The FIFA Women’s World Cup kicked off last Thursday, July 20, in Australia and New Zealand. This year marks the first time that the women’s cup is held in two countries, with a record number of 32 teams, three of which have Chicago rooted players.
For eight countries, this is their first time playing in a Women’s World Cup. The teams making their first appearance are the Philippines, Ireland, Zambia, Vietnam, Portugal, Panama, Morocco and Haiti.
The Philippines take on this historical tournament for the first time in the team’s 42-year history with the help of former University of Illinois star defender Alicia Barker. Now playing for Pacific Northwest SC, Barker made her national team debut for the Philippines in a friendly game against Papua New Guinea.
The team qualified for the cup after their victory against Chinese Taipei in the quarterfinals of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup. Barker and the Philippines drew into Group A and are the lowest-ranked team. Because of this, their first game of the cup was a surprise as they won against New Zealand 1-0.
For Team USA, winning games during this year’s cup is an expectation. Chicago Red Stars’ goalie, Alyssa Naeher, is the starting goalkeeper for the second year in a row, entering her third World Cup. Naeher joined the United States Women’s Soccer Team roster for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Since then, she has become the United States Women’s National Team‘s number one goalkeeper, taking over the spot Hope Solo held for many years.
In their first game of the tournament, the USA won 3-0 against Vietnam. Their next game is Wednesday, July 26, at 8 p.m. against the Netherlands.
Another Chicago Red Stars player, Cheyna Matthews, is playing in the Women’s World Cup, representing her mother’s birthplace, Jamaica. Matthews made her first appearance with this team in 2019 at their training camp to prepare for the first Women’s World Cup appearance in Jamaica’s history.
She was then selected for the 2019 team after a friendly game against Chile, thus making this her second World Cup appearance with Jamaica. In the team’s first match against France, they tied 0-0, making their next game on Saturday, July 29, highly anticipated.
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