exponentially over the past few years. Fox saw a tangible effect first-hand at that Dec. 10 game at the Emirates, which set a Women’s Super League attendance record. She has since learned about the club’s ticketing and marketing strategy, and she praises Arsenal’s desire to share best practices with other English clubs to raise the standard everywhere. She sees the investments behind the scenes like the team chef whipping up meals for players.
Fox immediately stepped into a starting role for Arsenal as the Gunners chase their first league title in five years. Fans even had a custom chant ready for her as she warmed up for her first match. The on-field goal is to win three trophies and qualify for the Champions League, Fox said. Personally, she aims to be the best full-back in the world, a claim some might argue she is already able to make. Off the field, Arsenal offered the Fox an experience she long sought at a human level. Everything about the move to Arsenal made sense.
“The football component was clearly the biggest and most important, but I also wanted to revel in another culture, live close to London and enjoy the diversity that exists here,” he said. “It’s everything I like. And now that I’m here, I can be at most anywhere in Europe and therefore enjoy that life as well, I think that’s really important. “