Good Game, Great Atmosphere

I traveled to Manchester, England to watch the USWNT take on North Korea in the third and final group play match. The U.S. topped Group G with a 1-0 victory and will play New Zealand in the quarterfinal. The U.S. had many chances throughout the match, but it was Abby Wambach who put away the lone goal in the 25th minute. Lauren Cheney sent a ball over the top to Alex Morgan, who touched it to Wambach, then Wambach beat the keeper for the game-winning goal.

The atmosphere at Old Trafford was fantastic. I knew it was going to be a great day when I saw multiple fans in US Soccer jerseys on the train from London to Manchester. The game drew 29,522 fans, who were predominantly U.S. supporters. The crowd was filled with U.S. apparel and you could spot plenty of "Where's Waldos" due to the amount if red and white striped kits being sported. There was a small contingent of North Korean supporters, who proudly waved their flag. It seed that most of the British people in attendance were supporting the U.S. and it was cool to hear them cheer for the team in their accent. However, there were two Brits sitting near me that loudly encouraged on the North Korean squad. It was a father and son duo, who added "North Korea" to a multitude of songs. This only added to the fun and gave me a sense of what the football culture is like in Britain. The match was played at Old Trafford, which is a stadium steeped in history and the home turf of Manchester United. Watching a game in the stadium brought a certain energy unlike any other place. Such greatness has been displayed on the field that it made me even more excited to finally watch the USWNT in-person.

Men's football garners cult-like devotion in the U.K., but the women's game does not have much of a following. It is not surprising that women's soccer has been a hard sell at the London Olympics. To begin with, soccer has never been a big draw at the Olympics. This, along with the attitude held towards women's soccer and the location of the matches causes low attendance figures. The Olympic Football Tournament is held in many venues across the U.K. and this makes it more difficult for tourist in London to go to a match. Therefore, 29,522 is a good draw for the USWNT, even though the stadium fits 70,000. Also, these Olympic Games have been marred with news stories of empty seats and frustrated fans unable to get tickets. The empty seats provide an awful visual on television. When I watched the previous soccer games on TV, I noticed the amount of empty seats and the fact that the first couple rows were empty I thought this was odd and didn't understand why fans would sit farther back when closer seats were available. I found my answer in Manchester: the seats farther back are cover and protect spectators from the rain. I had to move back to the 10th row for this reason.

Regardless of the rain, the crowd was energetic: "USA" chants ringed through the stadium and the wave undulated around the stands. The USWNT players lined up to thank the fans after the game and you could tell they were soaking it all in. They looked genuinely appreciative of the support.

It was a memorable experience. I'm hoping they make the final, so I can watch the USWNT play in another historic stadium.

Note

For the duration of the Olympics, I will be writing about my experiences at the Games. I am unable to add pictures and videos due to difficulties with wifi. When I return home, I will analyze marketing and communication efforts.

AT&T Sponsorship

In the previous post, "Sponsorship Roundup: Alex Morgan," I said AT&T is a sponsor, but had not yet used Morgan for an advertisements. Well, here it is. This video was posted to YouTube today. It is one of four videos featuring Olympic athletes and their journey to the Olympics under the slogan "My Journey." This idea is perfect for Morgan, since she is the newest star of the USWNT and the video covers all facets of her rise.  

Behind the Crest: The Tournament's Here

A Near Disaster, Turns into a Confidence Boosting Win

Not the way the USWNT wanted to start their first Olympic match, but it was the way they wanted to end it: with a win. The U.S. came-back from an early 2-0 deficit against France to beat them 4-2. 

The USWNT looked apprehensive to start the match. The game was being played at a hectic pace and the U.S. was unable to maintain a rhythm. Each team was enacting counter-attack after counter-attack and not gaining possession. Then, France was able to score two goals within two minutes of each other. Gaetane Thiney scored the first goal in the 12th minute. She rocketed a shot from outside the 18 and Solo had no chance to save it. France's next goal came from the U.S.'s inability to clear the ball in front of net. A scramble ensued and Marie-Laurie Delie was in the right place to score in the 13th minute. The ball landed right in front of her and she nailed it into the net.

It was shocking that the USWNT were down by two this early in the game and to make matters worse, Shannon Boxx had to leave the game due to an injury. Carli Lloyd replaced her in the 17th minute, who recently lost her starting position to Lauren Cheney. However, the USWNT can never be counted out; the team has great depth and a dynamic striker due in Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan. These two are capable of scoring multiple goals and scoring them quickly, which they proved before the half was over. Wambach headed the ball home off a corner from Megan Rapinoe in the 18th minute of play. This put the U.S. right back in it and gave them renewed energy. Morgan evened play at 2-2 in the 31st minute. It looked as though Wambach flicked it on for her, but she actually did not touch the ball and it bounced into great position for Morgan. If the ball had been flicked by Wambach, the goal would have been called offside, but she didn't, so it counted. Morgan had a defender on her back and the keeper coming out: she lobed it over the keepers head for the goal. It was two excellent goals from Wambach and Morgan, which both showed their different styles and ability.      

The final 15 minutes of the first half saw some dangerous opportunities for France and a controversial non-call in the box. In the 37th minute, Delie had the ball in the box once again, but sailed it over the crossbar. A minute later, Thiney was all alone on the right side of the six-yard box, Solo came out, which made Thiney adjust and hit the ball out. For the third time, Delie had a chance in the box, though this one was all her doing and not the defenses fault. She was marked well, but managed to head the ball on goal when her back was facing that same goal. However, it was hit right to Solo and she grabbed the easy save. A few minutes later, Morgan showed her speed and was pushing for a goal in the box when taken down. The referee did not call a foul, though it is questionable whether the play deserved one or not.

