America's Warrior Women
Daniel Wise
I always get extra giddy when the US National Teams represent our nation in major tournaments. The summer of 2018 left a giant America-sized hole in my soccer-loving heart when the men's national team failed to qualify for the World Cup tournament in Russia. However, I knew that the next summer would be more fruitful for us because our women were surely not going to miss a chance to defend their 2015 World Cup championship. Now our women are in a position to cement their legacy and prove a lot of doubters wrong. Some recent performances have made some US Women's National Team supporters uneasy about their potential to defend the championship. It wouldn't be a World Cup without some drama, but this team will get the full-throated backing of its supporters through thick and thin.
But let me get serious for a moment.
“Play like a girl.” It’s a demand for nothing less than the best. This is a world where women and especially minority women must perform three times harder in their field for half the pay and sometimes even less credit. It’s a call to power. It’s a command to dig deeper. And when that level has been reached, there’s still a glass ceiling that needs to be shattered. For the United States Women’s National Team, this mantra is true and the demands grow louder and more urgent. Yet when they ask for what they deserve for that effort, the higher powers are shocked—SHOCKED, I say—that they would make such a preposterous request.
Where else, but in this darkest timeline, would a proven superpower in the world of soccer continue to play second best and second class to a men’s team that has never attained glory and takes boat loads of praise and credit for second-round exits from major tournaments. This is the reality these women face. But they lace up their boots; they take their knocks and triumphs; when they win, they feel powerful; when they lose, they feel the sting. Our women, our national heroes are bound for France next week where they will battle as defending world champions since the 2015 World Cup in Canada. This is everything you need to know so you can take the field in spirit with them.
What’s the Tournament All About?
For starters, the 2019 Women’s World Cup runs from June 7 to July 7 and it will feature 24 national teams from six confederations around the world. These teams will bring a roster of 23 players which includes their eleven starters and the rest will be designated as substitutes and injury reserve players. France is hosting the tournament at nine stadiums in nine cities. The tournament is split into two phases, which is the group stage followed by the knock-out style tournament stage. The group stage includes six groups (named A-F) of four teams per group.
The 24 teams that will compete at the 2019 Women’s World Cup.
Picture via Wikimedia Commons
The group stage will have each team in a group play each other one time. In the case of the United States, they are in Group F with Thailand, Chile, and Sweden. Teams will play games and earn 3 points for winning, 1 point (to each team) for ties, and 0 points for losses. After a single round-robin, the top two teams will advance to the knockout tournament stage. Third place teams will be ranked against other third place teams and the top four third place teams will move on to the tournament stage.
The tournament stage is a traditional single-elimination bracket that will start with sixteen teams on June 22. Teams will move from the round of sixteen to an eight-team quarter-final, a four-team semi-final, and finally a two-team final on July 7. There will also be a third-place match between the two losing teams of the semi-final matches on July 6.
Okay so with 24 nations showing up to this tournament, there will be a lot of soccer going on throughout the month of June into July. Maybe you’ll catch some games as they air on television or online, but people who know next to nothing about soccer will likely just want to know when the US Women’s National Team will be playing. I know how it is, especially when I was starting to watch soccer many years ago. That’s why I’m going to highlight the group stage dates when the United States play below:
Monday, June 11, 3:00 PM ET – United States vs Thailand – Channel: Fox
Sunday, June 16, 12:00 PM ET – United States vs Chile – Channel: Fox
Thursday, June 20, 3:00 PM ET – United States vs Sweden – Channel: Fox
If you really want to immerse yourself in World Cup action, check out this page for a full television schedule. Keep that page bookmarked as the tournament stage is pretty much up in the air at the time of this writing. For the round of sixteen, the date to keep in mind is June 24 when the winners and runners-up of Group F will play.
2019 Women’s World Cup tournament bracket.
Image via Wikimedia Commons
Meet the US Women’s National Team
Now that you are up to speed on the format of this year’s Women’s World Cup, it’s time to get to know the squad that head coach Jill Ellis has selected to represent our nation. The first thing to know is that the USWNT is ranked number 1 in the world and they are hungry to defend their 2015 World Cup championship. Our women are three-time World Cup champions having claimed the title in 1991, 1999, and 2015. They also have four Olympic gold medals and have dominated our regional confederation (CONCACAF) and other minor tournaments since 1991. In short, our women are a force of nature and they are constantly battling for the hearts and minds of young girls and soccer fans both at home and abroad.
