When it comes to business and politics, the United States is a global player — to say the least. But when it comes to football, the world’s most popular sport, we can’t compare to most international teams.
That’s why Thursday’s USA. vs Brazil women’s soccer final was so amazing to watch. I knew going in that Brazil is one of the greatest soccer nations in the world, and beating them would be a tough call. Even betting for the US against a pro-Brazil colleague before the game made me a little nervous. We had a pretty good team, but it was obvious that we weren’t the favorites. It felt as though the whole crowd was cheering for Brazil. A sea of yellow, green and blue filled the stadium, and I seemed insignificant waving my American flag amongst the South American soccer fans.
Even as the game began, Brazil’s offense dominated. The US women put up a good defensive fight, but would barely charge a Brazilian defender when the ball went up-field. I began to worry that my team’s lack of aggression would hurt them in the end.
But that changed in the second half. The US team began to gain speed and kept the ball in their offensive end of the field. They had four great shots during the last 15 minutes, but each was slightly off or saved by the aggressive Brazilian goal tender.
With the score at nil-all at the end of 90 minutes, the teams prepared for a half hour of overtime play. As the clock ticked on, it seemed the Brazilians became more and more frustrated, while the Americans became increasingly confident.
Finally, six-minutes into overtime midfielder Carli Lloyd booted a quick shot into Brazil’s goal. My friend and I were baffled how it actually went in — but as a triumphant cheer erupted from the team, I took my cue to jump up in excitement.
I couldn’t believe it, and I think most of the crowd was in shock too. As the game played on, it seemed the US team would score a second goal.
The Brazilian strikers must have had at least six close calls in the last 10 minutes of the game, but U.S. goalie Hope Solo was unbeatable. Her saves were spot on every time.
When the final whistle blew, the emotions in the stadium went ballistic — perhaps because many players and spectators were in total disbelief. The US players celebrated their victory with hugs and smiles.
For me, the triumph is a testament to the potential of women’s sports in America to be more global than men’s.
The US men’s team has yet to dominate in world soccer, mainly due to a fixation with America’s sporting stalwarts baseball, basketball and American football. US major league soccer is an infant in comparison, having only been around for 15 years. Though soccer is a popular sport for young men to play, the pros have less than half the following of predominantly American sports. It’s rare to see a soccer game shown on a non-cable channel (with the exception of the World Cup), yet viewers expect their local channels to broadcast baseball games every summer, American football games in the fall and basketball games in the winter and spring.
This focus on American sports, paired with a recently established professional soccer league, explains why the US men’s national team lacks in comparison to international football clubs.
But women’s sports leagues have been established much more recently: the WNBA in 1997 and the first women’s soccer league in 2001. They are the first to be established as professional American sports for women and their fan bases are growing. At the same time, women’s soccer is also relatively new for countries where it has been established for men for decades. This gives US women’s soccer a chance to be on the same playing field as international footballers, while US men’s soccer is behind the times.
Thursday’s gold medal gave the US women a global edge as they asserted themselves in the most popular international sport. Though women may play games, they are no longer the underdogs of soccer.