The United States women's national team will face the Republic of Ireland in a pair of friendlies during the April International window. The matches were initially reported on Wednesday and officially announced on Thursday. The two teams will play on April 8 at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas then close out the two-game series on April 11 at CITYPARK in St. Louis, Mo. Both sides are set to compete in the upcoming 2023 Fifa Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
The USWNT have played Ireland 13 times and won every fixture against the Girls in Green. The most recent meeting was a 3-0 victory at the Rose Bowl in the first game during a 2019 World Cup victory tour on Aug. 3. The Republic of Ireland will open their World Cup on July 20 against co-host Australia after being drawn into Group B that also features Canada and Nigeria.
"Ireland is a highly motivated, hard-working team that has talented players with big hearts who I know are really excited to be representing their country in a World Cup," said USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski.
"The two games will be a great test at a crucial time in our team's run to the World Cup. While there will be plenty of league games for us to watch after April, these will be the final matches for our players with the national team before we have to pick the World Cup roster, so they will carry that importance."
Ireland will be one of eight teams to make their World Cup debut in 2023. Ireland qualified in nail-biting fashion after playing in a one-game World Cup playoff against rivals Scotland at Hampden Park in Glasgow in front of 10,000. The game-winning goal came in the 72nd minute by Amber Barrett and sealed a World Cup spot for the Irish.
The USWNT are coming off a fourth-consecutive SheBelieves Cup title where they defeated Brazil, Canada, and Japan. The two-match series against Ireland will be the final international games for the USWNT players before head coach Vlatko Andonovski and his staff choose the USA's 23-player World Cup roster later in the spring. The NWSL regular season begins on March 25 and the window is short for players making a final case to crack the roster.
