Latest news with #Frauen-Bundesliga
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
New Angel City coach Alex Straus sees communication as key to building winning culture
New Angel City coach Alex Straus said he values strong communication with players as he pushes to succeed. (Al Seib/For The Times) Alexander Straus was fewer than two weeks from his first training session as Angel City FC coach. Yet, Angel City president and co-founder Julie Uhrman wanted to see her new manager at work. She flew to Portugal, where Straus was completing his three-season stint as FC Bayern Munich coach — a club the 49-year-old Norwegian led to three consecutive Frauen-Bundesliga titles and a 57-7-2 league record. Advertisement As Uhrman watched Straus coach Bayern Munich at the inaugural World Sevens Football tournament, she already was familiar with his technical acumen that was on display en route to a championship victory over Manchester United. That was not a surprise. But what caught Uhrman's attention was Straus' relationships with his players. Angel City coach Alex Straus speaks to reporters during his first news conference while club president and co-founder Julie Uhrman looks on and laughs Wednesday in Thousand Oaks. (Al Seib/For The Times) 'What I saw was something that you don't get in an interview process and you don't read on the [curriculum vitae,]' Uhrman said. 'The connection he had with his teams was palpable. The way that they would celebrate him, the joy that they brought him, and vice versa, was just something you can't learn in an interview process and it's something that's so critical to Angel City.' Advertisement So, when Straus, reserved and quiet until he opened his mouth, began to speak during his introductory news conference Wednesday morning as the third Angel City head coach in four seasons since inception — with Uhrman and sporting director Mark Parsons bookending him at the podium — he leaned on his beliefs. How Straus wants Angel City to play on the pitch, is the same as how he wants to interact with his players in the locker room — and the state-of-the-art performance center on Cal Lutheran University's campus. 'My philosophy is centered around people,' said Straus, who asked the media to 'bear with' his English after spending four years in Germany. 'I'm here to facilitate for our players to be able to go out on a pitch, have a clear plan and know how to execute it.' Read more: Angel City hires Bayern Munich's Alexander Straus as new head coach Advertisement Straus continued: 'I need to know people, and I need to know what makes them tick. So how can I get the best out of Sarah Gorden or Christen Press or Riley Tiernan or Alyssa Thompson? How can I get the best out of them?' Earlier in his career, Straus said he overly cared about trophies, medals and success. In 2018, he said his worldview shifted. Straus — who said he considered previous coaching opportunities in America, but didn't feel the timing was right — realized he needed to craft bonds and relationships with his players to cultivate a positive team culture, one that could lead to championships. Uhrman saw the bonds on display in Portugal while Straus was still with Bayern Munich and Parsons has watched the baby steps Straus is taking with Angel City in his first few days as official coach. 'Through this process, Meeting 1 to Meeting 3, I just didn't think this person existed,' Parsons said, adding that during the coaching search he spoke to Straus' former players and staff. 'I really mean that I didn't believe this type of quality existed, and I couldn't be happier that we've got him here.' Advertisement Read more: Not done yet: Christen Press embracing her role as Angel City's elder stateswoman What stood out to Parsons, he said, was that even players who didn't play much under Straus — who may have left for better opportunities — would still speak positively about the clarity, confidence that Angel City's new coach provided them. Straus — and the Angel City backroom staff — are well aware that winning isn't an overnight process. The club sits in seventh place in NWSL standings with a 4-2-4 record. In some matches, Angel City has exerted control and played the style Parsons said he wants to see asserted. But in other matches, such as recent defeats to Bay FC and Racing Louisville, Angel City has faltered — often losing despite controlling possession. Uhrman stressed she wanted a coach who could help the team bounce back from defeat, or setbacks. She and Parsons believe Straus can do that. He doesn't take falling short lightly. When pushed on his UEFA Women's Champions League record since 2022 on Wednesday during a side media session, Straus spent six-and-a-half minutes breaking down why Bayern Munich fell short in the quarterfinals or group stages, adding what he learned from each losing experience. Advertisement Straus said he's always open to talking. Angel City players, however, will have only a few more days to get to know the new coach before Straus takes the touchline Saturday at BMO Stadium against the Chicago Stars. 'One thing is to win one year, one game,' Straus said. "But it needs to be consistent, and it needs to be built on a foundation where you are always the ones that have been spoken about when it comes to challenging for winning the championship. 'That's why we are here, and that's what we want to do.' Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
