What better way to finish off a patriotic Fourth of July Weekend than by celebrating the United States win in the Fifa Women's World Cup? The USA Women's soccer team has not been titled world champions since 1999. It's been a long time coming! 16 years to be exact! So in honor of these incredibly talented athletes, here are some things that you may not know about a few of the women that now represent our country as the best female soccer players in the world.
Abby Wambach, professional soccer veteran, has more than 15 years of experience in the game. She seems to have it all – the athleticism, the competitive edge, the skill, but up until the final game on Sunday, there was one thing that Wambach lacked: a world championship title. This was her final chance as she stepped onto the soccer field to play in her last World Cup. One thing that many do not know about the player, is that she leads the entire soccer world in goals scored over her professional career. At 183 goals, she has scored more than any male or female to have ever played the game. It was an emotional last game for Wambach, as all she wanted to prove to her country was that she could bring home a title. And she did just that.
Hope Solo, one of the greatest goalies in soccer history, never actually planned on becoming a goalie. Solo was originally a forward, and a very good one at that, with 109 career goals in high school. It wasn't until college that the forward was challenged to become a goalie for her team. Little did she know that one day she would be the goalie for the 2015 Women's World Cup Champions. At first Solo resisted the change, claiming "I hated it. Miserable. I begged to play on the field.” But Solo put in the work, stepped up to the plate, and became one of the most well renowned, and now world titled, soccer players.
Olympic Gold medalist and American midfielder, Megan Rapinoe, received quite a gift as the Americans secured the world title Sunday. Not only did Rapinoe celebrate the win, but she also celebrated her 30th birthday. I imagine Rapinoe wished extra hard for a win as she blew out her birthday candles. So, happy birthday, Megan! What better gift than a world championship title? Surely, they won't make you unwrap the trophy.
Midfielder Carli Lloyd was able to set a new record in World Cup history on Sunday night as she scored the fastest hat trick (three goals) in the history of the game, all within the first sixteen minutes. Lloyd even scored the first two goals within the first five minutes! She set the fast paced game on the side of the Americans from the very beginning. In addition, according to ESPN, Lloyd is now only the second player to score twice in a Women's World Cup final, the first being Michelle Akers in 1991. Subsequently, Carli Lloyd even set a new record, with the first hat trick in a Women's World Cup final.
Another notable midfielder, Tobin Heath, entered the 2015 World Cup Finals with not only excitement, but fear. Heath has no doubt been haunted by the devastating loss to Japan in the 2011 World Cup Final. The game in 2011 would be decided by penalty kicks, and Heath was the only option to kick for the American team. The game rested on her shoulders, and to her disbelief, her shot was blocked. This block resulted in a Japanese win and the Americans took second place. Earlier this year Heath said to Fifa in an interview, "For me, 2011 was just a heartbreak. The whole motivation now is for that not to happen again and to win a World Cup. For every player in the group, they’re believing that Canada 2015 is our World Cup. This is our World Cup to win and that’s how we’re preparing." Well, Tobin, this certainly was your World Cup. The past is in the past!
Two time Olympic Gold medalist, Lauren Holiday, attributes her immense success as a soccer player to something much higher than herself. Holiday stated in an interview with FCA, "I'm on the field for a reason. It's not for me, and it's not for the goals, even though I really love to score goals. I'm having fun and I'm playing the game that God gave me the talent to play. It's competing for people to recognize something in you that they don't recognize in other people. It's competing for Christ to be the center." It's no doubt that Holiday has succeeded in her career and in her goal to impact other people. She stated, "Every time I step foot on the field, I know that, through my effort and play, I’m glorifying Him." Her spirit is contagious and is certainly that of a World Champion!