So here are some quick facts that you should know about the USWNT. The team is led by co-captains Carli Lloyd, Alex Morgan, and Megan Rapinoe. These outstanding players have combined for 255 lifetime goals, 590 caps (selections to the national team), and they bring a total of 47 playing years as veteran leaders. They shore up the attacking power of the team and will be the catalyst for their success.
The number 1 pick for goal keeper is Alyssa Naeher who has 46 caps for the national team. She was the backup to Hope Solo who established herself as one of the greatest goal keepers of all time regardless of gender. However, troubles in her personal life led to two suspensions from the USWNT and an eventual termination by the US Soccer Federation. With that Alyssa has stepped up to fill those massive shoes and all eyes will be on her at the tournament.
The defensive backline for the USWNT will be led by Becky Saurbrunn, Kelley O’Hara, Ali Krieger, and Crystal Dunn. It’s going to be up to Dunn to score during set pieces like corner kicks, as she has 24 lifetime goals for the national team.
The midfield is going to feature Sam Mewis, Morgan Brian, Julie Ertz, and Lindsey Horan to press attackers and provide the transitional pace from defense to offense. Morgan Brian and Julie Ertz are going to have to work together well as they are club teammates for the Chicago Red Stars in the National Women’s Soccer League. If the team is going to succeed, it’s going to depend on them as they coordinate with their teammates on defense and attack.
The full 23-player roster for the USWNT.
Image via Wikimedia Commons.
Women Battling for Glory on the Field Also Battle for their Rights off the Field
You will see a lot of news highlighting the accomplishments of the women throughout the course of the tournament, but what may get swept under the rug is the legal battle that the women are fighting to end institutionalized gender discrimination in the US Soccer Federation. Essentially, our women who work hard through training, injuries, and games are paid far less than their male counterparts. Yet they receive far less than the men.
For example, the men reached the round of sixteen in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. For their valiant, though losing, effort they were awarded $9 million. On the other hand, our women, and I can’t stress this enough, won the 2015 World Cup in Canada. Like, I don’t know how to spell this out more clearly. Our women defeated—well, okay, they tied 1 game—but they bested nearly all of their opponents through a grueling month of soccer. Then they hoisted the World Cup trophy and shook the ghost of their loss in 2011 to Japan. They were champions. They are champions. And for that championship win our women were awarded $2 million.
Rightfully, five players filed a wage-discrimination action in April 2016 against the US Soccer Federation, which resulted in a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in April 2017. This agreement increased wages from $200,000 to $300,00, but the CBA didn’t guarantee equal pay with the men’s national team.
The demand for equal pay lies at the heart of the USWNT, but they are stuck with this CBA through 2021. You can probably see where this is going, because now the women are hamstrung until that year since the CBA made extra super-duper sure that negotiations from the CBA wouldn’t become an “issue” around major tournaments until the next round of negotiations. So in March 2019 28 members of the USWNT filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against US Soccer. The suit accused US Soccer of “institutional gender discrimination” that extends beyond lower wages, but also second-rate field surfaces, training facilities, and travel conditions.
So as the month goes on and heaps of praise are foisted upon the USWNT from the Federation, know that it is cheap lip service coming from a Federation that doesn’t care about them beyond the wins, the accolades, and the marketing and television revenue these women bring to the Federation. It’s disgusting and it’s wrong. But these issues need to be made known, because these women are putting in double-duty as warriors on and off the field. They deserve respect, and the only way that respect can be shown by their Federation is through granting equal pay for their labor.
So now you know why “play like a girl” is a way of life for these women. They are fighting their hearts out in competitions in the USA and around the world. They put an unbelievable effort to win, and yet they’re held down in the shadow of the more prominent men’s team. But these women have continued to work diligently to increase their rights as workers and foster the next generation of girls to grow up and continue that fight. They will come into this World Cup with a lot of demands, expectations, and doubts behind them. While they aren’t guaranteed equal pay, they will guarantee that they will fight with everything they’ve got. They are women and they are warriors. When the dust settles, our women will continue their fight against opponents from far and wide and the monolithic institutions that say they don’t deserve the rights that they expect. But that’s okay. They will never give up that fight. They are America’s Warrior Women.