New Angel City coach Alex Straus sees communication as key to building winning culture
Alexander Straus was fewer than two weeks from his first training session as Angel City FC coach. Yet, Angel City president and co-founder Julie Uhrman wanted to see her new manager at work. She flew to Portugal, where Straus was completing his three-season stint as FC Bayern Munich coach — a club the 49-year-old Norwegian led to three consecutive Frauen-Bundesliga titles and a 57-7-2 league record. As Uhrman watched Straus coach Bayern Munich at the inaugural World Sevens Football tournament, she already was familiar with his technical acumen that was on display en route to a championship victory over Manchester United. That was not a surprise. But what caught Uhrman's attention was Straus' relationships with his players. 'What I saw was something that you don't get in an interview process and you don't read on the [curriculum vitae,]' Uhrman said. 'The connection he had with his teams was palpable. The way that they would celebrate him, the joy that they brought him, and vice versa, was just something you can't learn in an interview process and it's something that's so critical to Angel City.' So, when Straus, reserved and quiet until he opened his mouth, began to speak during his introductory news conference Wednesday morning as the third Angel City head coach in four seasons since inception — with Uhrman and sporting director Mark Parsons bookending him at the podium — he leaned on his beliefs. How Straus wants Angel City to play on the pitch, is the same as how he wants to interact with his players in the locker room — and the state-of-the-art performance center on Cal Lutheran University's campus. 'My philosophy is centered around people,' said Straus, who asked the media to 'bear with' his English after spending four years in Germany. 'I'm here to facilitate for our players to be able to go out on a pitch, have a clear plan and know how to execute it.' Straus continued: 'I need to know people, and I need to know what makes them tick. So how can I get the best out of Sarah Gorden or Christen Press or Riley Tiernan or Alyssa Thompson? How can I get the best out of them?' Earlier in his career, Straus said he overly cared about trophies, medals and success. In 2018, he said his worldview shifted. Straus — who said he considered previous coaching opportunities in America, but didn't feel the timing was right — realized he needed to craft bonds and relationships with his players to cultivate a positive team culture, one that could lead to championships. Uhrman saw the bonds on display in Portugal while Straus was still with Bayern Munich and Parsons has watched the baby steps Straus is taking with Angel City in his first few days as official coach. 'Through this process, Meeting 1 to Meeting 3, I just didn't think this person existed,' Parsons said, adding that during the coaching search he spoke to Straus' former players and staff. 'I really mean that I didn't believe this type of quality existed, and I couldn't be happier that we've got him here.' What stood out to Parsons, he said, was that even players who didn't play much under Straus — who may have left for better opportunities — would still speak positively about the clarity, confidence that Angel City's new coach provided them. Straus — and the Angel City backroom staff — are well aware that winning isn't an overnight process. The club sits in seventh place in NWSL standings with a 4-2-4 record. In some matches, Angel City has exerted control and played the style Parsons said he wants to see asserted. But in other matches, such as recent defeats to Bay FC and Racing Louisville, Angel City has faltered — often losing despite controlling possession. Uhrman stressed she wanted a coach who could help the team bounce back from defeat, or setbacks. She and Parsons believe Straus can do that. He doesn't take falling short lightly. When pushed on his UEFA Women's Champions League record since 2022 on Wednesday during a side media session, Straus spent six-and-a-half minutes breaking down why Bayern Munich fell short in the quarterfinals or group stages, adding what he learned from each losing experience. Straus said he's always open to talking. Angel City players, however, will only have a few more days to get to know the new coach before Straus takes the touchline Saturday at BMO Stadium against the Chicago Stars. 'One thing is to win one year, one game,' Straus said. 'But it needs to be consistent, and it needs to be built on a foundation where you are always the ones that have been spoken about when it comes to challenging for winning the championship.' 'That's why we are here, and that's what we want to do.'
