Trinity Rodman returned to the U.S. women’s national team on Saturday for the first time since last summer’s Olympic final and immediately got back to her goalscoring ways.
The forward scored the opening goal in the fifth minute as the U.S. defeated Brazil 2-0 in their gold-medal rematch. Angel City forward and Los Angeles native Alyssa Thompson provided the assist for Rodman, deking past her defender and slotting the ball to Rodman as she darted in from the right wing for the finish in front of 32,303 fans at SoFi Stadium. It was the venue’s first women’s sports event since it opened in 2020.
“It felt amazing, especially in this stadium. It was unreal,” Rodman told the TNT broadcast after the match. “I wanted to be a portable change on the field. I wanted to be a provider of energy and to be able to charge everyone’s batteries. I think I did that pretty well today.”
TRINITY RODMAN SCORES ON HER RETURN TO THE USWNT 💥
Catch the game on TNT and Max or watch the AltCast, hosted by Sam Mewis and Roger Bennett, on truTV & Max 📺 pic.twitter.com/afuziRcd3w
— B/R Football (@brfootball) April 5, 2025
Rodman’s night ended after 61 minutes, replaced by Michelle Cooper after another decent scoring opportunity that she couldn’t quite get on frame.
A few times during the match, she put a hand to her back — including once after going down following a challenge then getting slowly back to her feet. Rodman, who has had multiple back issues that have sidelined her in her young career, told reporters last week that she does not believe her back will ever be 100 percent.
“I’m happy with the progression that we’ve had,” Rodman said. “But for me I don’t think my back will ever be the way it was my rookie year, which is unfortunate.”
Trinity Rodman’s goal was her first since the Olympic gold medal match last year. (Robyn Beck / AFP via Getty Images)
“I just want Trin to be Trin,” head coach Emma Hayes said on Friday before playing Rodman for an hour against Brazil. “She brings so much lightness and energy to the group. We’ve really really missed her and I’ve probably told her that 50 times this week.
“We miss her as a person, first and foremost, because she brings her own individuality into a team setting but is an absolutely fierce competitor. I think it’s been challenging to watch the team from afar.”
Midfielder Lindsey Heaps doubled the score in the second half via a penalty kick earned by substitute Lily Yohannes.
The U.S. started strong, controlling the pace of the game for the first portion of the first half, forcing Lorena into multiple stops. However, Brazil slowly gained control, maintaining momentum for most of the match’s remaining time. On the other end of the pitch, goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce made her debut for the U.S. and helped keep the team in the match until Heaps’ penalty iced the game.
(Top photo: Ric Tapia / Getty Images)