During the Olympic qualifiers, I had the pleasure of spending time with the USWNT. These women work so hard and are absolutely determined to win gold in London.
After an epic semi-final game at Old Trafford against Canada on Monday night, the USWNT once again showed their belief in each other and their flair for late drama. A superb cross from the skillful Heather O’Reilly to future superstar Alex Morgan broke Canadian hearts everywhere. And let’s not forget Megan Rapinoe, who undoubtedly had the game of her life! During camp, I was fortunate to chat with one of the heroes from tonight’s game, Heather O’ Reilly. She talks about what it means to play for her country, her love for Tim McGraw and her admiration for Lionel Messi. You will love her energy. Enjoy the Soccerdiva Soundbite.
Heather is one of those hard working players. Her cross was so accurate that her technique is getting a little lost in the fact Alex Morgan finished the header in such dramatic fashion. Great to hear these ladies from when they were in training camp because now we are seeing the hard work pay off and the entire United States is proud of them. Just wish women’s soccer would sustain and succeed at club level, but I don’t think that’s possible.
People embrace women’s soccer every four years be it the Olympics or WWC. We will see how things go after this Olympics with players at Seattle etc. The game needs money and marketing. The Premier League became the Premier League not only because of the talent, but also because the marketing pounds thrown at it. Women’s game needs a huge injection of money and sponsorship and people running it like a business. But it needs people who believe in it too. It’s not that long ago people didn’t believe in men’s soccer here and look at the growth of MLS. It’s possible, but it’s also impossible in some regards if there is no money behind it.