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
‘It means everything': how Union Berlin Women completed epic journey to the top
Union goalkeeper Melanie Wagner (centre) gets a beer shower from Tomke Schneider (right) after the team achieved promotion. Photograph: Sören Stache/dpa 'I can't describe how I feel,' Lisa Heiseler says as she reflects on a momentous weekend for Union Berlin Women. Just three days after her side secured a historic promotion to the Frauen-Bundesliga, the captain is clearly still processing everything that has happened to her and her teammates. 27 April 2025 will be a date for ever etched in the memories of Union Berlin's women's team and their supporters. A 6-1 victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach in front of more than 14,000 jubilant fans at the Stadion An der Alte Försterei saw Ailien Poese's side secure promotion with three games to spare, one that will see them play in the top echelon of German football for the first time and at the first time of asking. ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement Related: Women's Super League and Championship: talking points from the weekend's action 'There's this video going around of when I was a 14-year-old girl saying my dream was to play in the women's Bundesliga,' Heiseler says. 'Now I have done it, I can't believe it. I'm so proud of the club that we've been able to take this step together. I've been here my entire life so it is indescribable. This club is in my heart … they have helped me to live my dream so it means everything for me.' The success marks the culmination of Union Berlin's meteoric rise in recent years. Just two seasons ago, they were playing in front of 100 people in the Regionalliga Nordost, the third tier of German football. However, back-to-back promotions will see them now go toe-to-toe with the nation's best teams in the autumn. It is an ascent that has mirrored that of the men's side who achieved promotion to the Bundesliga in 2019. Union Berlin is a special club that has its own unique history. In 1969, a group of women studying nearby became one of the first women's teams in East Germany, coached by Bernd Müller and Bernd Vogel from the men's first team. When the East German Football Association ruled that women's football was a recreational sport, the club were not allowed to run a team so the players joining Kabelwerk Oberspree (KWO Berlin). When the reunification of Germany took place in 1990, KWO Berlin was dissolved and all the women's players joined Union. ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement Nowadays, Union Berlin is owned by over 69,000 members and it is famous for its distinctive fan culture. The women's team turned professional in the 2023-2024 season, a move that was supported strongly by the president, Dirk Zingler, and it was one that immediately paid off. Heiseler has been at the heart of it all. Now 26, the Berlin native has been at the club since she was 13 years old and has been there every step of the way. 'Growing up here in Köpernick, the club did everything possible for me to become a footballer,' she says. 'Even when I was at school, I was able to combine it with football. On the pitch, I have seen an improvement since turning professional. I have grown more confident and I lead a more professional life with food and nutrition.' 'We play in a new training centre into which millions have been invested to give us the opportunities that we've had. We can now live from football and can focus on it. We don't have to work. Some of us choose to but we don't have to. Only a couple of years ago, we were playing in front of 100 people at the old ground … and now we have an average of almost 6,000 people here in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga. It is an astonishing development.' This campaign has seen the team hit new heights. Poese's side have lost just twice in the league, have outscored their opponents and possess the joint meanest defence in the league; Heiseler is the current top scorer with 17. ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement The captain credits her team's 'togetherness' as being key. 'There is a lot of constructive criticism within the team,' she says. 'We are very open with each other and that has allowed us to improve things. For example, we needed to be better in front of goal and we've worked on that. That has also led to this unity. We all stand up for each other.' It will no doubt be a busy summer for the club as they build towards their first Bundesliga campaign. 'The first goal, of course, is to establish ourselves and to not get relegated,' Heiseler says. 'But then we need to establish ourselves as a team. Personally, I want to show that I can measure up among the best football players in Germany and go up against them.' For now, however, focus remains firmly on the end of this season. A 3-2 victory away to Freiburg at the weekend saw them rise to the top of the table. To lift the 2. Frauen‑Bundesliga trophy in front of their home fans on the final day would be the perfect finale to a memorable campaign. Get in touch If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email This is an extract from our free weekly email, Moving the Goalposts. To get the full edition, visit this page and follow the instructions. Moving the Goalposts is back in to its twice-weekly format, delivered to your inboxes every Tuesday and Thursday.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
It's over: Bayern Munich loses to Lyon 4-1 (6-1 on aggregate) in the UEFA Women's Champions League