It was a crazy first half, but after the tough first 15 minutes, the play was fairly even and the U.S. fought back to make the score indicate that.

The U.S. did not make any substitutions to begin the second half. France took out Ophelie Meilleroux and Louisa Necib for Eugenie Le Sommer and Laura Georges. The USWNT's first chance on goal in the second half was cleared off the line. Rapinoe sent in a corner that Lloyd headed down, and Wambach got a hit on, but the France defender was in the right position. Lloyd came up big in the 55th minute by scoring the go-ahead goal. She blasted a shot from well outside the 18-yard box that went into the upper left of the goal. It was a deja vu moment for Lloyd, who hit the gold medal-winning goal in the 2008 Olympics from similar distance.  


The U.S. looked much more in control after going up 3-2, but France had plenty of chances. Morgan again was taken down in the box in the 60th minute and again no call was made. She got the first touch on the ball, but it was a shoulder-to-shoulder tackle. France was lucky that both takedowns were not called. France looked dangerous in the 66th minute, they got in front of goal, but Kelley O'Hara defended the play well and Solo stepped up to end the play. Right after this play, the U.S. gained some breathing room by scoring a fourth goal: it was Morgan's second of the match. Rapinoe had great vision to get the ball wide to Tobin Heath on the right flank. She had plenty of space and went to goal, with Morgan streaking to the back post and Wambach hustling to the near. Heath slipped a pass across the face of the goal and Morgan touched it into a wide-open net.    


The 4-2 score line did not squash France's effort. They continued to press and had good looks. The USWNT had trouble clearing the ball during a France corner kick and it almost resulted in another goal. The ball pin-balled around creating chaos, but the final attempt was tame. The U.S. made some changes at the end of the second half, bringing in Amy Rodriguez for Morgan and Sydney Leroux for Rapinoe. Then with only minutes left to play, France had a breakaway after a U.S. free kick. France's counter-attack was saved by Solo, who came out and fell on the ball when Elodie Thomas took too long of a touch. 


The first Olympic match for the USWNT was certainly exciting. Most importantly, they came away with a win against their toughest opponent in group play. They scored four high quality goals and did not allow France to maintain the majority of possession. They had some scary moments on defense and did allow two goals, but showed their resiliency and fought for the victory.    


Photo Credit: Tumblr

Media Roundup: NBC Olympics

NBC is the American broadcaster of the 2012 Olympics and they have been heavily promoting their upcoming coverage of the events. They have been running commercials that showcase the most exciting moments from the 2008 Olympics, and Carli Lloyd's goal against Brazil in the gold medal game is included. NBC created a website (nbcolympics.com) solely dedicated to the Olympic Games. An abundance of content has been released on the website featuring U.S. athletes. The videos were shot at the Olympic Media Summit, which occurred in mid-May. The videos are fun and focus on connecting the public to the athletes' personalities. NBC has a vested interest in building the profiles of the U.S. athletes competing at the Olympics: more people will tune in if they care about the athletes. Many of these videos feature USWNT players, specifically Alex Morgan, Abby Wambach, Christie Rampone, and Megan Rapinoe. 

This is great exposure for the USWNT. Women's soccer has to compete against popular Olympic sports like gymnastics, track and field, and swimming, but NBC taking an interest in the team is a positive sign. NBC coverage will provide a boost in public recognition for the team and can translate into a boost in popularity. NBC sees the USWNT as marketable for the networks Olympic efforts, which is great news for U.S. Soccer.


NBC Video: How Do You Celebrate a Goal
Note: Unable to embed NBC video

Alex Morgan Panasonic Ad

Alex Morgan GE Ad and Interview

Alex Morgan Coca Cola Ads

Sponsorship Roundup: Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan is the most marketable member of the USWNT because of the mix of youth, talent, and looks that she possesses. She busted into the public spotlight at last summer's Women's World Cup and her fame continues to grow. At 22, Morgan was the youngest member of the Women's World Cup squad. Now 23, she is no longer the youngest on the team, but is still called "Baby Horse" for her age and gallop-like running style. Morgan was the super-sub in 2011, coming into the game with 10 to 15 minutes left and making an impact. She impacted the game with her speed and finishing abilities: scoring clutch goals for the team in qualing and during the Women's World Cup. In 2012, Morgan earned a starting position and has had an unprecedented scoring run.
To top everything off, Morgan is attractive. Girls want to look like her and guys want to marry her. Many young soccer players have copied Morgan's signature look on the pitch: a pink per-wrap headband. She received hundreds of proposals on Twitter and approval of her photo shoot for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in which she posed in body paint. With this combination of attributes, not to mention her personality and ease in front of camera, it is unsurprising that companies have taken notice.

Morgan's list sponsors includes: Nike, Bank of America, GNC, Mueller, AT&T, GE, Panasonic, and Coca Cola. Morgan was a Nike athlete before the Women's World Cup and the athletic apparel company outfitted the striker in cleats throughout the competition. She had also done one photo shoot prior to the Women's World Cup. After the tournament, Nike used Morgan much more to promote Nike Soccer and she was even featured in a online video game. In the build up to the Olympics, Nike has released a video and more images of Morgan for Nike Women. Nike is always at the forefront of sports. They are represented by some of the best athletes and they handle their marketing superbly. Nike has made a big push of late to market Nike Women and female athletes. They showcase in their marketing the perfect mix of envious, sexy bodies with hard-core athletic ability and this is the brand that Morgan should project. 


            

Bank of America enlisted Morgan, Abby Wambach, and Hope Solo to promote the Chicago Marathon in July of 2011. They attended the Marathon and ran small portions of it with thirteen selected runners for charity. Morgan is known for her amazing speed on the pitch, so the running aspect of this sponsorship makes sense. Also, it is good for her brand to be associated with charitable efforts. This was the first major sponsorship signing after the Women's World Cup.

