Rose Lavelle is embracing the difficulty of playing outside the comfort zone of American stadiums as the United States women’s national team prepares for a pair of hostile June friendlies in Brazil.
Lavelle and her USWNT teammates will face the sixth-ranked Brazilians in consecutive matches on Saturday, June 6 and Tuesday, June 9.
The 31-year-old midfielder is looking forward to the opportunity of responding to the intense atmosphere inside São Paulo’s Neo Química Arena and Fortaleza’s Arena Castelão.
Lavelle Welcomes Challenge of Playing Brazil Away From Home Comforts
“I think we are used to playing on home soil a lot of times,” Lavelle said during Tuesday’s media availability. “I know I keep saying this, but getting to experience a crowd that is not going to be in our favor is going to be huge for us. Just getting to familiarize ourselves with the country itself is going to be really huge for us.”
The 2025 U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year is hoping that the challenging matches on Brazilian turf against the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup host nation will add a layer of grit to the Americans’ mentality.
“I think for us this is going to be such a huge area for us to grow and learn this week,” she stated. “Brazil is such a top team. They present something different than other teams that we play against. I think that in itself, no matter where you are going to play them, it is going to be a really hard matchup. To play them in an away crowd where the crowd is in their favor, it is going to add another element for us to learn and grow from. I think that is one of the biggest things this week is just being comfortable in the uncomfortable.”
To call these matches “friendly” doesn’t feel accurate, given how hard the United States and Brazil will battle in physical, draining contests that serve as an appropriate warmup for the real thing when the Women’s World Cup begins on June 24, 2027.
USWNT Star Midfielder Made Encouraging Return for Gotham FC
Lavelle returned to action for Gotham FC on May 31 in a 1-0 home victory over the Houston Dash. The 5-foot-4 creative midfielder came on as a second-half substitute and played for 28 minutes against the Dash.
She made 24 touches, completed 94 percent of passes, won 4 of 5 ground duels, contributed three tackles and gained three recoveries. It was her first appearance since Gotham’s 1-0 victory over Racing Louisville on May 3.
USWNT head coach Emma Hayes acknowledged that Lavelle’s minutes will need to be carefully monitored.
“We have to manage Rose,” Hayes said during her May 27 press conference.
Saturday’s game at Neo Química Arena will kick off at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time. The match will be broadcast on TBS, Max, Telemundo, Universo and Peacock.
Next Tuesday’s match at Arena Castelão is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time and will be shown on TNT, Max and Peacock. Both matches will be aired on Westwood One Radio.
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