It's over. The Champions League season is over for the Bayern Munich Frauen. 90'+4': A. Hegerberg 60': T. Chawinga - Lyon leads 3-1 54': K. Diani - Lyon leads 2-1 46': M. Dumornay - Lyon ties it 1-1 33': Klara Bühl puts Bayern Munich ahead 1-0! Bayern Munich are staring at a 2-0 hole after the home leg of the UEFA Women's Champions League quarterfinals tie vs. will have to attempt to reverse fortunes in France against last year's finalists. Advertisement Head coach Alexander Straus has his team fighting on all three fronts — having just booked a ticket to the DFB-Pokal Final and looking good to finish on top in a hotly-contested Frauen-Bundesliga this season. But it's do or die today in the UWCL. Is this where Bayern's journey comes to an end? Or will the Bavarians emerge as treble contenders? Catch the free live stream courtesy of DAZN on YouTube: It's Bayern time. Match Info Location: Lyon, France Time: 1:45 PM EDT TV/streaming: DAZN, YouTube, Find Your Country Tips for commenting: If you're a new member, feel free to introduce yourself! We're mostly very friendly! Also, we're from all parts of the world so don't feel shy if you're from a country that doesn't seem represented on the blog. Use the on-screen 'Refresh comments' button to periodically load new comments. Keep the sorting to 'newest' to easily follow the conversation. It puts the newest comments at the top. Here at BFW we celebrate every goal like they do in the stadium: with a chant. The goal chants are for everyone to participate in! Even if you're lagging behind the others, keep replying to the most recent call of the player's name. Even if you missed the first call, just start from the second, and so on. While swearing is allowed within reason, please be polite to your fellow posters and avoid gratuitous obscenities. Racist, homophobic, and misogynistic language is not allowed whatsoever. Check out our beginners thread if you have any more questions. That's about it. Auf geht's! Advertisement Looking for an unending well of Bayern Munich content? Sign up for an SBNation account and join the conversation on Bavarian Football Works. Whether it's full match coverage and analysis, breaking news, podcasts or something completely different, we have it all. More from
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Put the Washington Spirit in bubble wrap. Plus, NWSL's coaching pipeline problem
Full Time Newsletter ⚽| This is 's weekly women's soccer newsletter. Sign up here to receive Full Time directly in your inbox. Seriously, it might be time to start playing bubble soccer. Emily Olsen here with Asli Pelit Basker, Tamerra Griffin and Meg Linehan — welcome to Full Time! We Were Wrong New No. 1 team in NWSL Welp, last week's newsletter didn't age well. Advertisement The Orlando Pride is no longer perfect, and Angel City has hit a serious bump in the road despite announcing a new head coach. Oh, and Trinity Rodman's back is back in the news. Let's start with the unusual fall of the Pride, which also means there's a new No. 1 in the league. The closer we got to the weekend, the more it seemed like Orlando would walk into its fifth win of the season against an injury-riddled Washington Spirit: Eleven Spirit players were ruled out for the match, including Rodman (more on that later), Casey Krueger for the second consecutive game and Croix Bethune, who is back in training but faced a setback while recovering from a meniscus injury. Four of the injuries have carried over from last year. Another key player, midfielder Leicy Santos, was listed as questionable due to an ankle injury. She was a second-half substitute but needed medical attention for her lower leg during the game. Advertisement With an already depleted roster, Washington watched its leading scorer, Ashley Hatch, exit the field after an hour to be evaluated for a potential concussion. Earlier in the week, head coach Jonatan Giráldez said the team was looking into the injury issues, but also noted it was time for other players to step up. That is exactly what the team's newest signing, Gift Monday, did in the 63rd minute. The win puts Washington level on points (12) with Orlando as their budding rivalry gains more steam. Both teams now sit three points behind the Kansas City Current. Unfortunately for the Spirit, the injuries don't seem like they're relenting any time soon. Advertisement On Saturday, Washington confirmed Rodman is stepping away from team activities indefinitely to address her continuing back issues. The 22-year-old is reportedly headed to London to meet with a doctor, but also attended the BMW Open in Munich, Germany, over the weekend where her boyfriend, Ben Shelton, fell to No. 1-seeded Alexander Zverev in the tennis final. Angel City's missing Ferrari On Thursday, Angel City hired Bayern Munich's Alexander Straus as its head coach. The Norwegian will join the team on June 1 after a surprising early exit from his German club, which he'll leave just 11 months into a two-year extension. He led Bayern to back-to-back Frauen-Bundesliga titles in 2023 and 2024. But the 49-year-old's announcement comes at a turbulent time for his new club. While things weren't completely blown off course with Friday's 4-0 loss to Gotham FC, Angel City looked lost without Alyssa Thompson leading the way. The 20-year-old missed the game with an upper leg injury, but interim head coach Sam Laity said she will be fine. More specifically, he said: Advertisement 🏎️ 'She's a Ferrari, right? We've got to keep Ferraris in the squad.' This seems