Being pregnant may have physically taken ACFC forward Claire Emslie off the field for most of the 2025 season, but it certainly hasn’t sidelined her.
“It’s been good,” says Emslie of her first pregnancy. “I've still been able to train. I've had maybe 4 days where I was feeling a bit sick and then throwing up. And those 4 days, I was like, ‘OK, I know what everyone complains about now.’ But apart from that, honestly, I've been OK.”
Emslie and her husband, Jonny Marsh, are due to welcome their son in December. After sharing the exciting news with Marsh, who is a private chef to several footballers, Emslie immediately told the club’s Head of Performance, Sarah Smith.
“She was keeping an eye on me and I was still training, still doing everything as normal,” says Emslie, who was advised by Smith and her doctor that she could safely play up to 12 weeks into her pregnancy. “[They said] whether you can manage that or not depends on your symptoms. So I played up to 9 weeks, and during that time, I could feel my body getting so exhausted.”
After keeping coy with her coaches, Emslie finally felt ready to share her pregnancy. Smith then helped develop a plan where she trained with contact up until 12 weeks and pivoted to no-contact immediately after, which she is cleared to continue up until 35 weeks.
Dr. Gabriela Dellapiana is a Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialist in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Cedars-Sinai, the official healthcare partner of ACFC. While she does not treat Emslie, she explained why it was necessary for her to stop contact play.
”Most pregnant people can and should continue to be physically active throughout the entire pregnancy,” says Dr. Dellapiana. “Modifications to the type of exercise are necessary though, specifically, activities that increase the risk for falling or something hitting the belly should be avoided. The concern is that abdominal trauma could trigger the placenta to separate away from the wall of the uterus prematurely, called an abruption.”
Esmile also stayed back on team trips to focus on her new game plan and rest.
“When the team travels, I'll train with the girls that are left behind,” explains Emslie, who also credits swimming for keeping up with her cardio. “To be honest, that's my favorite time because it's more than just me, and I get to be involved with more of the girls.”
ACFC Technical Coach, Mykell Bates, also developed low-risk drills for Emslie so she would remain physically safe while keeping her athlete mentality.
“I'm still doing all the movements I would normally do, like turning on the ball [and] striking the ball a certain way in game situations, just non-contact,” says Emslie. “He's made the drills hard mentally and cognitively instead of physically. I think he's been working with the medical staff on, ‘OK, how can we challenge her within her physical limits?’”
“I’m just playing for fun,” says Emslie. “Without the pressure of performing and the pressure to get a starting position and competing, it's been nice just to play with freedom.”
While Emslie admits she isn’t even thinking about returning to the field quite yet, she hopes it will help her in the delivery room and her postpartum journey.
“I've definitely benefited a lot from the gym and I've gotten a lot stronger over the last few months,” says Esmile, who hopes to get back in the gym six or seven weeks after delivering. “I feel like my body's in a good place and prepared, and I feel like I'm so supported with the medical staff. They're looking at so many studies, speaking to so many specialists, and they've got so many plans for me.”
When it comes to her diet, Emslie’s healthy meal plan hasn’t changed much. She credits her husband’s profession for keeping her eating delicious and nutritious food.
“I'm not [having] as much cravings,” says Emslie, who is also working with the team’s nutritionist. “The only thing I've gone off is coffee, which my husband hates because I'm so moody in the morning now. He’s making me a lot of good foods and making sure I'm getting enough stuff, and when I'm getting my blood tests done, like [if] my iron levels have gotten a bit low, the nutritionist has got me on like the iron supplements and spinach smoothies and all that sort of stuff. I love food, so the fats like I've been told to eat more, I'm like, ‘No problem!’”
According to Dr. Dellapiana, Emslie’s diet is right on track.
“General nutrition recommendations for pregnancy include an additional 300kcal per day in the second and third trimesters,” says Dr. Dellapiana, who notes that 45-65% of one’s daily intake should consist of carbohydrates while also eating 71 grams of protein daily. “Exercise burns calories, so athletes should make sure they eat enough to support a healthy weight gain [in] pregnancy.”
While it remains to be seen if her son will be the next David Beckham, Emslie is looking forward to bringing her little guy to work with her on gameday.
“We have a kids room at the facility and they've started to make that into a nursery,” says Emslie. “If I have to pump, I can go there and there's a fridge. I can bring the baby on all our trips and whoever's looking after the baby, they'll pay for them to come on the trip.”
As of now, if Emslie needs to hire childcare to watch her son so she can work, the team will cover the cost. However, it comes with a hit to their cap, which frustrates Emslie and she’s hoping to change.
“Because it's not a competitive advantage to have a child. So the clubs should be able to help as much as they can and not count it towards the salary cap.”
With her due date quickly approaching, Emslie is thankful to her fellow football sisters for giving her advice. Although she’s seen positive changes for female athletes, she hopes for an even better future for the next generation.
“When I first moved to the U.S., Sydney Leroux at Orlando had just had [her daughter] Roux, so I'd seen her with the newborn,” explains Emslie. “I'd seen her breastfeeding at halftime and I'd seen her go through it all, and I remember then thinking, ‘Wow, I would love to do that one day. It's possible.’ And I think back then, things were hard. The league didn't really support it. Clubs weren't in a place to support women.”
“So I think now, you see my experience compared to what Syd had back then, [and] I feel so grateful for all the mums that have come before me,” adds Emslie. “Because they've really pushed the league to make things better and pushed clubs to provide what mums need. So, to be honest, my experience at Angel City has been amazing. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”