Just 10 games into her tenure, Emma Hayes has rebuilt the program – the expectations are back, and so is the USWNT

There was no hiding the emotion on her face, but Emma Hayes was doing everything in her power to fight it. Her eyes darted up and to her right repeatedly, which she must have hoped would prevent the tears from flowing. She shook her head, bit her lip, scrunched her cheeks, forced a smile.

Hayes seemed desperate not to allow the emotion to flow, but it was there for all to see.

"It's just love," she told NBC after leading the U.S. women's national team to an Olympic gold medal in just her 10th game in charge. "I come from a place of wanting players to enjoy themselves and I've been at a club [Chelsea] for 12 years, where I've had huge success. But I was desperate to do well for this country. And I'm so emotional because it's not every day you win a gold medal."

"I love America," she added. "It made me. And I always say that. It definitely made me."

Hayes fell in love with America years ago, and this was the summer that America fell back in love with her, too. She was painted as a savior from the minute she was appointed coach of the USWNT, and she was exactly that. In a matter of months, Hayes restored confidence, pride and, most of all, success to a program that was arguably at its lowest point coming off the disappointment of the 2023 World Cup. Hayes knew the job's difficulty and, from the start, embraced it. And the American soccer community has returned the favor.

Her players seemingly embraced Hayes from the start, as well. All tournament long, they traded references to her as part coach, part mother, part older sister. Seemingly across the board, it was an instant connection, one that was very apparent throughout the glorious run through the Paris Games. By the end, players had become family, almost literally – there was celebratory group photo, in which Hayes' son Harry was perched on Sophia Smith's lap. He, too, was along for the ride, one that is only just beginning.

In just a matter of months, Emma Hayes rebuilt the USWNT. Here's how she did it.

GettyRebuilding confidence

Hayes wasn't the only one trying to fight back her tears.

At the USWNT's post-Gold Medal game press conference, Lindsey Horan, the USWNT's captain, sat next to Hayes. The coach was asked about Horan, and off she went. She hailed Horan as a leader. She praised her for doing the hard things. She thanked her for putting winning first at all times, for being the example this young team needed. Hayes finished up by saying it was "an honor" to have a captain like Horan. The waterworks had begun long before that.

"What the hell?" asked a tearful Horan, clearly unprepared for the emotions that hit her, as Hayes leaned in for a hug.

It's just one moment of many, but it's fitting. That's the type of belief, confidence and connection Hayes has inspired in this team. She's been in charge of it for just a matter of weeks, officially joining the U.S. after departing Chelsea in late May, but she's provided a tangible lift to a group of players that very much needed it.

Hayes inherited a USWNT program that had reached a low ebb. Their World Cup failures last summer had been repeatedly detailed and discussed and dissected and … well that kind of talk messes with a team's psyche, especially one so used to winning.

Though the most decorated women's soccer team of all time – the USWNT has now won nine major tournaments (five Olympics, four World Cups), which is more than all other teams combined (eight) – the U.S. hadn't played for Olympic gold since London 2012. Back-to-back early Olympic exits, coupled with the disappointing 2023 World Cup performance, had resulted in an unusual volume of criticism about the program. Hayes cut it off at the source.

That was her biggest task this summer, and her biggest achievement: making this team, and the world, believe again. More than any specific game plan or tactics, that was her No. 1 priority.

In order to resurrect the team, she had to restore the faith.

And that moment with Horan gave the world a small glimpse into how she achieved it. Of course, that's not to say that tactics didn't play a major part, as well.

AdvertisementGettyA tactical approach

It wasn't the USWNT's only undoing during the Vlatko Andonovski era, but it certainly was revealing. At the World Cup last summer, Andonovski just couldn't quite make the puzzle pieces fit. He trudged on, hoping things would change, and, ultimately, lost his job when they didn't

Hayes took many of the same pieces and built something entirely new, and she very much did it on the fly.

Coming from Chelsea, Hayes was hailed as a tactical mastermind, but international soccer is very different than the club level. She wouldn't be given weeks or months to work with players. She'd have just days between matches to add wrinkles. Time is always against you, doubly so when you don't even get to work until a few weeks before a major tournament starts.

Hayes, though, put her stamp on this team. They won games in different ways. They blitzed Zambia and Germany in the group stage, unleashing a barrage of goals that wasn't there last summer. They found a way to win against Japan, Australia and then Germany again. And then, in the final, they suffered but survived, taking down Brazil to claim gold.

What makes it all so impressive is that there was no one play, no one way to win. When things worked, Hayes stuck with them. When they didn't, she adjusted. The U.S. needed a little of everything to claim Gold this summer. Hayes was able to make this team a possession team, but also a counter-attacking one. It all changed game by game, with Hayes making adjustments all the way through the final game.

Of course, when it comes to executing your vision, it also helps to have world-class players.

Getty ImagesBrewing a Triple Espresso

It sounds easy, but it's worth repeating: sometimes, the best strategy is to empower good players and get the hell out of their way. That's what Hayes did with her attack. That's what led to the formation of what we now know as Triple Espresso.

Prior to this summer, we'd never seen Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson on the field at the same time. That all changed at the Paris Games, as that terrific trio combined for 10 of the USWNT's 12 goals, starting each and every game at the Olympics.

Hayes' biggest contribution to that attack came long before this tournament started. It was a tough decision, one of her toughest undoubtedly, but Hayes opted to leave legendary striker Alex Morgan at home. That was very much a show of faith in her new trio. It was an indication that she thought those three were good enough to lead this team to glory.

She bet on her players to be great, and she won. Big. Triple Espresso became legendary. They emerged as the leaders of this new generation of U.S. players. Hayes empowered them to be exactly that, and it paid off in gold.

Getty ImagesThat trademark humor

If you follow the USWNT, you definitely learned one thing about Hayes this summer: she's a quote machine. The USWNT's coach is just innately funny, which is pretty damn endearing, isn't it?

When asked about the Paris opening ceremony, she said it was "Quirky, to say the least, but I like quirk." She had to be taught the meaning of a "trap game." When asked after the nervy extra-time semifinal victory over Germany which team she preferred to face in the Gold Medal game, she responded simply: "I don't care. I want a drink."

That sense of humor connected her with her players. She wasn't seen exclusively as a leader barking orders, but as someone with whom her players could bond. Just look at the celebrations after the gold medal win, in which Hayes was dancing with players with her son in her arms. She's very much a part of this group, even if she is the coach.

"We’re a different team since she’s come in," Smith said. "She’s so hilarious and chill and funny, and I feel like that’s exactly what we needed. We have the players, we have the talent, we just needed someone to come in and believe in us and put us in the best position to succeed. Emma’s doing exactly that."

Added Jaedyn Shaw: "We all love Emma already! She's definitely got some personality. She has her standards and expectations and I think that she's going to be really, really good for us. It's been challenging and hard work, but we're up for it.

"We're just continuing to trust her and learn from her and her experience. She meshes well with all of us. She's actually really funny! She can be serious at times, but she also cracks jokes here and there."

Playing for the national team should be fun. It certainly is when you're winning. Hayes ensured that her team enjoyed the process, which sets this team up for sustainable success.