GNC, the nutrition product retailer, signed Morgan and USWNT teammate, Heather Mitts, in January of 2012. Fitness and nutrition are important to Morgan's career. It is fitting that she represents nutritional products. GNC is a well-known company and have the capabilities to extend Morgan's reach with the public. They have begun to do so, with a large billboard in NYC with Morgan's image. 

   
In June of 2012, Morgan became an ambassador for Mueller Sports Medicine, which sells pre-wrap. Morgan is known for wearing a pink pre-wrap headband during every training and every game. This partnership fits perfectly because a lot of young girls have since copied her pink styling. Morgan is certainly not the first athlete to wear pre-wrap headbands, but she is the first to make it famous. Female athletes of all ages- youth, high school, college, and professional-have been wearing pre-wrap for years, but Mueller is looking for those athletes to buy their products because of its connection with Morgan. An official campaign featuring Morgan has not yet been released, but Mueller gave a sneak-peak through twitter of the upcoming ads. 

AT&T is listed as a sponsor of Morgan on her official website and in Sports Business Daily. There are no advertisements available featuring Morgan, but expect ones to be released during the Olympics.
   
GE, Panasonic, and Coca-Cola have two things in common: they have a sponsorship deal with Alex Morgan and they are Top Olympic Partners. This commonality is good news for Morgan. To be a Top Olympic Partner, companies spend hundreds of millions of dollars to tie their brand directly with the Olympics. There are only 11 Top sponsors, so Morgan representing three of these companies is a big deal. For women's soccer, there are only two major tournaments-Women's World Cup and Olympics-to make an impact. These tournaments are in successive years, so there is a two-year lull when women's soccer does not have the opportunity to gain the publics attention. Morgan needs to take advantage of the limited time she has to build her brand and public recognition. It is harder for women's soccer to gain attention during the Olympics because of the amount of other sports competing at the same time. Gymnastics, track and field, and swimming, usually are the big events and the winning athletes become stars. Morgan's partnership with three TOP sponsors will aid her tremendously in raising her profile during the Olympics. These sponsorship deals ensure Morgan will not be lost in the thousands of athletes at the London Games, but will be in the forefront of advertising efforts. It was an extremely smart move by her representatives to team her up with GE, Panasonic, and Coca-Cola because of the amount of advertising these companies do around the Olympics. GE is promoting a health care record keeping system that Morgan has been called on to do numerous interviews about. Panasonic features her in a commercial that started running on NBC during the NHL playoffs. Morgan is one of Coca-Cola's 8-pack of athletes. Her silhouette is on a Coke can and they have released multiple videos online that allow viewers to get to know her better. Advertising will reach its peak during the two and a half week span of the London Games and it will be interesting to see how Morgan is used. 

Morgan certainly is capitalizing on her rise since the Women's World Cup and a gold medal at the Olympics will elevate her status even higher, which will make her even more marketable.    

Studio 90: Veteran Lloyd and Youngster Leroux Prep for Olympics

Studio 90 Extra Time: Rachel Buehler

Studio 90: MNT Players Visit WNT Training in Glasgow

Studio 90 Extra Time: Tobin Heath

Party in the USA

Olympic Bodies

The bodies of the Olympic athletes are a hot topic right now, and the USWNT is no exception. Those that compete at the Olympics are at the peak of their physical fitness and it shows. All of their hard works pays off hopefully with a medal, but also with their toned bodies. The media has covered this topic with tones of admiration and titillation. Here is a breakdown of the coverage:



Dominique Dawes, a member of the 1996 women's gymnastic team that won gold, interviewed Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach as part of her Physique with Dominique series. The questions focused on how they keep their bodies in shape and exercises that are used to tone certain areas needed for soccer. This interview was very appropriate. It did not divulge into physical beauty, but maintained an outlook of the body as a means for sport.

Wambach participated in the ESPN the Magazine Body Issue, which was released in July 2012. She joins teammates, Hope Solo and Alex Morgan, in posing nude for magazines. Solo took part in the 2011 edition of ESPN the Magazine Body Issue, while Morgan donned body paint for the 2012 Sports Illustarted Swimsuit Issue. These forms of media are more provocative simply because they are nude images. They stray to the titillating territory, but are fairly tame and are not sensationalized.

Wambach and Solo represent strong female athletes in ESPN the Magazine. They did not reveal too much, but showed off the muscles they've worked throughout their careers to build. It is good to see the female body portrayed in this way and ESPN the Magazine has done a great to not objectify female athletes in the Body Issues. The male athletes are depicted in the same way. The posses they are in are powerful and show that women are serious athletes. These bodies are the new ideal, not the model-skinny that is unhealthy.

Morgan was photographed in body paint in the form of a swimsuit for Sports Illustrated. These photographs are less athletic and more sexualized than Wambach's and Solo's. Morgan is not in powerful stances, but she is also not in overtly sexual or revealing posses. The shoot was done tastefully, but with a different intent than the Body Issue. Morgan is hot right now, in terms of public appeal and physical appeal. The Swimsuit Issue capitalized on the interest she has garnered. 


