When you come to a Utah Royals FC match at Rio Tinto Stadium, you have the opportunity to watch world-class soccer almost every weekend. In the week leading up to the inaugural home opener, seven URFC members are away on national team duty, representing five different countries in international friendlies and FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.
With just seven days before the home opener, here is the seven-player update on URFC’s international stars.
1.MF Gunny Jonsdottir (ICELAND)
The first goal scorer in URFC history found the back of the net once again for Iceland in her FIFA UEFA cup qualifying match against Slovenia on Friday, April 6. After scoring the game winning goal in Iceland’s victory, Gunny now prepares for Iceland’s upcoming match against the Faroe Islands this Tuesday, April 10, at 10:00 a.m. MT. A live stream can be found on https://www.sofascore.com/faroe-islands-iceland/zPisMlp.
2.DF Rachel Corsie (SCOTLAND)
Captaining the Scotland WNT, Corsie led the way against Switzerland on Thursday, April 5, in their FIFA UEFA cup qualifiers. A late first-half goal by Switzerland’s Lara Dickenmann, would be the only goal of the match, ultimately resulting in a 1-0 loss for Scotland. Corsie will now regroup with her squad to take on Poland on Tuesday, April 10, 12:35 p.m. MT, at Paisley 2021 stadium. You can catch the match at https://www.sofascore.com/switzerland-scotland/xXosdmp, or https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0107tcg/broadcasts/2018/0. Follow live updates from the team on twitter at @ScottishFA.
3.FW Elise Thorsnes (NORWAY)
URFC striker Elise Thorsnes has returned to her native country of Norway to train for their FIFA UEFA cup campaign against North Ireland, this Tuesday, April 10, at Shamrock Park. Kickoff time is set for 12:30 p.m. MT. You can watch this highly-anticipated game athttps://www.sofascore.com/norway-northern-ireland/xYcsZlp, or https://www.nrk.no . You can also follow for live updates at @neff_landslag on twitter.
4.FW Diana Matheson,
5.MF Desiree Scott (CANADA)
This dynamic duo, often referring to themselves as “The Double-D,” are in France to represent the Canadian WNT side in an international friendly against France, this Monday, April 9, at 1:00 p.m. MT. You can catch these two as they compete for one of the top teams in the world on CStar, or keep up with live updates on twitter at @CanadaSoccerEN.
6.MF Katrina Gorry (AUSTRALIA)
Gorry wore the Matilda gold Saturday, April 7, playing all 90 minutes in Australia’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifier against South Korea, finishing with a 0-0 draw. Following this weekend’s games, Gorry will remain in Jordan to play against Vietnam on Tuesday, April 10, 11:00 a.m. MT, where a live stream of the game can be found athttps://www.sofascore.com/australia-vietnam/kYcsijdb. Gorry will end her FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign against 2015 FIFA World Cup Runner-up, Japan, on Friday, April 13, at 7:45 a.m. MT. Streaming details to be announced shortly. Follow the team on twitter at @TheMatildas.
7.Becky Sauerbrunn (USA)
URFC and USWNT captain Becky Sauerbrunn flew to Florida to play against USWNT rival, Mexico, on Thursday, April 5, in an international friendly. A brace from FW Alex Morgan, and goals from MF Mallory Pugh, and MF Carli Lloyd, made for a 4-0 victory for team USA. Sauerbrunn’s squad will now head to Houston for a back-to-back friendly against Mexico, on Sunday, April 8, at 11:30 a.m. MT. Follow for live updates and highlights on twitter at @ussoccer_wnt, or watch it live athttps://www.foxsports.com/soccer/boxscore?id=43077
Also, of note:
-MF Katie Bowen
Bowen is also rostered for her respective national team, representing the Football Ferns of New Zealand. The team did not have any matches scheduled during the FIFA break window, but is expected to have FIFA World Cup qualifiers in early June.
-DF Kelley O’Hara
O’Hara was originally rostered to join the U.S. in this weekend’s international friendlies, but a hamstring injury sustained against the Orlando Pride made O’Hara unable to participate.
-FW Amy Rodriguez
Rodriguez is also on the USWNT, but was not rostered as she is continuing to rehab and return from an ACL tear sustained during the 2017 NWSL season.
