WOLFSBURG, Germany — The United States plays Sweden in the group stage finale at the Women’s World Cup on Wednesday, a game that would seem to have little importance with both teams already through to the quarterfinals.
But there is plenty at stake for the Americans, starting with the bragging rights — and everything that comes with them — for winning the group.
“We go for a win,” U.S. coach Pia Sundhage said Monday. “Absolutely.”
The two-time World Cup champions need only a draw against Sweden to win Group C and likely avoid a quarterfinal matchup with Brazil. The Group C winner plays the second-place team in Group D, likely to be Australia or Norway, while the Group C runner-up gets the Group D winner.
Brazil, runner-up in 2007 and at the last two Olympics, needs only a draw against World Cup newcomer Equatorial Guinea to win Group D.
The United States has beaten Sweden all three times they’ve played in the World Cup. But Sweden beat the U.S. 2-1 in January, one of three losses in a five-month span after the Americans had gone more than two years without a loss.
Since arriving in Germany, however, the U.S. team has had little resemblance to the team that struggled just to get here.
Only Japan (six) has scored more than the five goals the Americans had in their first two games. (France also has five goals.) Though Abby Wambach and fellow forward Amy Rodriguez have yet to score, the U.S. team is getting production from an abundance of players and places. Five players have scored, including defender Rachel Buehler.
“We know that we’re entertaining people,” goalkeeper Hope Solo said. “We’re not just winning games. You can see that swagger back in the U.S. team whether it’s the way we celebrate goals, whether it’s the way you can see we’re enjoying the game again. It’s not just that hard-fought, ‘blood and guts glorified’ game. It’s the game we love.”
