Susannah is joined by Chicago Stars midfielder Brianna Pinto for today’s Committee gathering!

03:45 - The news of Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird’s divorce has shocked the wider sports world. Sooz in particular has a hard time grappling with the news.

07:48 - NWSL announces Columbus, OH as the next NWSL expansion city.

10:12 - The Columbus news leads to a bigger discussion about the NWSL possibly switching the current league calendar to a Fall-Spring season to align with Europe. Brianna has MANY THOUGHTS about this possibility. Points of contention include team infrastructure and player health & safety.

18:07 - Check-in with Brianna and her Chicago Stars season so far. Brianna talks patience as they build the team up and figure out their identity. Brianna also mentions what team has surprised her so far in the NWSL season.

26:31 - The duo talk the recent USWNT vs. Japan matches. Who had a great camp, who raised their stock, who struggled and what can be taken from this camp as we inch closer to the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

37:22 - We continue the ranking game fun this week by having Brianna blind rank 12 iconic men’s World Cup kits spanning decades from Soccer.com’s Top 10 Kits in World Cup History list. (Link at the bottom of this description to follow along for podcast listeners, podcasting is a visual medium)

01:02:16 - Brianna talks her excitement for the 2026 World Cup and discusses her role in bringing this Cup to the US when she spoke at the 68th FIFA Congress in 2018 with Alfonso Davies and Diego Lainez while she was playing with a USWNT U-20 Team (and overcoming some public speaking fears she had!)

01:08:38 - Reality TV Recap and Close. Brianna just started Netflix’s “Beef” series. Sooz is watching Top Chef: Carolinas which spurs a discussion about Carolina BBQ.

Soccer.com’s Top 10 Kits in FIFA Men’s World Cup History: https://www.soccer.com/guide/top-10-world-cup-kits

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See our First Touch ’26 Preview page for breakdowns on all 48 teams competing this summer: First Touch 26' World Cup Preview

columbus, oh