KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The centerpieces of the Kansas City Current’s offseason roster overhaul, midfielder Sam Mewis and forward Lynn Williams, have been called up for the U.S. Women’s National Team camp next week.
Mewis, 29, and Williams, 28, who were acquired in separate trades with the North Carolina Courage during the last two months, are among 26 players coach Vlatko Andonovski chose for the camp Jan. 19-28 in Austin, Texas.
There are no games scheduled during the January window, but the USWNT returns to action with three games next month in the 2022 SheBelieves Cup — Czech Republic (Feb. 17), New Zealand (Feb. 20) and Iceland (Feb. 23).
“Without any matches that we need to taper for, we can get in some more intense trainings and full-field scrimmages, which is great as we need to give this group as many chances as possible to play together in a National Team environment,” Andonovski said in a statement. “We understand that some of the players are coming off a break, so we’ll keep that in mind as we hit the ground running in 2022 for what will be a very important year for these players and our team.”
Mewis has scored 24 goals in 83 appearances with the USWNT, while Williams has 14 goals in 45 career international appearances.
Mewis, who returns to action for the first time since arthroscopic knee surgery in August, and Williams helped the Western New York Flash win the 2016 NWSL championship before the club relocated to North Carolina.
Both also won bronze medals last summer at the Tokyo Olympics, combining for a crucial goal against the Netherlands in the group stage.
Mewis’ older sister, Kristie, a midfielder for Gotham FC in the NWSL, also was called up for the camp.
Among other major changes for the Current, which announced the rebranded name in conjunction with its 2021 season finale, former coach Huw Williams transitioned to a front-office role and the club hired former USWNT U-23 coach Matt Potter, who also coached at Washington State and Oklahoma, as its new coach.
The Current also announced plans to build a new riverfront stadium in Berkley Riverfront Park and plans for a new training facility in Riverside.
