Women’s soccer is in the midst of an international break right now, which means, as some may be aware, yes, yes the USWNT is playing — but so are many others. One of these others is England, who scheduled a pair of friendlies against European competition as part of its World Cup preparations.
All but one UEFA qualification spot has been filled for next summer’s World Cup. The battle for that coveted berth began Friday in Utrecht in front of a sellout crowd as the home side took on Switzerland in the first of two matches to decide their fate. The Netherlands won 3-0.
Last we saw the Panama women's soccer team, Yenith Bailey was doing everything she could to try to get the tiny Central American nation to its first ever women’s World Cup. Panama fell just short, finishing fourth place in the Concacaf Women’s Championship, missing out on the final automatic berth.
The United States didn’t look as fluid as it did last month when the USWNT cruised to a Women’s Concacaf Championship, but Jill Ellis’ group got it done. With a 1-0 victory over Portugal on Thursday in Lisbon, the USWNT recorded its 500th all-time victory.
The U.S. women’s national team played its first-ever match on Aug. 18, 1985. They lost, 1-0 to Italy. The Americans have been pretty good since, racking up an impressive USWNT record, which hit an unprecedented milestone on Thursday.