Welcome to the Party

What do you do when the thing you love could literally kill you? This week, Julie and Abby welcome Katie McConnell, one of the top big wave surfers on the planet, an athlete who paddles (or gets towed) into towering walls of water where timing, calm, and judgment are the difference between getting out… or not. Katie explains what a “big wave” really is, the physics and chaos behind places like Naz...

What happens when a DJ-turned-designer decides women’s sports deserves better than “pink it and shrink it” merch? Domo Wells, founder and creative director of Dead Dirt and the creative force behind the Washington Spirit’s visual identity, joins Julie Foudy and Abby Wambach to talk about betting on yourself, building a brand without permission, and why the NWSL (still basically a “teenager”) has a...

Olympic bronze medalist, two-time Olympian, rugby star, and internet favorite Ilona Maher joins us for a funny, honest conversation about confidence, body image, and learning to fully own who you are. Ilona opens up about growing up socially awkward, finding rugby by accident, and why sports taught her to take up space. She shares how vulnerability and humor became the foundation of her massive on...

Introducing Coffee with the Kinger, a new recurring series built around candid conversations, big ideas, and whatever’s on our hosts minds. In each episode one of the hosts brings a subject they can’t stop thinking about and the group digs in over coffee. For this very first episode Billie Jean King kicks things off with something that’s been heavy on her mind…New Year’s Resolutions. BJK shares wi...

Madisen Skinner has won everywhere she’s played, but winning isn’t the whole story. A national champion at University of Kentucky women’s volleyball and a two-time NCAA champion with University of Texas women’s volleyball, the LOVB Austin star opens up about pressure, mental health, and learning to build a life beyond volleyball while still chasing championships. From sisterhood with Avery Skinner...

Julie and Abby return to kick off the year with the biggest wins and headlines in women’s sports, from record-breaking winter performances and Olympic qualifiers to buzzy moments in college basketball. They celebrate athletes making history, dig into major storylines shaping the landscape, and share firsthand highlights from a packed UCLA/USC showdown. Then hoops insider Jordan Robinson joins the...

What does it really take to build a gold medal mindset and how do those lessons show up in everyday life? Julie and Abby welcome one of the most influential sports psychologists of all time, Dr. Colleen Hacker, whose work helped shape generations of champions, including multiple U.S. Olympic gold medal teams. In this wisdom-packed conversation, Dr. Hacker shares the psychology behind championship...

It’s our final episode of 2025, and we’re closing the year the only way we know how — big. Julie, Abby, and Billie step onto the Party Podium for a snake draft of the moments that defined women’s sports in 2025, with the year delivering no shortage of contenders — from Coco Gauff’s French Open triumph and UConn reclaiming the NCAA title to England’s historic runs in soccer and rugby and a WNBA sea...

Consider this our holiday gift to you. For this special Christmas episode, Julie Foudy and Abby Wambach pull back the curtain and serve up the funniest bloopers of the year. From technical malfunctions and verbal slip ups to unexpected background chaos and cameras falling at exactly the wrong moment, nothing is off limits. As they relive the moments that did not go according to plan, the laughs ke...

We shine our party spotlight on one of the most dominant dynasties in sports you’ve probably never heard of: the U.S. Women’s Deaf National Soccer Team. Julie and Abby are joined by legends Amy Griffin and Joy Fawcett, alongside current star Erin Cembrale, to break down the team’s unbelievable record—44 wins, zero losses, five Deaflympics gold medals, multiple world titles, and a culture built bri...

It’s a defining moment for the NWSL—and one that raises some big, important questions about the future of the league and its players. Abby and Julie are joined by NWSL Players Association executive director Meghann Burke to get straight into the on-going breaking news around the salary cap, the NWSLPA grievance, and the board-approved High Impact Player rule that players are now reviewing. With Tr...

WNBA superstar and Players Association president Nneka Ogwumike joins Welcome to the Party at a pivotal moment for women’s basketball, with the league’s CBA set to expire on January 9 and real questions swirling about revenue sharing, housing, trust, and the future of the WNBA. Nneka pulls back the curtain on what’s actually happening inside negotiations, why this moment feels different than past...

A busted New York hotel water main and an emergency beanie situation set the scene before Julie reveals the one person she’s ever truly fangirled over — and Abby relives the night Shannon Boxx knocked on her door, sat at the end of her bed, and said the words that would change her forever. From there, the conversation digs into how much of a team’s success really comes down to the coach — and the...

