If you just look at the opponent, the USWNT’s April friendlies against Uzbekistan are likely to be fairly drab. Matches against the 48th-ranked team in the world in Ohio and Philadelphia, on the face of it, don’t really kindle much enthusiasm. But the April USWNT roster makes it clear: This is the final chance for some young players to earn a spot on the team at World Cup and Olympic qualifying this summer in Mexico.
After a 2020 that was, in many ways, a lost year for international soccer, the U.S. women’s national team went into 2021 with high hopes. The year ended with feelings of missed opportunities and the need for a rethink moving forward less than 20 months away from the next Women’s World Cup.
Are you the kind of person who prefers to respond to emails and texts with GIFs instead of having to type something out? Do you also love the USWNT? If you answered “yes” to either of these questions, then you or a loved one may be entitled to a plethora of new USWNT GIFs.
As a sendoff for 2021, the USWNT social team decided to do its version of Spotify Wrapped in GIF form. You might want to put a few of these in your back pocket for a rainy day.
The USWNT released 18 total GIFs for your viewing pleasure. The18 (see what I did there?) USWNT GIFs are as follows.
Kelley O’Hara is back at a Washington Capitals game, so two things are guaranteed: she’s celebrating another piece of major hardware and crankin’ foamers.
The Washington Spirit are the 2021 NWSL Champions after defeating the Chicago Red Stars 2-1 in extra time. Trinity Rodman didn’t get on the scoresheet, but the NWSL Rookie of the Year single-handedly carried the Spirit to the finish line.
The Spirit fell behind 1-0 seconds before halftime. Kelly O’Hara experienced a bit of instant karma as she put in a hard challenge on Chicago’s Mal Pugh that would force Pugh to miss the rest of the game.
If the USWNT’s two October friendlies were supposed to be feel-good send-offs for Carli Lloyd, no one told Yoon Young-Guel and South Korea.
Yoon made eight saves to earn a 0-0 draw against the U.S., ending the USWNT’s 22-game home winning streak on Thursday at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas. The last time the U.S. failed to win on home soil was Oct. 6, 2019, a 1-1 draw to this same South Korea side, a match that ended the USWNT’s 17-game winning streak that included winning the 2019 Women’s World Cup.
There is nothing more important to a household than the family pets. Well, maybe the humans, but Alex Morgan knows even that is pushing it.
“Dog — cats — alpacas — people,” Morgan said in her latest tier-ranking of animals, obtained exclusively by The18 thanks to an interview set up by Stella & Chewy’s, which makes food for the top two animals on the USWNT star’s ranking.
Carli Lloyd was not good enough. Megan Rapinoe was not good enough. Alex Morgan was not good enough. Crystal Dunn was not good enough. Tobin Heath was not good enough. The USWNT was not good enough.
Carli Lloyd running sprints alone after defeat may be the lasting image of the USWNT’s 2020 Olympic run, but her questionable inclusion on the team will be a talking point for years to come.
The USWNT has been far from impressive at the Tokyo Olympics. The defense has been shaky, the midfield often overrun and the forwards unable to stay onside. But Team USA is through to the medal rounds thanks to the heroics of goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, the one constant this tournament.