FIFA World Cup – Watch the USWNT!

Kayla Fink

5 years ago

USWNT – Why You Should Watch!

If you haven’t been living under a rock (You haven’t been, have you?), then you’re most likely aware that in 2015 the US Women’s National Team won the FIFA Women’s World Cup. They also won in ‘91 and ‘99. (Just the beginning of why you should watch the USWNT!)

While scrolling through your social media feeds, you’ve probably also seen headlines about how the 28 players who make up the player pool for the USWNT are suing US Soccer, the same organization who pays their salaries, for pay equality. Without even going into great detail, I’ve already given you two reasons to tune into the game on Thursday, but don’t worry I’m going to give you many more.

Thursday!

So, let’s get the most important part out of the way… Please, if you aren’t doing anything Thursday June 20 at 3:00 pm/est – turn your TV to FOX and watch the USA take on Sweden. This is an important game to not only determine the top seed of Group F, but also the rematch between USA & Sweden since the 2016 Olympics.

Okay before I get sidetracked… If you can’t sit down in front of a TV, but you have DVR, please set it to record. You can also tune in on the Fox Sports App as well as on Telemundo.

It’s Just Like Your Favorite Show…

Viewership for the USA’s World Cup games are just as important as your favorite tv shows.

In 1999, the USWNT (‘99ers) surged to victory at the Rose Bowl marking the highest attendance for a women’s sporting event. In 2015 the USWNT surged from a shaky beginning in the World Cup to standing victorious at the end of the tournament – making it the most-viewed soccer game ever in the United States. And that’s men’s or women’s!

Once again the USWNT is on a journey to reach the final match but they have a lot of work to do. One game at a time and you can go on this journey with them by tuning in.

Record Setting…

If you tuned in Tuesday June 11th for the final game of round one of the group stage when the USA played Thailand – you saw them walk away with a 13-0 victory. Yes I did just say 13-0, you read that correctly.

Thailand held the USA to 3-0 through the first half, but once the gates opened in the second half – they were flooded. Records were set and they were many.

Alex Morgan scored five goals which previously had only been done by Michelle Aikers, a USWNT alum. Four debutants for the USWNT scored during the game: Rose Lavelle (2), Lindsey Horan, Sam Mewis (2), and Mal Pugh.

If you don’t already follow the USWNT, these are names you are quickly going to learn as they are not only super talented, but they are the next generation of players coming into the system.

You may have seen headlines about the goal celebrations of this game across different social media feeds. Celebrating the person who scores the goals is something that should always be done, especially in a World Cup. These players have dreamed of this moment and when it happens, you celebrate – there is nothing wrong with it.

Happy Father’s Day

On Father’s Day, the USWNT took the field to face Chile and won 3-0, a score that could have been very different if it weren’t for the hands of Chile’s goalkeeper, Christiane Endler.

The game against Chile brought seven line up changes including the entire front line – because if you didn’t know, the USWNT roster is deep in talent. Carli Lloyd recorded a brace and set a record for scoring in six consecutive world cup matches. Tierna Davidson the youngest player on the USWNT, recorded two assists during the game with spectacular corner kick services. Julie Ertz notched a header at the near post for the second goal of the game and was it pretty. Christen Press kept Endler busy making save after save. Jessica McDonald and Emily Sonnett made their Word Cup debut as second half subs. With these subs all outfield players for the USWNT received minutes in these first two matches.

Here Comes Sweden…

Thursday at 3:00pm/est on Fox, USA will stepping out onto the pitch to face Sweden. The USA has had quite the history playing Sweden in the group stages. This will be a bigger test for the USA than their previous two matches.

The end result of this match will decide who will be in first place in the group. More than likely we will see the return of Jill Ellis’ favored starting XI with the return of Becky Sauerbrunn whom sat out as an injury precaution for the Thailand match but returned to the backline for the Chile match.

There will be many USA fans in the stands at Le Havre in France for the match tomorrow but the team also needs fans to tune in back home and watch on their TV or stream the match from a device. If you can’t watch, PLEASE set your DVR to record – those stats are important too.

The more viewers of each of the USWNT matches, the better. The women’s game is growing and it’s exciting, but in order to continue to see the growth — viewers need to tune in.

So, let’s set some more records and watch the USWNT on Thursday June 20th at 3:00/est on FOX, Telemundo, and the Fox Sports App.