Several media outlets have composed "Hot" lists for the London Games that feature USWNT players. ESPNW had a bracket of sorts for hottest Olympic body, in which fans could vote for their favorite. Wambach was ousted in the first round by all-around gold medal gymnast Nastia Liukin in the first round, while Morgan was voted the champion. Ryan Lochte was the winner in the men's bracket. E Online compiled a list of the Hottest Olympic Bodies, Morgan and Wambach made the cut. Morgan and Solo are on Shape Magazine's list of Top 20 Sexiest Athletes at the 2012 Olympics. Bleacher Report compiled a list of 100 Hottest Female Olympians of 2012 and Morgan is the second hottest. Lauren Cheney, Amy Rodriguez, Heather Mitts, Hope Solo, and Sydney Leroux are also on the list. I'm not a fan of these lists because I do not like the idea of comparing the physical appearance of one female or male athlete to another. This is objectifying athletes. I do not see tastefully posing nude as objectification because the athlete consents to the photos, while they do not consent to the lists. Also, they are not being ranked and compared by their hotness in the photographs.

Bleacher Report 100 Hottest Female Olympians of 2012
Shape Magazine Top 20 Sexiest Athletes at 2012 Olympics 
E! Hottest Bodies in London
ESPNW Body Edition Winners

Photo Credit: ESPN the Magazine; Sports Illustrated    
         

Carli Lloyd: New Jersey State of Mind (Back Home)

1-on-1 with Heather Mitts

HAO Tours Pre-Olympic Training Camp

Alex Morgan: Pride of the Brahmas (Back Home)

Studio 90: WNT Arrives in Glasgow

The WNT Hits the Links

Studio 90: WNT Completes Camp in Northeast England

Alex Morgan: Daughter of Diamond Bar (Back Home)

Classic Castle and WNT Wizards

Studio 90: The WNT Arrives in England for Pre-Olympic Camp

Update: Hope Solo Failed Drug Test

Hope Solo tweeted again about the failed drug test situation:

"I feel bad for those who judge with their eyes &not w/ their hearts.Lets not sensationalize things for the sake of "news" &call it truth..I have nothing to hide.The truth will be told by me,& only by me on 8/14.Until then just keep blabbing away,& ill just continue to work!"


This is what I wanted Solo to avoid and why I did not want her to tweet. Her tone is defensive and critical of those who are reporting on the story. This does nothing to help her win over the public's opinion and actually does the opposite. She is deviating from the message that was in the released statement, which she should not do. Solo needs to stop tweeting about it because all it is doing is rehashing the situation. 


From the tweet, I can gather that she will be doing some sort of interview that will be released on Aug. 14. I think this is a mistake. It only gives her more opportunity to sound angry. 


The focus should be on the Olympics and not Solo trying to set the record straight. The released statement explained the situation and it should be kept at that.     

Update: Hope Solo Failed Drug Test

Hope Solo did tweet about her failed drug test:

"For those asking, I didn't "fail a drug test" but rather had a diuretic in my system I shouldn't have had from a medication prescribed to me...Lesson learned to triple check all my prescription meds. An honest mistake. Thx to all the fans for their support. Next stop ‪#London2012‬!" 

She kept calm which is the most important thing when it concerns Solo and Twitter. The message was simple and basically a condensed version of the official statement that was released. I would have liked to have seen her connect a link to the official statement instead of tweeting her own message. Just as a precautionary measure, so nothing can be misconstrued because official statements are carefully crafted and Solo does not have the best track record with social media.

Olympic Boots

The USWNT debuted their Olympic boots at their send-off match in Sandy, Utah. Most of the team is represented by Nike and will wear the Nike Clash Collection. The Clash Collection features the Mercurial, the CTR360, the Tempo, and the T90. These four cleats are not new models, but are in a different color and style. The collection is called Clash because the back of each boot is a color and the front is white. The back of the Mercurial is a vibrant red and Tobin Heath, Megan Rapinoe, Carli Lloyd, and Sydney Leroux will wear them during the Olympics. The CTR360 is in a bright blue color. Abby Wambach and Amy LePeilbet will wear them. Alex Morgan and Kelley O'Hara will sport the neon green T90 boots, while Hope Solo, Shannon Boxx, and Rachel Buehler are in the more subdued black Tempo cleats. Nicole Barnhart is in all black cleats with a white Nike swoosh. She is the only Nike athlete who is not wearing the Clash Collection.

Lauren Cheney, Heather Mitts, and Becky Sauerbrunn are Under Armour athletes and they are also outfitted in new cleats. Cheney and Mitts tweeted pictures of their Olympic boots before the send-off match. Under Armour has given each player cleats in two colors, presumably a home and an away pair.   Cheney's are turquoise and Mitts' are blue. Sauerbrunn did not tweet a photo of her cleats, but she was wearing white and red versions of Cheney's cleats in the last match against Canada.

Heather O'Reilly and Christie Rampone wear Adidas cleats. O'Reilly will wear pairs that are red, white, and blue and it is unclear what cleats Rampone will wear.

Amy Rodriguez is the only player who is sponsored by Puma. Along with O'Reilly, she will wear red, white, and blue cleats. This is surprising since the Olympics stir such nationalistic pride. I would have thought a majority of the players would be in red, white, and blue cleats.

Whichever company or color cleats the players will wear, they will be taking the field at the Olympics in brand new boots.    

Photo Credit: Nike, Lauren Cheney Twitter, Heather Mitts Twitter. 

Hope Solo Failed Drug Test

Hope Solo failed a drug test and receives a public warning as punishment, which will have no affect over her eligibility for the Olympics. Solo tested positive for Canrenone on June 15, the day before the USWNT played Sweden in a friendly in the Volvo Winners Cup. Canrenone is a diuretic and is banned by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency because it can be used to flush the system.

The USADA and U.S. Soccer believe Solo's explanation for why the substance was in her body. Solo said Canrenone was contained in a medication she was legitimately prescribed by a doctor for pre-menstrual purposes.  


