Hey, it's Meg here. This is not how the show usually starts, but I just have to admit it.

We got busted this week. We recorded because of the holiday and then Alyssa Neer happened.

So the fun part about doing a podcast every week is that sometimes we will record and then something

major will happen. And of course, on a holiday

week, we got peak Alyssa Neyer trying to duck out of her own flower ceremony, announcing her

international retirement from the U.S. Women's National Team on Monday, where, you know, she'll still,

she still has another year with the Chicago Red Stars, soon to be

Chicago Stars FC as of 2025.

So she's not retiring from the game completely.

But she did announce that this is it after these two final friendlies over in Europe

against England and the Netherlands for her U.S. women's national team career.

As of right now, she has 113 appearances with the U.S. Women's National Team career. As of right now, she has

113 appearances with the U.S. Women's National Team. She made her debut somehow only just a decade

ago, despite very much being a factor for the U.S. Women's National Team before that as a backup,

but also within NW.S. going back to WPS. I, of course, know and love her as a OG

Boston breaker. And look, Steph isn't even here to say those words. But, you know, this is going to be

different, right? And the fact that she announced it like this, when they're over in Europe,

fans aren't really going to necessarily have that chance to travel to say goodbye to her as someone who has won a World Cup in 2019, who was a matter of fingertips away from keeping the U.S.'s hopes alive in 2023.

And then obviously as an Olympic champion this summer, Alyssa Neyer has absolutely put her name in the pantheon of goalkeeping greats for the U.S. right alongside Brianna Scurry and Hope Solo. Her career, you know, we do want to give her her flowers. We're going to wait, I think, now for next week, just so that way we can truly appreciate her. She loves it. We all know that she loves it. One of the things that I think

was really special for me being in France this summer was not only like getting a chance to see her

in this environment that felt a little bit different, right? Different from the stresses of the

World Cup in New Zealand, but also different in that the relationship that it bloomed between

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