Mallory Swanson returns to field for Chicago Stars after maternity absence
USWNT and Chicago Stars forward Mallory Swanson was back on the NWSL field for the first time since 2024, returning after the birth of her daughter.
Mallory Swanson stepped onto an NWSL field for the first time since November 8, 2024, entering the Chicago Stars' May 16 match with the North Carolina Courage in the 76th minute. Swanson was given a huge ovation from fans in North Carolina on her return from maternity leave, with the Courage hammering the Stars 4-0 in Saturday's game. Swanson and her husband, Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson, announced the the birth of their daughter Josie in November.
Now, the U. S. women's national team star is back on the field and hoping to quickly recover the instincts that made her one of the world's most lethal attackers.
"You kind of have to turn on (your) soccer brain again, and it’s just seeing everything and how that all comes to you," she told reporters at NWSL Media Day earlier this year. "It is like a little bit of a shock to the system, but I wanna say it’s like riding a bike, and once you get the movements going and see the game in certain ways, it kind of comes back. ” It's an effort that now takes on even more meaning for Swanson and her family, working inspire a young daughter.
There she goes 🥹🩵 pic. twitter. com/Z6M4qUuvuX — Chicago Stars FC (@theChicagoStars) May 17, 2026 “You see all the work that she puts in and how much more it means now, and just with her being a mom,” Dansby Swanson told the Chicago Tribune .