Back on Aug. 1, 2025, the United States field hockey team waited nervously as goalkeeper Kelsey Bing stood across from Uruguay forward Elisa Civetta. A save would mean a trip to the 2025 Pan American Cup gold medal game and, more importantly, a ticket to the World Cup.
After ending regulation tied 1-1, the game headed into shootouts, which are a series of one-on-ones with the goalkeeper in which the field player has eight seconds to score.
Bing, who was later named Goalkeeper of the Tournament, made the stop, punching Team USA’s ticket to the World Cup.
The 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup kicks off on Saturday in Belgium and the Netherlands. The U.S. hopes to earn its first World Cup medal since taking bronze in 1994. All of Team USA’s matches will be streamed on CBS Sports, and the entire tournament will be streamed on Watch.Hockey.
The biggest storylines
The United States, also known as the United Eagles, enters this World Cup ranked 11th internationally, up three spots from the 2024 Paris Olympics. One of the biggest questions entering this tournament is: Can it outperform its rank?
With the exception of No. 2 Argentina, this USA squad has not faced any top-five teams since the Paris Olympics. Has this team improved enough in the past two years to break into the top 10 in the world? How will it hold up against two of the top five teams in the world in pool play?
With just two years until the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, the team is building toward what will be a pivotal moment for women’s field hockey in America. Other women’s sports have capitalized on Olympic success, and field hockey could have its highest viewership in decades at the next Olympics.
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The state of Team USA
Team USA failed to qualify for the 2020 Olympics and the 2022 World Cup, which led to many personnel changes.
Head coach David Passmore was hired in March 2023. Heading into the Olympics, Passmore selected a young squad with an average age of 24 and an average of 57 caps.
From the 2024 Olympic squad, four of the 16 athletes have retired and two more were not named to this roster. With 20 players allowed on the roster for the World Cup, 10 athletes competed at the Olympics and 10 did not.
Among the non-Olympians, there is a mix of young and experienced athletes, ranging from seven to 72 caps.
Here is the full World Cup roster. Those who played in the 2024 Olympics are marked with an asterisk (*).
Goalkeepers: Kelsey Bing*, Jenny Rizzo
Defenders: Leah Crouse*, Claire Danahy, Bethany Dykema, Ashley Hoffman*
Midfielders: Lucy Adams, Emma DeBerdine*, Katie Dixon, Mia Schoenbeck, Meredith Sholder*, Lauren Wadas, Maddie Zimmer*
Forwards: Sanne Caarls, Reese D’Ariano, Phia Gladieux*, Ryleigh Heck, Ashley Sessa*, Abby Tamer*, Beth Yeager*
Players to watch
The veteran leader: Ashley Hoffman enters the World Cup as the most capped player on the roster and the only player returning from the 2018 World Cup squad. Primarily playing in a central defensive role, her ability to shut down counterattacks will be vital. On offense, she is one of a few players on the squad who has a drag flick, a specialty skill on penalty corners that has become vital to winning at the international level. She currently is tied for the most goals on the team, with 23 international goals.
The youngest player: Technically, Reese D’Ariano is no longer a rookie, entering this tournament with 17 caps to her name. The 17-year-old is quickly becoming a staple for the United Eagles and will undoubtedly be one of the biggest names heading into the 2028 Olympics. She has great awareness of the field and is clever both on and off the ball, helping create opportunities on offense.
The X factor: With a total of 21 international goals, 22-year-old Ashley Sessa will be a major component of the squad’s success. She is incredible at finishing in front of the net, with many highlight-reel goals. Sessa missed out on the 2025 Pan American Cup due to injury but returned for the 2026 Nations Cup, scoring six goals in five games. She was named the Best Player of the Tournament, while tying for the most goals scored. The 2024 Olympian scored the lone goal against Argentina when the teams met in Paris.
The brick walls: A highlight of Team USA comes in net with goalkeepers Kelsey Bing and Jenny Rizzo. The Texas and Pennsylvania natives, respectively, have played a collective 131 international matches. In addition to being Goalkeeper of the Tournament at the 2025 Pan American Cup, Bing won the same award at the 2024 FIH Olympic Qualifiers. While Rizzo has fewer caps for the United States with 30, she still brings international experience. She has competed for two seasons in the Hockey India League, a professional league that features some of the world’s best players.
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Scouting the rest of Pool B
For the group stages of the World Cup, teams are split into four pools that were chosen by picking balls, literally. The United States will compete in Pool B against Argentina, Germany and Scotland.
While it is not a “Pool of Death,” the United Eagles face an uphill battle to finish in the top two and advance.
The Argentinians, or Las Leonas, are currently ranked No. 2 in the world. A familiar opponent for this United States squad, Argentina won the gold medal in the aforementioned Pan American Cup, beating Team USA 3-0. Las Leonas are deadly on penalty corners: Their main drag-flicker, Agustina Gorzelany, was the leading goal scorer in the 2025 Pan American Cup.
No. 14 Scotland is an unfamiliar side for Team USA, with their last matchup coming in March 2013. While the USA leads the all-time series 4-2-1, this game could go either way.
The last pool-stage opponent the USA will face is No. 5 Germany, who the United Eagles have only beaten three times in team history. In the Olympics, Germany walked away with a 2-0 win.
Despite this record, Germany went winless for 12 straight games from August 2025 to February 2026 in the FIH Pro League, a competitive league featuring the world’s top hockey nations. It bounced back to end the season, but the winless streak proves that Germany has been beatable in recent history. With the USA’s last match against them being in 2024, two very different versions of these teams will take the pitch in Belgium.
Keys to success
Defensive structure: Team USA prides itself on defense, not giving up a single goal from field play during the Nations Cup, the qualifying tournament to join the FIH Pro League, earlier this summer. Knowing that opponents will be hunting for penalty corners, it’s important that the defenders keep their composure and protect their feet in the circle.
Penalty corners: During the Nations Cup, the team only converted 18% of its attacking penalty corners (APCs), according to Hockey Scores Live. In Paris, the team only converted 7% of its APCs. In comparison, the Netherlands, who won the tournament, converted 27.9%.
Not only did the United States have the fourth-worst conversion rate in the tournament, it also had the fourth-fewest opportunities. Argentina, the silver medalist, had a total of 52 APCs to the United States’ 28.
On the defensive side, the team is known for its lockdown defensive penalty corners (DPCs). In a tournament where goal differential is one of the tiebreakers to determine pool rankings, it will be vital to limit goals off of corners.
Transition attack: Team USA is known for fitness and speed, which are major components of its game. Getting quick counterattacks, especially through Maddie Zimmer and Emma DeBerdine in the midfield, will give the team more opportunities to get into the circle and score.
Why you should watch
Team USA has a chance to make history this month by earning its first World Cup medal since 1994. With a combination of experience and youth, the team has been steadily climbing over the last few years as it looks toward the Los Angeles Olympics.
Whether you are watching the sport for the first time or have been watching for years, it’s an exciting time to follow Team USA. The squad’s first World Cup game begins at 11:30 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday.