At the Ironman World Championship in Kona, competitors face one of the most demanding tests in sport: a 2.4-mile ocean swim, a 112-mile bike ride through scorching winds, and a 26.2-mile marathon to finish. At 80 years old, Natalie Grabow became the oldest woman ever to complete a full Ironman. Natalie joins Abby, Julie, and Billie Jean King to reflect on a journey that began long before Kona—grow...

Sportsmanship is in the spotlight as Julie and Abby bring the party to one of the biggest issues in youth sports: us grown-ups. They share powerful moments of real sportsmanship, swap hilarious sideline stories, and address one of the most important issues in youth sports, parents behavior. Plus, NCAA insider Jordan Robinson kicks off our new segment Party Buzz with the dish on college hoops — fro...

UCLA’s Cori Close stops by the party for a powerful conversation on coaching hearts, building culture, finding “the edge,” and why mindset and connection matter more than ever. She opens up about the Texas loss, the response her team showed in Vegas, and the lessons she still carries from her years with Coach John Wooden — plus we’re hitting all the biggest stories in women’s sports this week, fro...

Julie and Abby kick off a Thanksgiving-day party with turkey-trot confessions, family rituals, ridiculous food stats (00:07:00), and plenty of laughs. Then they dive into the first-ever Thanksgiving Table Draft, each building a five-seat table featuring a current athlete, a legend, a coach, an owner/executive, and a wild card from the women’s sports universe (00:18:43). Think Caitlin Clark, A’ja W...

Julie and Abby relive an epic NWSL championship weekend full of laughs, late nights, and Gotham getting its swagger back against the Spirit. It’s pure fun and big energy as they roll through the weekend’s best moments—from the NWSL final to the buzz around NCAA women’s basketball, the wild finishes in NCAA women’s soccer, and the Players Era tournament dropping a mini–Final Four into November.   F...

Description: Gotham FC and the Spirit may be the main event this NWSL Championship weekend, but this was its own kind of show — a wild, joyful mix of women’s sports celebration, real talk, empowerment, and pure party energy. Our first LIVE pod at the Ally House in San Jose brought Julie and Abby together with Ally CMO Andrea Brimmer, Brandi Chastain, and Danielle Slaton, and once the competitive f...

Description: Nobody has changed women’s sports — or the world — more than Billie Jean King. So for her 82nd birthday, we threw her the ultimate surprise party on Welcome to the Party…  Billie had no clue what was coming: celebrity drop-ins, messages from icons, a look-alike contest from her hometown of Long Beach, and a birthday cake delivered on set by the one and only Ilana Kloss. Robin Roberts,...

After years of different women’s hockey leagues trying to find their footing, the PWHL burst onto the scene with sold-out crowds, real momentum, and a model that’s actually working. We sit down with Jayna Hefford — a five-time Olympian, four-time gold medalist, Hockey Hall of Famer, and the PWHL’s Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations. Alongside hosts Billie Jean King, Abby Wambach, and Ju...

Before there was Welcome to the Party, there was a chance meeting at an Angel City game. Abby Wambach, Julie Foudy, and Billie Jean King revisit the moment that changed everything, the history between them, the unexpected timing, and the shift that followed. And Abby reveals why stepping into this show has brought her back to life. RSVP to attend the Ally House in San Jose for NWSL Championship we...

Nebraska is 24–0, the #1 team in the country, and Dani Busboom Kelly is the woman leading the charge. The former Husker star and John Cook protégé joins Julie Foudy and Abby Wambach to talk about building culture, mom life, cowboy hats, and what it’s like to coach a team that never loses. Oh—and Billie Jean King crashes the interview with a surprise call you don't want to miss! RSVP to attend the...

At just 25, Ali Truwit has lived a story few could imagine — and even fewer could survive. Ali’s life forever changed when her left foot was bitten off by a shark off the coast of Atlantic waters while in Turks and Caicos with a friend and teammate from Yale - just days after her college graduation. Ali returned to the pool just six weeks later. And within a year, represented Team USA at the Paral...

UConn women’s basketball head coach Geno Auriemma does a drive by the pod — he’s got the rings in the trunk, stories in the glovebox — and nothing’s off limits. Geno talks about the next chapter of UConn basketball led by Azzi Fudd and rising star Sarah Strong, what it’s like coaching in a world of transfer portal chaos, and how the program keeps evolving through generations of stars like Taurasi,...