|
 With
two championships in four FIFA Women's World Cup
competitions, the U.S. Women's National Team is widely
hailed as the greatest women's soccer team in the world.
In their four Women's World Cup competitions, the United
States is 20-2-2 in 24 career games and is the only nation
to finish as a top three team in each Women's World Cup
(as well as 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympics).
|
All-Time World Cup Record |
|
Wins |
Loss |
Ties |
|
20 |
2 |
2 |
|
|
Considered the greatest team
in the world heading into the FIFA Women's World Cup USA
2003, the defending champion U.S. was assured the title of
tournament favorite after the competition was moved from
China to the United States due to the outbreak of SARS.
After rolling through group play with a 3-0 record and
11-1 advantage in goal differential the U.S. squeezed
passed rival Norway by a 1-0 margin in the quarterfinals.
Then in Portland, Oregon - the only city in history to
host a World Cup match in consecutive competitions - the
United States was shocked by Germany, who scored two
injury time goals in a 3-0 victory en route to winning it
all and being crowned World Champion. The United States
was relegated to third-place game. There the red,
white and blue made quick work of northern neighbor Canada
3-1, the same team that forced the United States to sudden
death over time in the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup final
less than one year earlier.
The United States Women's
National Team Added to their prestige by becoming the
first squad to host and win a Women's World Cup, when they
downed China 5-4 on penalty kicks after battling to a 0-0
draw through regulation and overtime in the 1999 final.
The match was played in front of a women's athletics
record crowd of 90,185 on June 10, 1999 at the Rose Bowl
in Pasadena, California. The winning penalty kick goal for
the U.S. has become a pop culture moment in American
History, with Brandi Chastain connecting on the shot and
then celebrating the goal with a nation. The championship
marked the USA's third major championship of the decade,
going nicely with the 1991 Women's World Cup crown and the
1996 Olympic victory.
The biggest disappointment for
the U.S. Women in the 1990's came at the 1995 Women's
World Cup in Sweden, when the team fell to arch-rival
Norway in the tournament semifinals, 1-0. Norway then took
on Germany in the final and lifted the crown.
In 1991, the U.S. won
the inaugural FIFA Women's World Cup in China. The
championship was the first for the USA in a FIFA
competition and established the dominance that the U.S.
women have continued to display at the international
level. The United States were led by Hall of Famers
Michelle
Akers,
Carin Jennings
and
April Heinrichs, dubbed "the triple-edged sword."
The trio combined to scored 20 of the team's 25 goals in
China, including all five (Jennings 3, Heinrichs 2) in a
5-2 semifinal victory over Germany and both goals (Akers)
in a 2-0 win over Norway to win the title.
Women's World Cup Finals
|
China 1991 |
|
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Goal
Scorers |
Site |
| November
17 |
Sweden |
W, 3-2 |
Jennings (2),
Hamm |
Punyu,
China |
| November
19 |
Brazil |
W, 5-0 |
Hamm, Akers,
Jennings,
Heinrichs (2) |
Punyu,
China |
| November
21 |
Japan |
W, 3-0 |
Akers,
Gebauer |
Foshan,
China |
| November
24 |
Taiwan |
W, 7-0 |
Akers (5), Biefeld, Foudy |
Foshan,
China |
| November
27 |
Germany |
W, 5-2 |
Jennings (3),
Heinrichs (2) |
Guanzhou,
China |
| November
30 |
Norway |
W, 2-1 |
Akers (2) |
Guanzhou,
China |
|
Sweden
1995 |
|
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Goal
Scorers |
Site |
| June 6 |
China |
T, 3-3 |
Venturini,
Milbrett, Hamm |
Gavle,
Sweden |
| June 8 |
Denamrk |
W, 2-0 |
Lilly, Milbrett |
Gavle,
Sweden |
| June 10 |
Australia |
W, 4-1 |
Foudy, Overbeck,
Fawcett, Keller |
Helsingborg, Sweden |
| June 13 |
Japan |
W, 4-0 |
Lilly (2),
Milbrett, Venturini |
Gavle,
Sweden |
| June 15 |
Norway |
L, 0-1 |
- |
Vasteras,
Sweden |
| June 17 |
China |
W, 2-0 |
Hamm, Venturini |
Gavle,
Sweden |
|
USA 1999 |
|
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Goal
Scorers |
Site |
| June 19 |
Denmark |
W, 3-0 |
Hamm, Foudy, Lilly |
East
Rutherford, NJ |
| June 24 |
Nigeria |
W, 7-1 |
Milbrett
(2), own goal, Hamm, Lilly,
Akers,
Parlow |
Chicago,
IL |
| June 27 |
North
Korea |
W, 3-0 |
Venturini (2),
MacMillan |
Boston, MA |
| July 1 |
Germany |
W, 3-2 |
Milbrett,
Chastain, Fawcett |
Landover,
MD |
| July 4 |
Brazil |
W, 2-0 |
Parlow,
Akers |
Palo Alto,
CA |
| July 10 |
China |
W, 0-0
(5:4 pks) |
- |
Pasadena,
CA |
|
USA 2003 |
|
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Goal
Scorers |
Site |
| September
21 |
Sweden |
W, 3-1 |
Lilly,
Parlow, Boxx |
Washington, D.C. |
| September
25 |
Nigeria |
W, 5-0 |
Hamm (2),
Parlow, Wambach, Foudy |
Philadelphia, PA |
| September
28 |
North
Korea |
W, 3-0 |
Wambach,
Reddick (2) |
Columbus,
OH |
| October 1 |
Norway |
W, 1-0 |
Wambach |
Foxboro,
MA |
| October 5 |
Germany |
L, 0-3 |
- |
Portland,
OR |
| October 11 |
Canada |
W, 3-1 |
Lilly,
Boxx, Milbrett |
Carson, CA |
|