Solo's statement:
"I took a medication prescribed by my personal doctor for pre-menstrual purposes that I did not know contained a diuretic. Once informed of this fact, I immediately cooperated with USADA and shared with them everything they needed to properly conclude that I made an honest mistake, and that the medication did not enhance my performance in any way. As someone who believes in clean sport, I am glad to have worked with USADA to resolve this matter and I look forward to representing my country at the 2012 Olympic Games in London."



U.S. Soccer's statement:
"U.S. Soccer received notification from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency that Hope Solo tested positive for a banned substance from an out-of competition urine sample she provided on June 15. After discussions with Hope, we fully support her clarification that the positive test for Canrenone was due to the use of a prescribed medication from a personal doctor for pre-menstrual purposes and not related to performance enhancement in any way."



The headline is shocking, but the result of this situation is far from disastrous. This is a public relations problem for Solo, but her representatives have handled it properly thus far by releasing a well-constructed statement. Solo did not try to deny the test, but explained why Canrenone was in her system. She admitted she made a mistake and is firm that the drug did not enhance her performance. The statement ends on a positive note by referencing the Olympics. U.S. Soccer dealt with Solo's positive test in the right manner. They showed their support for one of their most recognizable athletes.

This should be the last we hear about the drug test from Solo and U.S. Soccer. Their PR teams want to control what is being said, so any set up interviews or press conferences will compromise that. She should keep her regular media routine, which will be amped up because of the Olympics, but not do any additional media engagements specifically about the drug test. She will be asked about it and she should stick to the message in her statement. U.S. Soccer and Solo have yet to tweet anything since the story broke, so it seems the PR teams are keeping a tight lid on communications. Solo is known for her twitter outburst and having one at this time would be detrimental. They want to move on from the situation, so continuing to bring it up would be a mistake.

It is yet to be determined how much this will hurt Solo. She may be acquitted by the USADA, but public opinion is still open. The fact that Solo is still able to play in the Olympics helps this from being a public relations nightmare. Once the Olympics start, other story lines will emerge and this indecent will be old news. The public will be more concerned with winning gold.      

Photo Credit: Nike

A Change in Number

I was very confused while watching the USWNT Olympic send-off match because I noticed that Abby Wambach was wearing number 14 instead of number 20. I did a google search and found out that she had to change her number because in the Olympics players can only wear numbers 1-18 due to the 18 player rosters. She was able to wear number 20 at the Women's World Cup because a 21 players roster is allowed during that tournament. In 2008, Wambach switched to number 12 before the Olympics, but suffered a broken leg in the send-off match and did not play in Beijing.

Lauren Cheney replaced Wambach in the 2008 Olympics and continues to wear number 12. Although, number 8 is her favorite number, but Amy Rodriguez claimed it on the national team. Cheney wore 8 at UCLA, for the Boston Breakers, and it is even in her twitter handle. Stephanie Cox wore 14 at the Women's World Cup, but is not on the Olympic roster. Sydney LeRoux wore 14 during Olympic Qualifying, before switching to number 11 when Ali Krieger went down with a knee injury.

It will be weird seeing Wambach in number 14 for the next month, but hopefully she can add a gold medal to her new ensemble.

Rapinoe Comes Out

Megan Rapinoe officially came out to Out Magazine in an article posted on their website on July 2, 2012. The USWNT midfielder said, "for the record: I am gay."

Rapinoe was a breakout star in the Women's World Cup for her part in the epic last minute goal against Brazil. She sent in the cross that Wambach headed for the tying goal to send the match to penalty kicks. Rapinoe's popularity has skyrocketed and she has become a fan favorite. In a USA Today article, Rapinoe said, "I think I have a huge LGBT following," and all you have to do is go on Tumblr to confirm this.

Her coming out is certainly not shocking because she has not hidden her sexuality from the public. Rapinoe is very active on Twitter and expresses her support of the LGBT community. Also, there were pictures of her and her girlfriend kissing at an event that were posted on Tumblr and in a previous interview she discussed the ability for female soccer players to be accepted by teammates when they are openly gay.  In the Out Magazine article, she said those three words to confirm what had been widely accepted, "I am gay."

This is great that Rapinoe is publicly coming out because she is empowering younger gay people to be comfortable with who they are. The sports world is still very much homophobic and Rapinoe said, "(for females) it is very open and widely supported. For males, it's not that way at all. It is sad." She also noted, "sports in general are still homophobic, in the sense that not a lot of people are out." For females, it may be accepted in the team atmosphere, but the press and larger society still struggle to overcome a fear of homosexuality, which has been ingrained in the culture of sports.

Sports and homophobia have long since been connected because of the way sports developed. In the 1800s, sports became popular because it was seen as a way to make men manlier. Females were excluded from sports and society feared females would become too masculine if they played. Female athletes that did appear masculine were ridiculed in the press. Due to this, female athletes developed many tactics to avoid being labeled a lesbian. They would simply be silent on the issue and they would also use the apologetic stance. Female athletes who used the apologetic stance would down play their athletic ability and present an outwardly feminine appearance. This situation has decreased over time, but the connection between masculinity and sports remains and greatly effects female and gay athletes.

Rapinoe has taken a great step by countering tactics used to avoid being labeled a lesbian and openly admitting her sexuality.    

Out Magazine Article
USA Today article
Photo Credit: Out Magazine

USA v. Canada

The U.S. Women's National Team beat Canada 2-1 in their Olympic send-off match in Sandy, Utah on June 30. The match was played in front of 16,805 fans and was televised on NBC.

NBC's coverage of the match was excellent, as is all of their coverage of the Olympics. NBC is heavily promoting the Olympic Games and for the past week has been airing the Olympic trials, the USWNT match is encompassed in this effort. Arlo White and Kyle Martino provided analyses and play-by-play coverage. They conducted a pre-game interview with Alex Morgan and a half-time interview with Megan Rapinoe, which is something new to the coverage of USWNT matches. They were knowledgeable and added insight for the viewers. White and Martino relayed a conversation they had with head coach Pia Sundhage, in which she said the starting line-up against Canada is the team's best line-up.