like a good time to remind you we also have a free F1 newsletter that you should definitely check out, called Prime Tire. Honorable mentions: Rivalries and bangers Asli watched NWSL all weekend long, and the Cascadia rivalry was her top match. Here's why: For me, the moment of the weekend was a tie between Kiki 'I-only-score-bangers' Pickett and the silver platter service from Midge Purce to Geyse for the forward's first NWSL goal. The latter gave us a second consecutive weekend with a Brazilian backflip. Meg's Corner: NWSL's pipeline problem for women coaches The final coaching domino remaining from this offseason has finally fallen, as the ink drys on Straus' contract to take charge of Angel City. While poaching him from Europe feels like a decent coup for sporting director Mark Parsons, it also highlights the continued lack of female coaches across the NWSL. Advertisement Angel City was quick to mention how the hiring process was gender balanced, with its shortlist equally split between men and women. Right now, the NWSL is facing the same issue it had a decade ago: the coaching pipeline isn't producing at the rate it needs to. The league hasn't been ignoring this problem, either. They've put players through coaching license programs, codified into the new CBA at a $25,000 stipend every calendar year. There are promising candidates across the teams now serving as assistant coaches and goalkeeping coaches, such as Angela Salem (Bay FC) and Yolanda Thomas (Orlando Pride), but would they be given as long a runway as a man if hired? Becki Tweed and Freya Coombe are back as assistant coaches after stints in charge. The other big question I'm looking at right now is how expansion will play a role. As Denver and Boston enter the league in 2026, that's another two full technical staffs to build out. Will they find qualified candidates here in the U.S., or will they have to poach from abroad? Right now, it's looking like the latter. In the News Busy watching more soccer Do you wish you had North American soccer to watch? Well, you're in luck, because we've got two new leagues starting up. Advertisement On Tuesday, the Cleveland Soccer Group announced it was joining a new second-division soccer league, WPSL Pro, as a founding member. The league, set to start in April 2026, looks to fill the talent-to-opportunity gap that WPSL president Sean Jones believes still exists. The next day, Canada's Northern Super League kicked off with Vancouver Rise defeating Calgary Wild 1-0 to officially launch the country's inaugural women's professional soccer league. Former NWSL midfielder and league founder Diana Matheson hopes that the domestic league will help grow the Canadian national team. Is the salary cap hurting NWSL? U.S. women's national team captain Lindsey Heaps thinks so. Advertisement The Lyon midfielder spoke ahead of her European club's semifinal win over Arsenal, saying the NWSL's salary cap was an 'ongoing issue' that factors into NWSL players going overseas. A small wave of Americans left the NWSL recently to test the waters in Europe. U.S. defender Naomi Girma headlined the group, becoming the first million-dollar transfer in women's soccer. U.S. teammates Jenna Nighswonger and Emily Fox both left NWSL to play for Arsenal, while Chelsea pair Mia Fishel and Catarina Macario bypassed the American league altogether to play for Champions League teams. 'I wanted to come play in Champions League again,' Heaps said when asked about her own journey. 'I wanted to play for a big club like (Lyon).' Top European teams in pole position Speaking of Lyon, the first leg of the Champions League semifinals this weekend showed the dominance of last year's finalists, Lyon and Barcelona. Both secured victories over their English opponents, with Lyon winning 2-1 against Arsenal and Barcelona 4-1 over Chelsea. Advertisement It was young strikers on both teams who made the difference: Lyon's Melchie Dumornay, 21, and Barcelona's Claudia Pina, 23. Neither Arsenal nor Chelsea is a stranger to overcoming multi-goal deficits, each having outscored their quarterfinal opponents in the second leg. Doing the same against higher-ranked teams is a different assignment, but muscle memory for the extraordinary could be their weapon next weekend. Full Time First Looks Keeping it local: Less than five years after the Miller Family sold the Utah Jazz for a reported $1.66 billion, they are back in the sports ownership game — but this time it's soccer. On Friday, the family and Miller Sports & Entertainment finalized their majority holding acquisition of the Utah Royals and Real Salt Lake (MLS) from David Blitzer for a reported $600 million. Advertisement Crucial questions: Does the NWSL know what its fans want? We asked four leaders of NWSL supporters groups. Watch the full podcast here. Money talks: Chelsea is the most valuable women's team in world soccer. They were sold for $265 million, surpassing the $250 million Willow Bay and Bob Iger paid to buy Angel City in 2024. But what exactly does that eye-popping number mean? explains. Honored: Carli Lloyd reflected on what it means to be in the National Soccer Hall of Fame last week. 'I never played for glory,' she said. 'I played purely for the love of the game.' P.S. Don't forget to dance like no one's watching. 📫 Love Full Time? These stories can also be found on Yahoo's women's sports hub, in partnership with Also, check out our other newsletters. Advertisement This article originally appeared in The Athletic. NWSL, Full Time Newsletter 2025 The Athletic Media Company
