American football women are shocked but not yet in a state of panic after defeat to Sweden

With Zeberd, an impressive streak of 44 matches ended unbeaten, with only four draws. And the national team coach Vlatko Andonovsky, appointed in 2019 after winning the World Cup final against the Netherlands, did not lose with the national team until last Tuesday.

“We got kicked in the backBillboard for Americans Megan Rapinoe said to Sweden as an alternative. The striker, who was outspoken in fighting discrimination, was a target of conservative America, where the joy was great. Before the Swedes overtook him, the American team knelt before kick-off. This would have brought the women misery upon themselves.

The USWNT (American Women’s National Team) has rarely been so exposed against strong Sweden, which American women still have bones picking with. At the Games in Rio de Janeiro, it was Sweden that eliminated the team in the quarter-finals. At the time, the Americans hit a Scandinavian wall for ninety minutes — “a bunch of cowards,” then-keeper Hope Solo thought — but this time they were hit by high pressure and team play. His own recipe.

recovery

The team recovered on Saturday against weaker New Zealand (6-1), but doubts over a fifth Olympic title remained. Was the team too old? Every striker in the group is over 30 now, with 39-year-old Carli Lloyd, working on her fourth Olympics, as an out of the ordinary. The eleven players who started against Sweden have played an average of 121 caps to their name.

There is no panic yet in the country that has won four Olympic titles and four world titles in the past two decades. If this is the swan song for the current batch, then the next song is ready. Whether it will be as dominant as all previous issues is another matter.

American supremacy began in 1991, at the first-ever Women’s World Championships in China. Mia Hamm, the graceful striker with the signature ponytail, has become a teen idol. America won the championship.

By winning Atlanta games and especially the 1999 World Cup in their country, football has gained popularity among young girls. 90,000 spectators attended the 1999 Rose Bowl Final in Pasadena, California. The women’s team has become one of the most popular sports teams in the country. The USWNT Major Finals still attract more television viewers than the finals of the NBA Men’s League and MLB Baseball.

Americans derive their strength from a numerical majority, among other things. According to a 2019 FIFA poll, 9.5 million American women or girls occasionally kick the ball.

Sports since their youth

The conveyor belt on which players are delivered is accelerating in the universities. Under a 1972 law called Title ninthAgainst discrimination in education, women can also get a scholarship with their athletic qualities. Many female students have chosen football, the sport since their youth. It wasn’t until the eighties of the last century Scholarships They distributed.

When Brazilian soccer star Marta was once asked what the American secret was, she nodded her head. Why was it so hard to beat them? “mental”.

intolerance. determination never give up. These are the core values ​​that underpin the national team as well. Passion is taught in universities where teams consist of thirty players and can be exchanged without restrictions. “It’s wicked,” Lloyd said earlier of the competition, which is also taking place within the national selection. fatal.

The Americans, who established football academies across the country in 2017 for talented players, note that the rest of the world, too, does not sit still. The season breaks in universities for longer periods, while in Europe, among other places, one can train all year round. This is now also possible in the academies.

margin contraction

The margins of competition are shrinking simply because women’s football has gained traction and taken it more seriously on other continents over the years. Countries like England, Germany, France, Sweden and the Netherlands are getting closer.

Despite slipping ahead of Sweden, American women are still the Olympic title favorites. Yes, the team is on the old side, but it also has an excess of experience. Also in 2008, at the Beijing Olympics, she lost the first match, then against Norway (0-2), after which the team lifted itself and won the gold medal.

America clings to hope that Sweden awakens the champion team. “I don’t think this team has faced such a situation before,” national team coach Andonovsky said after the defeat. “This is kind of shocking.”