Briana Scurry to Triple Espresso: The USWNT's journey to a diverse team full of black excellence | OneFootball

Mia Hamm is arguably the USWNT legend. An indisputable star and inspiration, she was the face of women's soccer when I was growing up. But she's not black. Julie Foudy is another '99er World Cup legend, and fellow Stanford soccer alum who has been critical in the advancement of women's soccer on and off the field. I respect and admire her. But again, not black.

Once upon a time, a young Marjani flipped through her US Soccer book featuring the '99 World Cup team. She understood the immense talent within this squad, but saw just two people of African American descent on a 20-player national team roster.

Briana Scurry and Saskia Webber may have looked the most like me (Michelle Akers had the hair, but that's where the resemblance stopped), but they were both goalkeepers, so far removed from my own field position that it made them less relatable.

Over the years, Briana Scurry has been quite vocal about how she longed for a larger black presence on the national team during her tenure. By virtue of their field position, Scurry and Webber could never play at the same time, the reality being two lonely, single shot espressos carrying much of the team's diversity on their back.

2024 USWNT Olympic team makes history with all black front line

Now Triple Espresso exists, and wow is that a beautiful thing. A whole nation chimed in to vote on a name for the trio of Sophia Wilson (née Smith), Mallory Swanson, and Trinity Rodman, the three starting Olympic strikers who worked seamlessly together to create history making black magic.

Some front runner names included The Trident and The Holy Trinity, but ultimately Triple Espresso resonated the most with the players and it stuck, a name that not only embraces their powerful front-line relationship, but also celebrates the beauty of their skin color.

This uber talented trio has begun writing their story, a story that involves leading the blackest USWNT in Olympic history to an Olympic gold medal. Now that's the stuff of legends.

Today's USWNT is a full-blown celebration of black excellence. I don't know that the USWNT has ever had more unwavering confidence in a 24-year-old centerback than they do in Naomi Girma. And as a member of the starting line up in multiple positions, Crystal Dunn has been irreplaceable as a player with an impressive smorgasbord of strengths. The list of black talent, much of whom is young and will be the core of the national team for a long time, goes on.

I'm encouraged that in 2025, I look at the USWNT and see a reflection of myself stretched across the length of the field, with a front line more alike to me in looks and even style of play than a trio of USWNT strikers has ever been. I'm also reminded that for too many years, holding up a mirror to the national team as a young mixed race girl was like searching for a flash of gold in a pan, a fleeting moment of excitement for a small victory followed by a lot of disappointment.

Another black history month has come and gone, but my appreciation for the trailblazing black athletes of the USWNT is at an all-time high. Triple Espresso is a gift. Alana Cook, Casey Krueger, Catarina Macario, Alyssa Thompson...they're all gifts. Gifts I hope the aspiring young athletes of today won't take for granted.