PARIS • The Women's World Cup kicks off today amid unprecedented attention as hosts France take on South Korea in Paris.
"It's going to be a remarkable World Cup. The level of competition four years on from the last one has exponentially increased," said Jill Ellis, coach of the United States team, the reigning champions.
"Different teams are now rising and it's going to be a very open World Cup and we're excited to go out there and attack it."
Interest from the public is high with both semi-finals and the final, all to be played at the 59,000-capacity Stade de Lyon, sold out as well as the opening game at the Parc des Princes. The cheapest group-game tickets cost just €9 (S$13.80).
The United States are the queens of the game after winning the World Cup thrice and the Olympics four times and that experience is clearly visible in their current line-up.
At the end of May, Fifa calculated that the US had collected 1,893 caps between them and included eight players with at least 100 international appearances. Among them Carli Lloyd has 274 caps, Alex Morgan 163 and Becky Sauerbrunn 158.
For France, the key members of the Lyon team who have won four straight Champions League titles - Sarah Bouhaddi, Wendie Renard, Amel Majri, Amandine Henry and Eugenie le Sommer - are fast becoming French celebrities.
Germany, who can boast another Lyon star in Dzsenifer Marozsan, have won two World Cups and eight European Championships.
However, the power of the Americans and Germans is set to be challenged now that some of the other traditional football powers, who for years did not take women's football seriously, are catching up.
England and France, ranked third and fourth in the world, arrive with genuine hopes of winning the title. Spain, the Netherlands and Italy are all in the top 15, with the Dutch reigning European champions.
"Aside from USA, France and the Netherlands, teams like Australia, Canada, Sweden and Norway are also playing very well," German coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg told broadcaster ARD. "It will be a very tight tournament."
69%
Matches at the World Cup (36 of 52) to be played at stadiums in France with a capacity smaller than 30,000.
Megan Rapinoe, co-captain of the US team, believes that France could pose a big challenge.
"I think they are, in my opinion, the favourites for sure," said the midfielder. "They are a fantastic team, they're going to have obviously a home crowd with them. I feel like all the pressure is on them."
Yet, as they prepared to try to emulate the men's team and win the World Cup, France's women's team received a reminder that they are still not quite equal.
They had to move out of their rooms at the French football federation's training base in Clairefontaine, when the men's squad arrived last week to prepare for two Euro 2020 qualifiers.
The US team, whose popularity in their homeland has been the financial motor that has driven women's football, arrive embroiled in a legal dispute with their federation.
They want to be paid the same as the US men's team, who remain also-rans internationally.
Ballon D'Or winner Ada Hegerberg, who scored a hat-trick for Lyon in the Champions League final, will be absent in France.
She is boycotting the national team even though Norway pays women and men internationals the same, because she believes more needs to be done to improve the way women footballers are treated.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has told ESPN FC in an exclusive interview that he wants Lionel Messi to remain linked to the club forever. who was always at Santos. We want Messi to
'We want Messi to always be at Barca' - Bartomeu
Hazard Late Show Rescues Chelsea in Wolves Draw Maurizio Sarri insists Chelsea can still finish in the Premier League's top four after Eden Hazard's late strike rescued a 1-1 draw against Wolves on Sunday.
Hazard late show rescues Chelsea in Wolves draw - thescore.com
Sanchez: Spurs squad can cope without Kane and Alli. Ireland's Browne confident he can make his mark at international level. Charlton boss Bowyer takes a Leed from finest team he ever played in.
Lucas Moura's hat-trick shows Tottenham can cope without
The Goalkeeping Mindset. The role of the goalkeeper is never well understood by most, except by other goalkeepers. Goalkeepers are lonely specialists, put in a position that is mostly a setup for failure. They do not touch the ball, as often as field players and when they do it they have the entire spotlight.
Are West Coast GK gloves good : GoalKeepers - reddit
Liverpool passed another stringent test of their Premier League title credentials as Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk gave them a 2-0 victory at Wolverhampton on Friday that guarantees top spot at Christmas. Salah's 11th goal of the season was a classy one and helped subdue a dangerous Wolves side who had made a lively start.
Official Liverpool FC Store | Liverpool FC Ball
AD
store.liverpoolfc.com/ball
Report Ad
Browse Our Wide Range Of Exclusive Liverpool FC Souvenirs. Shop Online Now.
Football: Spurs star Kane out until March with ankle injury. Kane sustained the injury to his left ankle in the closing moments of the 1-0 loss at Wembley and scans have now confirmed the
Spurs star Kane out until March with ankle injury | The
PARIS (AFP) - Neymar has paid a visit to Brazilian football legend Pele, who has been in hospital in Paris since April 3. The Paris Saint-Germain forward posted a photo on his Instagram account on
Neymar visits recovering Pele in hospital | Sport24
Portland blaze Denver to make bow in series - theworldnews.net
Emery said: 'We have two things - next week against Valencia in the Europa League, we have big ambition and motivation in this competition. 'It's a semi-final and it's going to be difficult also, then we play Brighton and we want to win this match. 'At the beginning of the season we knew it was going to be very difficult (to finish in the top
Unai Emery urges Arsenal to focus on Valencia clash
Barcelona claimed their 13th Spanish Super Cup in style with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Sevilla on Wednesday night in the second leg at the Camp Nou, giving the Catalonians a whopping 5-0
Real Madrid stroll to an easy win as they put pressure on
LONDON (Reuters) - Rescuers ended their search on Thursday for the plane carrying Premier League soccer player Emiliano Sala, which disappeared over the English Channel three days ago, after saying there was little chance anyone aboard had survived. Sala, Cardiff City's new signing, and the plane's
Rescuers end search for plane carrying missing soccer star
Google Keep. Jamboard. Подборки.
Ruben Neves stunner from 25-yards hands Jurgen Klopp's side an early FA Cup exit. THIS was supposed to be Liverpool's year. They could not wait to see in 2019, to bring home the Premier League
Why Jurgen Klopp has no option but to risk another early FA
With 552 players set to compete in France, we take a look at 10 who will make an impact when the tournament starts Friday. Sports. Here are the top 10 players to watch in France.
The players to watch during the World Cup in France
0 comments:
Post a Comment