The starters of the match were: Solo; LePeilbet; Rampone (c); Buehler; O'Hara; Rapinoe; Boxx; Cheney; Heath; Morgan; Wambach

This starting line-up is interesting because of the recent changes in the midfield. Lauren Cheney has replaced Carli Lloyd, Rapinoe has replaced Heather O'Reilly, and with Cheney moving to the center, Tobin Heath has moved into that spot. White and Martino indicated that this would be the starting line-up in London. I really like Cheney in the middle, but I would like to see O'Reilly keep her starting spot.

The play between the U.S. and Canada was very physical. There were multiple times USWNT players went down in the box and nothing was called. Also, O'Hara and Boxx picked up a yellow yard within a minute of each other. O'Hara had a high challenge on a Canadian player and kicked her in the thigh. A few seconds later, Christine Sinclair had a late challenge on Christy Rampone, but was not called for the foul. Boxx, about 30 seconds after Sinclair's challenge, committed her own late slide-tackle and was given a yellow card for it. The tough plays did not ease up; in the second half two Canadian players received yellow cards.

The play was physical, but the USWNT looked in control. The connection between the defense, midfield, and forwards was the best it has been in awhile. The U.S. looked to attack right from the beginning and Canada conceded an own goal in the 15th minute of play. Rapinoe controlled the right flank throughout the match. She was taking opponents on and showing her flair to beat them. She did have trouble picking players out on her crosses, so her fancy footwork did not result in any goals. Rapinoe was on target off her free kicks and it is interesting to note that she took all of them instead of Cheney. Wambach missed wide left twice in the first half off of great free kicks from Rapinoe, which is very unlike Wambach.

Hope Solo had a spectacular save at the end of the first half. The ball took a deflection and Solo had to completely change her momentum to get a hand on it. Then she used all her strength to hold onto the ball as a Canadian player had a second attempt on it. She barely kept it off the line. Solo showed why she is the best goalie in the game on that play.


At the start of the half, Carli Lloyd came on for Boxx, Becky Sauerbrunn for Rampone, Heather Mitts for Amy LePeilbett, and O'Reilly for Heath. The second half began with a near disaster; Morgan went down in the 49th minute with a knee injury. She walked off by herself and was later shown on the bench icing her knee. Amy Rodriguez replaced Morgan at forward.She suffered a twist to her knee, so nothing serious and she calmed her fans with a tweet after the game saying she was fine. 


The Canadians looked sharper in the second half and were able to maintain possession. The midfield looked flat with the pairing of Cheney and Lloyd and the defense was less organized without Rampone. This led to Canada equalizing in the 57th minute. A ball was passed behind Mitts, Melissa Tancredi rocketed a shot that hit the inside of the crossbar and bounced down into the goal. 


The U.S. had a few good chances in the second half that were just off. Rapinoe sent a ball low and hard from the left side of the field that Wambach tried to slightly touch to the far post. She nearly missed it and the ball went across the face of the goal untouched. Later in the 71st minute, O'Reilly kicked a great ball from her position 30 yards out and near the right sideline. Wambach was on the back post, but the keeper did well to grab it out of the air. 


The U.S. put the pressure on in the final 15 minutes of the match. Sydney Leroux came on for O'Hara, changing the formation from a 4-4-2 to a 3-4-3. The extra forward worked and the U.S. got the game-winning goal in the 85th minute. There was a scramble in front of the net, with the ball taking multiple deflections. Somehow the ball ended up in front of Rodriguez and she nailed it home. The USWNT paid homage to the last game that was played in Utah, in which the field was covered in snow. They ran to the corner and made "snow angels" on the ground.    


Photo credit: John Todd/isiphoto.com from ussoccer.com

Sweden Recap

The U.S. Women's National Team traveled to Sweden for a nine-day training camp ahead of the Volvo Winners Cup, in which they faced Sweden on June 16 and Japan on June 18. The U.S. came away victorious, beating Sweden 3-1 and Japan 4-1.

The first game against Sweden was a bit sloppy and the 3-1 score line does not accurately tell the story of the match. The USWNT did not possess the ball well and were not connecting their passes. The back line looked unorganized and like a real weakness to this team. However, they were able to put away three goals. Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach both scored, which is a big positive from this game. This striker duo is the most lethal in women's soccer and will need to continue to be so for the USWNT to do well in the Olympics. Both goals were truly spectacular. Wambach hit a volley over the keeper from well outside the 30-yard box. Morgan out-ran and out-muscled the defense to impose her will to score. Tobin Heath also tallied one after coming off the bench. The USWNT has great depth in the midfield and Heath showed that in this game. Overall, not the best game for the U.S., but they still won and were able to score three goals.

The match against Japan was much more the team we are used to seeing. The U.S. was attacking and looked dangerous. They actually possessed the ball very well against a team known for their possession. Recently, the USWNT has looked slow at the beginning of their matches, but they were clicking right from the start of the whistle against Japan. Morgan scored in the 3rd minute off an assist from Heath and then in the 10th minute Wambach scored off an assist from Megan Rapinoe. Japan got one back in the 28th minute and the defense looked unstable during this play. Morgan got on the board again in the second half, which put the U.S. back to a comfortable lead, but head coach Pia Sundhage made an interesting substitution in the 81st minute. She took left-back Kelley O'Hara off to put forward Sydney Leroux on, which changed the formation from a 4-4-2 to a 3-4-3. This showed that the USWNT will not stop until the last second and will continue to push for goals. That is what they did and Wambach scored in the second minute of stoppage time. This is a confidence building result for the USWNT heading to London, since they had not beaten Japan in their last three attempts.

