The buzz around the USWNT has been on the return of Sophia Wilson after the birth of her daughter Gigi, understandable given the hype around Triple Espresso at the Olympics and the anticipation over a reunion, as well as the cute baby videos.
Tierna Davidson’s return has been quieter, much like the player herself. Davidson has always been thoughtful and soft spoken. But she’s also a steadying veteran presence for the defense as the team readies for the World Cup about 14 months away.
Gotham Missed Her, Too
Davidson tore her the ACL in her left knee just a little more than a year ago during a match between Gotham and the Houston Dash. Gotham had named her captain just before the start of the 2025 season.
She’s easing her way back with both teams. She returned as a substitute in Gotham’s home opener this season against the North Carolina Courage on March 21.
“She’s probably the best left-footed center back in the planet, for the way I see the game, and obviously is someone that we’ve really missed,” Gotham coach Juan Carlos Amorós gushed afterward.
Her last match for the United States was against Japan during the 2025 SheBelieves Cup.
“I’m feeling great. So happy to be home,” said Davidson, who grew up in Menlo Park, California. “I’m so happy that this is the camp that it worked out that I could come back into and be able to be at home with the girls. It’s so great to be back in camp. There’s a lot to learn, a lot to familiarize myself with.”
Still Working Her Way Back
While she has returned to the national team’s latest roster, she did not play in the opening match against Japan in San Jose. Emma Hayes explained in her pre-game press conference that Davidson wasn’t as far along in her recovery as Wilson.
“I know it’s a long process, and when you get to the end, you’re like just itching to get back out onto the field. But still part of the process and the return to play journey is the limited minutes and making sure we’re hitting those benchmarks before we go crazy,” Davidson said. “So I think it’s part of what I have to do in this process. But I’m really excited to be able to come in and hopefully affect the game positively if my number is called.”
Davidson, 27, has played in 67 matches for the United States with three goals. She was the youngest player on the U.S. team that won the 2019 World Cup, then won a bronze at the Tokyo Olympics.
It was Davidson’s second ACL injury. Her first came in 2022 during training while she was with the Chicago Red Stars. She missed out on the 2023 World Cup, but won a gold medal with the team at the Paris Olympics.
Practicing Gratitude
She says that going through an ACL injury twice has taught her to focus on gratitude and being present.
“I think sometimes that’s difficult when you’re in a really highly competitive environment, because you’re really focused on excelling and the performance and making sure you’re doing things correctly,” she said. “But I think, especially going through this injury process twice, just being very grateful to be able to do what I love as a job, as a career, and to be able to do it at the highest level with some great people coaching, some great people playing, it’s something that I think is easy to take for granted when things are moving really quickly. But when you step away and you kind of evaluate where you’re at, it’s something that you know is so important to make sure that I value with the time I have on the field.”
LINKS
I wrote about how women’s sports is expected to generate $3 billion in global revenue this year
The Columbus plan to use taxpayer funds to help lure an NWSL team is somewhat controversial
Hayes hails USWNT’s evolution following opening win over Japan
Taiwan’s national team calls for reforms
On the ground reaction to FIFA’s rule change requiring women coaches on women’s teams
A coach secretly filmed his players, yet can still work in soccer
Sixth Street buys first UK team with Sunderland stake
The Women’s Super League is going to be the first to use smart ball technology next season.
Can WSL academies improve homegrown talent?
Story about women’s football in Liberia
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