Aug 6, 2023; Melbourne, AUS; United States players including defender Naomi Girma (4), forward Lynn Williams (6), midfielder Kristie Mewis (22), defender Crystal Dunn (19) and midfielder Lindsey Horan (10) react after losing to Sweden in the penalty kick shootout during a Round of 16 match in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jenna Watson-USA TODAY Sports
The 2023 World Cup was the first time the U.S. women’s national team failed to finish in the top three at a Women’s World Cup — ever. They were eliminated by Sweden in the Round of 16 in a shootout, and by the standards this program had set for itself, it was a historic failure. But maybe the most important question in the postmortem is not “how did they lose?” but “how did a team with that much talent become so disconnected?”
The answer was not one single moment or one single problem. The warning signs were there before the penalty shootout in Melbourne. Against Portugal in the group stage, for example, the U.S. advanced but looked vulnerable in a way that would have been unfamiliar in previous tournaments. They controlled possession but struggled to consistently create danger, and needed the final whistle to avoid an almost unthinkable exit at the group stage. It was a glimpse of the larger issue: the Americans still had the ball, but they did not always have answers.
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