Another positive from the USWNT's trip to Sweden, the matches were televised. Universal Sports Network aired both matched on TV and live-streamed them. U.S. Soccer found a way to give their fans what they want and that is a chance to see their team play. It seems this was a last-minute effort from U.S. Soccer to get the games broadcasted because it was announced only three days before the first match that Universal Sports Network had picked the games up. The games being broadcasted and two wins add to the good momentum building towards the Olympic Games.

O'Hara in the Spotlight

Kelley O'Hara is featured in a two-part article on NBC Sports Pro Soccer Talk blog. O'Hara talked about the upcoming Olympics and her change of position from forward to left back. She provided insight into the teams mentality and also into her personality, which has caused her to become a favorite among fans. 


Comments about the Olympics:


"Now that the Olympic team has been named, it’s kind of been a weight off of everyone’s shoulders. We can now move forward with those 18 players and four alternates and really build and work on exactly what we need to before London." 


"Last year I would have been more shocked if I had made it and it was not fun getting cut [she later made the World Cup squad after replacing the injured Lindsay Tarpley], but this year I felt more confident. I felt I had gotten more playing time as opposed to last year. I just felt a lot better going into it this year than last year."


It seems that the team is in a great place right now after the announcement of the Olympic roster. Everyone can focus on what needs to be done to prepare for the Olympics, rather than worry about making the squad. It was refreshing to hear O'Hara be frank about her spot on the roster. She has been seeing a lot of playing time since the qualifying tournament and has been consistently in the starting line-up. She should be confident and not play that down in an interview. 

Comments about the change in position: 

"It’s been very interesting. I’ve never, ever played outside back before so it was definitely a shock and a big transition. But at the end of the day, it’s all soccer and I’m having a blast adapting to it. It’s a challenge and I love a challenge. It’s kept me intrigued and interested because every day at practice I say, ‘Okay, today I have this, this, and this to work on and I know I need to get better in these areas.’ It’s just kept me a student of the game. I can see progress and that’s exciting." 

This is exactly the attitude you want a player to have when they are faced with a difficult situation and I would guess her attitude gave the coaches confidence that she can make the change successfully. It has not been a seamless transition, but O'Hara has done a good job in the back. Her speed, tenacity, and keeping that attacking mentality has all served her well. O'Hara is able to chase down defenders and her tackles have been spot on. O'Hara admits that their are times when she needs to be more careful about completing her passes in the back, but their has definitely been improvement since that big mistake in the friendly against New Zealand. O'Hara will be an important factor in the USWNT's chances of winning gold this summer and it sounds like she is up for the task

You can find the entire article here: Part 1  Part 2

Photo Credit: ussoccer.com 

USWNT Defeat China PR 4-1

The USWNT defeated China PR 4-1 in an international friendly on May 27 in front of a sellout crowd of 18,573 at PPL Park in Chester, Pa. The starters where Solo, LePeilbet, Rampone, Beuhler, O'Hara; O'Reilly, Boxx, Lloyd, Rapinoe; Morgan, Wambach in a 4-4-2 formation.

The U.S. started the game off slow and the team looked disconnected. Carli Lloyd had two chances early, one of which she skied over the bar and the second of which deflected off a Chinese player's leg. China PR was able to capitalize on a poorly weighted ball in the back and attacker Zhang Rui put the Chinese up 1-0 in the 22nd minute. Alex Morgan struck back in the 34th minute with a beautiful low bending shot that came off a great feed from Heather O'Reilly. The Chinese scored an own goal two minutes later. Megan Rapinoe served a free kick outside the box on the left side. A Chinese defender headed the ball first, but it was not cleared. Shannon Boxx got a second header on the ball and directed it toward the goal. It looked as if Abby Wambach just nearly got a head on the ball, but as the Chinese defender tried to clear it with her head, she sent in into the goal.  

The second half saw the USWNT settle into possession and take control of the match. Lauren Cheney came on for Lloyd in the center midfield position and she did well distributing the ball. Amy Rodriguez came on for Heather O'Reilly at the half. Christie Rampone sent a long ball over the top to Alex Morgan who used her body to fight off the defender and hit a low ball into the back of the net from 18 yards out in the 50th minute of the match. The fourth and final goal came from Wambach off a throw-in from Morgan. Wambach, in the 83rd minute, was close to the right end line and slotted a ball in the upper left corner at a nearly impossible angle. Other substitutions included Becky Sauerbrunn coming on for Rampone in the 62nd minute and Sydney Leroux replacing Amy LePeilbett in the 81st minute. The Leroux substitution changed the formation to a 3-4-3 and she provided plenty of energy in the final minutes, just nearly missing on a shot from the 18-yard box.

It was a slow start, but a strong finish. The USWNT showed their composure and ability to comeback from behind.      

Olympic Roster Announced

The U.S. national team roster of 18 is set for the 2012 Olympics. Many familiar faces made the cut, with only one new addition, Sydney Leroux, from the 2011 Women's World Cup squad. The Women's World Cup allowed for a 21 player roster, so head coach Pia Sundhage had to make some tough decisions to trim it down to 18. Goalkeeper Jill Loyden, defender Stephanie Cox, and midfielder Lori Lindsey were left off the roster, along with defender Ali Krieger who suffered a torn ACL during Olympic Qualifying.

