A story about the women of soccer—the dream that inspires us, the sisterhood that unites us, and the fight that gets us back up and moving constantly towards the goal.

World Cup champion goalkeeper Briana Scurry follows the journey of Sinead Farrelly from young soccer phenom to whistleblower to comeback kid. Sinead’s experiences in professional soccer and her brave decision to speak out inspired the revolution taking place in professional women’s soccer today. Through determination and collective action, she and her fellow players are continuing a long tradition of sisterhood in women’s soccer. They are changing the game and forging a new path forward—for themselves, for their league, and for the next generation of little girls with big soccer dreams.

Part 1: The Dream: The US Women’s National Team’s historic World Cup win in 1999 changed the narrative for female athletes everywhere and inspired a generation of soccer-loving kids like Sinead Farrelly, a little girl in small-town Pennsylvania with big soccer dreams.

Part 2: The Reality: Sinead Farrelly leaves college early to go pro. But when she arrives, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. Abysmal pay, poor conditions, and league instability create a culture in which players have little protection or power.

Part 3: The Whistleblower: The National Women’s Soccer league launches, creating new opportunities for elite female soccer players, including Sinead Farrelly, Michelle Betos and newcomer Mana Shim. But the imbalance of power and lack of oversight that defined previous leagues persists; coaches remain powerful and unaccountable gatekeepers.

Part 4: The Awakening: The creation of Angel City FC, a new NWSL team owned and operated by women, promises the kind of culture players have long envisioned for the league. But Sinead Farelly is deeply concerned that the league and its players will never reach their potential with coaches like Paul Riley still in positions of power. So, she decides it’s time to finally tell her story.

Part 5: The Reckoning: Sinead Farrelly and Mana Shim go public with their stories of abuse and coverup in the NWSL and, in doing so, inspire a reckoning across women’s soccer.

Part 6: The Comeback: Telling their stories opens the door for Sinead Farelly and Mana Shim — and the NWSL itself — to undergo radical transformations.

Partners

“Counterattack” is in partnership with PRX.

Credits

Briana ScurryHost
Jessica PupovacSenior Producer
Josie HoltzmanLead Producer
Carly PeruccioAssociate Producer
Rachel WardEditor
Michael GarofaloEditor
Liz BoydFact Checker
Merrit JacobEngineer
Meghan CoyleProduction Support
Sarah McCroryProduction Support
Sylvie DouglisProduction Support
Gotham ChopraExecutive Producer
Adam SchlossmanExecutive Producer
Ameeth SankaranExecutive Producer