A STAR RETURNS

Balancing motherhood with a championship career, Mallory Swanson returns to the North Shore-based Chicago Stars FC.

Mallory Swanson is back on the pitch, but this return feels different. This time, she’s a mom.

After 18 months away from professional soccer following the birth of her first child, the 28-year-old superstar forward has returned to both Chicago Stars FC, newly based on the North Shore, and the U.S. Women’s National Team.

The game itself hasn’t changed, but she has. Swanson says she returns with a “refreshed” perspective, and what she calls “a new starting line.”

Her love of the game remains. So does her competitive edge, and the joy she finds alongside her teammates. But now, every match carries something even more meaningful: the chance for her seven-month-old daughter, Josie James, to watch her play.

Swanson and her husband, Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson, welcomed Josie in November 2025. Today, she is already a familiar face around the Stars’ training fields, joining her mom on the pitch before and after matches, as her parents juggle two of the busiest schedules in professional sports.

“I’ve always had ambitions of being a mom and playing at the same time,” Swanson says, relishing this new season.

Her return from maternity leave and transition into sporting motherhood is supported by teammates who understand exactly what she’s experiencing. “We have two other moms on the team. Their kids are a little bit older, but it’s nice having that, too, because this is my first time doing this,” she shares.

“I really appreciate going to them for advice. It’s also amazing seeing how many moms are now playing in the league. It’s really inspiring.”

Swanson herself defines the word inspiring. In fact, inspiring is an understatement in every sense.

She has built one of the most remarkable careers in American soccer, debuting for the U.S. Women’s National Team at just 17. She became an Olympian before turning 18 and quickly established herself as one of the game’s most dynamic attacking players.

Her speed, creativity, and instinctive finishing have produced defining moments on soccer’s biggest stages, culminating in the winning goal that secured an Olympic gold for the United States in 2024.

“It was amazing. It was such a back-and-forth game. But you can’t really think about it until the whistle blows.” Instead of allowing herself to celebrate, Swanson focused on keeping the score 1-0.

“I remember thinking, ‘They better not score. We’d better do everything in our power to hold this lead.’ That definitely was the longest 30 minutes of my life,” she recalls.

The United States held on, and Swanson’s goal became one of the defining moments of her career.

Just a year earlier, though, she was facing an entirely different kind of challenge.

A torn patellar tendon in 2023 forced Swanson away from the game she had spent nearly her entire life playing. Suddenly, success was no longer measured by goals or assists but by the incremental gains achieved through physical therapy, patience, and trust in the recovery process.

The path back required resilience, which Swanson believes isn’t something elite athletes simply possess by nature; it’s something they build.

“You have to have it,” she explains. “Professional sports are a business. It can be difficult at times. Having the mindset that you have to keep going, being able to wake up every day, show up and give your all—that’s what resilience is.”

With every comeback, she says, you build that skillset. “I think you do get better at it, especially with everything that can happen in one’s career; whether it’s injuries, coming back from pregnancy, not making a team, or whatever it is. Each time you learn something new, you become more resilient. You think, ‘Okay, I’ve been here before. I can [continue to] keep going.’”

This year, returning from maternity leave, Swanson resumed training while balancing the rhythms of life as a new family of three. She returned to the pitch in May for her sixth season with the Stars, which marked the club’s first season at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, its new home on the North Shore.

Framed by panoramic views of Lake Michigan and the downtown skyline, the waterfront stadium offers a distinctly Chicago sports experience. “It’s so pretty,” Swanson says of the new setting. No matter the season, the lakefront backdrop is a striking place for a match. Better still, it’s close to the life she’s building at home—a quieter rhythm away from the spotlight.

Outside of soccer, she relishes quiet nights at home, coffee runs, and weekly date nights with Dansby.

“We love to spend a lot of time at home because we’re both so on the go. There have only been a few days when we’ve all been home at the same time.” When they are, the couple makes the most of those windows.

“We love to go to dinner, usually once a homestand [weekly]. We love taking our dog to the beach, and we love grabbing coffee.” Favorite date-night spots include Daisies in Logan Square, Bavette’s, and John’s Food & Wine.

“We’re really trying to hit new restaurants this year,” Swanson says. “We have a tendency to like what we like, but there are so many great restaurants in Chicago.”

Coffee stops often include Sawada Coffee, Dark Matter, and La Colombe.

Family outings range from neighborhood playgrounds to Lincoln Park Zoo, and as Josie grows, the Swansons look forward to taking her to see the trains at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Neighborhood walks and afternoons at the park have quickly become some of the family’s favorite rituals. For now, Josie’s playground adventures are simple. “She’s only able to go on the swings,” Swanson says with a laugh, “but she loves it.”

For one of the world’s most recognizable soccer players, these everyday routines have become some of life’s greatest luxuries. And with them comes a new kind of perspective: the knowledge that after every match, her daughter, who has already reshaped how Swanson experiences the game she loves most, is waiting.

More than anything, Swanson hopes her daughter grows up understanding that motherhood never means putting dreams aside.

“I want her to know that her mom came back to do what she loves after having her,” Swanson says. “I wanted her to experience that.”

For more information about Chicago Stars FC, visit chicagostars.com.