U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Nicole Barnhart, Hope Solo 
DEFENDERS (6): Rachel Buehler, Amy LePeilbet, Heather Mitts, Kelley O’Hara, Christie Rampone, Becky Sauerbrunn 
MIDFIELDERS (6): Shannon Boxx, Lauren Cheney, Tobin Heath, Carli Lloyd, Heather O’Reilly, Megan Rapinoe 
FORWARDS (4): Sydney Leroux, Alex Morgan, Amy Rodriguez, Abby Wambach


There are no real surprises with this roster. It was known that the U.S. would only take two keepers with the reduced roster from 21 to 18. Also, Stephanie Cox did not make the Olympic Qualifying roster, but was added to the Algarve Cup roster due to Krieger's injury. This irregularity for Cox makes it unsurprising that she was left off, especially with Kelley O'Hara's transition to left-back. Lindsey's absence is less predictable. It was thought that a midfielder would be cut and Lindsey is the least versatile of the bunch. Leroux has come on strong as the new super-sub as Alex Morgan has taken on a starting role and she was heavily regarded as a strong candidate for a roster spot.  


The Olympic roster features slight changes of note; Lauren Cheney is listed as a midfielder when she had been previously listed as a forward despite playing in the midfield and Amy Rodriguez is listed as a forward when she had been previously listed as a midfielder. Cheney will most likely be used as a center or outside midfielder and Rodriquez will most likely be used as an outside midfielder. The listing of positions is a technicality but it is interesting to note the differences. 


Sundhage named four alternative players for the Olympics, midfielder Lori Lindsey, goalkeeper Jill Loyden, midfielder Megan Klingenberg, and forward Christen Press. Klingenberg and Press were surprising choices due to their inexperience. Klingenberg has only been capped twice, but is a regular pool player. Press is uncapped and has only attended one national team training camp. 


All-in-all the roster is solid and features few changes. Now we can look ahead to speculate at what the starting line-up will be.  


    

It's a Live Stream After-All

U.S Soccer announced today that they will in fact provide a live stream on their website for the USWNT match against China PR tomorrow, May 27, at 7 p.m. ET.

This is great news for the fans who are unable to attend the game, but still want to see their team play. A lot of fans took to Twitter to ask for a live stream and U.S. Soccer replied "no." Some fans were so upset that they expressed their belief that U.S. Soccer does not care about USWNT fans.

The pressure from fans must have been overwhelming because all of a sudden U.S Soccer announced that they were going to provide a way for fans to see the game. This was the right thing for U.S Soccer to do. They do not want angry USWNT fans on their hands because that bunch is extremely passionate. They want to appeal to this group and help it grow, not deter it or create suspicion of their care. The fandom will be happy to be able to watch the USWNT play, which will subdue the anger that come from the initial denial. 

Sell Out Crowd, But No TV

The USWNT match on Sunday, May 27 at PPL Park in Chester, Pa. will be played infront of a sell out crowd. The U.S. will face China PR in front of a crowd of 18,500. These will be the only fans that will be able to watch the match since the game will not be televised or live-streamed.

It is impressive that the USWNT is attracting a crowd of 18,500 since a little more than a year ago on May 18, 2011 only 5,323 attended a match against Japan in North Carolina. This is also a drastic increase from the last time the USWNT faced China PR in Pennsylvania, which was played in front of a crowd of 2,505 on Oct. 6, 2011. However, these matches were televised by ESPN2.

I find this attendance and television comparison of pre-Women's World Cup and post-Women's World Cup fascinating. It is obvious that the Women's World Cup boosted interest in the USWNT and this can be seen by an increase in attendance at matches, but it has had a reversal effect on television coverage. The year before the 2011 Women's World Cup the USWNT played seven international friendlies and only one was not televised. It seems as though recently fans have been up in arms and campaigning to view their team whether it be on TV or online. The Algarve Cup comes to mind when thinking about fans disappointed in the media's coverage of their team.

For the USWNT's popularity to continue to grow, it is very important for people to be able to see them play. After the Olympics this summer, women's international soccer is in its "off" period for three years until the next Women's World Cup is played. That is a long  "off" period. U.S. Soccer needs to sell the team hard right now coming off the 2011 Women's World Cup and heading into the 2012 London Games because this is the time to capitalize. Even if they cannot get television companies to broadcast the games, they should provide a live-stream to keep the core fans happy and engaged. Opportunity for growth is being missed by not allowing the public to view entire games live.


Photo credit: Howard C. Smith/isiphotos.com taken from ussoccer.com 

Unified Jersey

I like the idea of the men's and women's kit being the same because I think it is a positive for the U.S. Soccer brand and more specifically the USWNT brand. Nike does an amazing job supporting the USWNT through outfitting the team and sponsorship. Nike's sponsorship has been extremely beneficial for the USWNT and this was noted in Jere Longman's book about the 1999 Women's World Cup titled "The Girls of Summer." Longman points out that Nike endorsing the USWNT and using their resources to promote it made U.S. Soccer invest more money in the team. Historically, there was been an imbalance of resources provided to each team with the women being short-handed. I am unsure whether is was Nike's or U.S. Soccer's idea to unify the jersey, but if it was Nike than this may have the same effect as the original endorsement had on U.S. Soccer's mentality toward the USWNT. This is at least a visual representation of parity between the men's and women's side and hopefully the next step in real unification.          

I hope this new kit will establish a tradition of unity between the teams and also establish a unified image of the team. A sports team's jersey is a great way to create and maintain a specific brand and U.S. Soccer and Nike have failed to utilize this. The USWNT jersey has changed drastically throughout its history and there has not been a continued design theme. The shield has stayed and the stars have stayed, but mostly everything else has changed. Of course there needs to be updates because the style of the early 90s is much different from that of now, but the changes have been too frequently and too drastically different. I would be happy to see a legacy of stripes or even the sash be established in this design. This will help create a more solid brand.