After the US Women’s National Team (USWNT) won the FIFA World Cup, head coach Jill Ellis announced she was going to be stepping down after coaching the team for five years. During this time the team won back-to-back World Cup titles, won 106 games, tied 19, and only lost 7. She is the second coach to win back-to-back World Cup championships, playing an important part in the team’s accomplishments.
This October, the US Soccer Federation announced the new USWNT coach, Vlatko Andonovski. He is well known for previously coaching the National Women’s Soccer League for seven years. He coached the Kansas City Comets, FC Kansas City, and Reign FC, which included two players from the USWNT, Megan Rapinoe and Becky Sauerbrunn. From coaching in the National Women’s Soccer League, he was promoted to coaching the USWNT. This puts a lot of pressure on him because of all the prior accomplishments the USWNT had. Many people wonder if the team will continue to uphold their title because of the new coach. So far, the women won their last two games of the year with the new coach. FIFA has invested $500 million more in the USWNT, totaling to a $1 billion investment for the next four years. The FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, stated, “We need to be a little bit brave and a little bit bold if we want to move women’s soccer to the next level, we need to stop copying what we do in the men’s games”(Forbes). The women need to continue their reign in order to prove the investment is worth it. Also, Infantino wants to launch a Women’s Club World Cup in the next two years, which shows he is willing to do something different. Alex Morgan, One of the USWNT players, is currently pregnant. Prior to her pregnancy, she was captain on the USWNT, starting every game as the center forward. Her baby girl will arrive in April 2020, however, Alex is still planning to play in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with the USWNT. She is one of many women to return to a sport after having children if all goes well. “After having a healthy baby, I want to get back with the national team and look forward to playing in Tokyo. I plan to follow in those footsteps and be one of those women who have a family and carry my daughter around as I am going to the next city to play. And I still want to continue to enjoy the sport that I’ve been playing for all my life”(USA Today). The USWNT will be losing a key player until the Olympics next year but I think they will still be able to hold up. |