SIDE, Türkiye (Feb. 26, 2026) – The U.S. Under-16 Girls’ National Team earned a 3-2 come-from-behind win over England in its third and final match of the UEFA Development tournament to finished second in the four-team competition that also featured that also featured Spain and Denmark.
While the U.S. controlled most of the match with 16 shots to England’s three, the U-16 Lionesses found opportunities early on the counter. In the 15th minute, the USA lost the ball in the attack which led to a quick transitionfor England. A long ball was sent up to Ayomide Junaid who beat her defender to the ball and forced a one-on-one with the U.S. goalkeeper Carmen O’Dea, who made the initial save. The rebound went right back to the England forward and she took a touch central around O‘Dea before slotting it home.
Twenty minutes later, England would score another as a long ball forced another one-on-one situation between and English attacker and a U.S. defender that led to a foul in the penalty box. Stevie Sinclair took the penalty kick and buried it to the left, sending O’Dea the wrong way.
The U.S. was determined to right the ship before half and managed to do so in three-minute span. At the 38th minute mark, the USA earned a penalty kick of its own. A ball down the line for the USA led to forward Anaya Bursey battling with an England defender, who tripped her in the box. The referee awarded another penalty and midfielder Avery Walbruch stepped up to take it, leaving English goalkeeper Billie Price leaning in the opposite direction.
Three minutes later, the ball was played back to Price. Bursey applied pressure to her and blocked the pass. Bursey then tapped the ball towards the open net and forward Riley Rountree finished from close range. Four minutes before the halftime whistle, the score was even again.
From there the U.S. drove the match and would eventually outshoot England, 16-3. The USA got the game-winner in the 61st minute as forward Tatum Gardner received the ball in the left corner of the box. She drove to the end line and cut it back with a pass to Bursey inside the six-yard box. Bursey poked the ball past the England ‘keeper and just inside the near post to earn her first goal and second scoring contribution on the night.
The USA needed a win over England and a Spain loss to Denmark to win the tournament, but the Spaniards didn’t flinch, rolling past Denmark, 5-0. The games on the final match day gave the USA six points to Spain’s eight points as the USA lost 2-0 to the Spanish side to open the tournament.
All 20 players on the roster were born in 2010, which is the birth cutoff year to be eligible for the 2027 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, the tournament that this age group of players will be attempting to qualify for at the 2027 Concacaf Women’s U-17 Championship this Spring.
These matches are part of the Federation’s continued focus on the U.S. Way philosophy, which emphasizes increased programming for Youth National Teams to create more opportunities for young players to advance through the pathway to the senior National Team with the goal of representing their country at a world championship.
Match: United States U-16 Girls’ National Team vs. England U-16 Girls’ National Team
Date: February 26, 2026
Competition: UEFA Development Tournament
Venue: Emirhan Sports Center - Field No. 2; Side, Türkiye
Weather: 52 degrees, sunny
| Scoring Summary | 1 | 2 | F |
| USA | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| ENG | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| ENG – Ayomide Junaid | 15th minute |
| ENG – Stevie Sinclair (Penalty Kick) | 35 |
| USA – Avery Walbruch (Penalty Kick) | 38 |
| USA – Riley Rountree (Anaya Bursey) | 41 |
| USA – Anaya Busey (Tatum Gardner) | 61 |
Lineups:
USA: 1-Carmen O’Dea (21-Molly Gaffney, 46); 3-Lilly Yakel (13-Addison Staats, 66), 19-Kendra Kates (5-Mercy Karson, 46), 4-Madison Kline, 2-Cali Hejduk; 16-Carly Barnes (18-Brynlie Ward, 66), 8-Avery Walbruch (Capt.) (15-Sofia White, 78), 14-Mia Sommers (Hannah Yu, 56); 17-Riley Rountree (6-Addison Stout, 46), 9-Anaya Bursey (20-Koi Edwards, 66), 11-Stella Spitzer (7-Tatum Gardner, 56)
Subs not used: None.
Head Coach: Katie Schoepfer
ENG: 13-Billie Price (1-Hannah Kirk, 46); 16-Ella-Rose Boothe (2-Neeve McDonald, 46), 5-Annie-Joy Boichat (Capt.) (6-Evie-Mae Buchanan, 70), 15-Sophie Leach, 12-Dinara Shikhshabekova (3-Amie Bush, 61); 14-Izzie Breen (4-Maria Mayers, 80), 18-Zohal Roshad, 20-Stevie Sinclair (8-Chloe Marchal, 46); 11-Isabelle Ranger (7-Amarn Nugent, 61), 17-Ayomide Junaid, 19-Angelina Joy Bramble (10-Maise White, 61)
Subs not used: 9-Ella Carr
Head Coach: Lucy Faraday
Stats Summary: USA / ENG
Shots: 16 / 3
Shots on Goal: 8 / 3
Saves: 1 / 5
Corner Kicks: 7 / 1
Fouls: 18 / 11
Offside: 3 / 0
| Misconduct Summary | |
| ENG – Stevie Sinclair (Caution) | 31st minute |
| ENG – Mila Skou-Christensen (Caution) | 37 |
| USA – Riley Rountree (Caution) | 45 |
| ENG – Evie-Mae Buchanan (Caution) | 72 |
| USA – Koi Edwards (Caution) | 90+5 |
Officials:
Referee: Benjamin Seferovic (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Jacob Gerner (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Gisella Bosso (ARG)
Fourth Official: Oswaldo Contreras (ECU)
| TEAM | GP | W | L | D | PK Win | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 2 | +7 | 8 |
| USA | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 6 |
| Denmark | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | -7 | 3 |
| England | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 7 | -2 | 1 |