Column: Is the USA women’s soccer team going downhill?

By Claire Guest 

After losing consecutive games against two of Europe’s best, the United States Women’s National Soccer team broke its unparalleled five-year stretch of international success. England beat the USWNT 2-1 on October 7th, and less than a week later Spain defeated the USWNT with a 2-0 shutout. This is a troubling sign for the USWNT as the World Cup approaches in the summer of 2023.

The England Lionesses, reigning European Champions, hosted the World Cup Champions, the USWNT, in a much-anticipated clash. Following an incredibly successful summer in England, the Lionesses kept their momentum under new coach Serina Wiegman. In front of a sold-out crowd of 90,000 fans at Wembley Stadium in London, the Lionesses scored two goals, one by Lauren Hemp and a second on a penalty kick by Georgia Stanway to negate the lone goal by Sophia Smith for the USWNT.

While this is a growing, fierce rivalry, both teams joined in solidarity supporting sexual abuse victims exposed in recent stories from the National Women’s Soccer League in the United States.

The USWNT’s second loss came courtesy of Europe’s most technically sound team, Spain. This was a different Spanish team, as 15 regulars asked not to play in protest of the mistreatment of players by the Spanish FA and its head manager. The Spanish Coach was forced to deploy new players for this crucial game against the USWNT. Despite this “Second Team” lineup, the Spanish team handled the USWNT and emerged with an impressive 2-0 victory.

The World Cup is less than 8 months away, and while these recent losses are troubling, the USWNT has faced similar challenges in the past but has still been successful in the World Cup.

In the team’s two most recent World Cup Championships in 2015 and 2019, the USWNT had actually lost significant games against top-level opponents prior to the major tournament. In 2015, the USWNT lost to France 2-0 and in 2019, the USWNT lost to France 3-1. Yet, in the summer of both 2015 and 2019, they went on to be crowned World Champions.

This setback the USWNT just experienced in Europe is crucial for the growth and improvement of the U.S. team. These losses against England and Spain caused some fright for the team and its fans, yet it also prompts necessary development and adversity.