U.S. Women Repeat as World Cup Champions

The United States shutout the Netherlands 2-0 in the final of the women’s World Cup in Lyon, France on July 7th, to win its second consecutive title and fourth overall. Megan Rapinoe scored on a penalty kick in the 61st minute of play, and Rose Lavelle added a goal to seal the deal.

The U.S. started the tournament with a lopsided 13-0 win over Thailand, but from there, things got tougher. But the U.S. rose to the occasion each time, beating Chile 3-0, Sweden 2-0, Spain 2-1, France 2-1, and England 2-1 before defeating the Dutch. The Americans never trailed at any time in any game. Rapinoe also won the Golden Ball, awarded to the top player, and topped that off with the Golden Boot as top scorer in the tournament. Rapinoe and teammate Alex Morgan each had six goals and three assists, but Rapinoe won the award on the basis of playing fewer minutes than Morgan.

You won’t have to wait long to see the U. S. Women in high level international competition again. The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo start July 24th of next year. They finished fifth in the 2016 games, after winning four golds and a silver in the first five Olympic tournaments (woman’s soccer in the Olympics as a medal event started in 1996).

Click on this link for highlights of the championship