Royals defender Janni Thomsen and Champions League final preview
Full Time: A show about women's soccer
The Athletic
4.8 • 807 Ratings
🗓️ 22 May 2026
⏱️ 25 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The Utah Royals have been one of the biggest surprises of the 2026 NWSL season, and defender Janni Thomsen has been in the middle of it all.
Thomsen joins host Jillian Sakovits for a conversation looking back at growing up in a small Danish town and playing on boys’ youth teams despite ridicule from other families. They also discuss how Thomsen found her way to Utah in 2025 after her partner, Norwegian international Elise Thorsnes, played there several years earlier, as well as how the Scandinavian couple is preparing to welcome their first child. Then, Jillian breaks down what to expect from the UEFA Women’s Champions League final between FC Barcelona and OL Lyonnes on Saturday.
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HOST: Jillian Sakovits
GUEST: Janni Thomsen
This podcast was produced by The Athletic.
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Referenced on the show:
Is Barcelona versus OL Lyonnes the UEFA Women’s Champions League’s greatest rivalry?
Utah Royals are on a seven-match unbeaten streak. Are they the NWSL’s new protagonists?
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | the guys on the other teams were like, who do you think you are? |
| 0:04.2 | You cannot be on a guy team. |
| 0:07.9 | And that was like a lot of what the parents said. |
| 0:10.3 | And then they were like, but after the game, they didn't come back and said that again |
| 0:14.3 | because then I have showed what I could develop. |
| 0:17.5 | And yeah, so that was really cool. |
| 0:19.8 | And I think like that time in my, I wouldn't say my |
| 0:23.7 | career, but was maybe the most important because I got challenged every day. And the boys |
| 0:30.4 | was just so good. |
| 0:45.9 | Hello. Hello, everybody. Welcome to full-time focus. It is presented by Amazon Prime, |
| 0:50.7 | Jillian Sackavits, with you here today. On this episode, you're going to love this conversation. |
| 0:55.5 | I'm hanging out with Utah Royals defender, Yenie Thompson. What a joy, |
| 1:01.7 | what a story. We talk about why the Utah Royals are the surprise of the season, plus Yenny's own journey from Denmark to Utah with Norway in between, and how she can owe it all, perhaps, |
| 1:08.8 | to a soccer pitch that her dad built at their house |
| 1:12.1 | right outside of their small town in Denmark. |
| 1:14.6 | But that's not all. |
| 1:15.3 | She and her partner, Norwegian International, Elise Torseness, yes, Royals fans, you may remember |
| 1:20.8 | the name from the 2018 squad, are set to welcome their first child in just a matter of weeks. |
| 1:27.3 | We talk soccer, life, big changes, |
| 1:29.3 | and everything in between. Let's get into it. And now I welcome in right back for the Utah |
| 1:35.2 | Royals, Yenny Thompson. But if you watch the way Utah plays, you may call her defender, |
| 1:40.5 | you might call her midfielder, might even call her forward. Yeti, thanks so much for |
... |
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