In a theme becoming all too familiar for American soccer on the international stage, the United States women’s national team was placed in the Group of Death for the Women’s World Cup next summer in Canada, a daunting task in the quest for their first title since 1999.
The Americans were placed in Group D with Australia, Nigeria and Sweden, easily the toughest of the six groups unveiled during the official draw ceremony on Saturday in Ottawa. It's the only group in the tournament featuring three teams in the top 10 in FIFA's most recent rankings.
The Americans are currently ranked No. 1 in the world after a spotless run through CONCACAF qualifying, but now they’ll face the best team from Africa (No. 35 Nigeria), the best from Asia (No. 10 Australia) and a European powerhouse in the Swedes, who beat the US during the group stage in the 2011 World Cup and boast a familiar face on the sideline.
Currently ranked No. 6 in the world, the Swedes are led by former US head coach and Sweden native Pia Sundhage, who left the US team in September 2012 after four years on the job. Under Sundhage, the Swedes beat the Americans in the Algarve Cup earlier this year and tied them in the same tournament last year.
They are the only team in next summer’s World Cup who has beaten the US during the past two years.
The Americans will open the tournament against Australia on June 8 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They’ll take on Sweden on June 12 in Winnipeg, and close the group stage against Nigeria on June 16 at BC Place in Vancouver.
The draw was difficult but not quite as harsh on the Canadians, who automatically qualified as seeded team as the host nation. They’re joined in Group A by China, New Zealand and the Netherlands.
Canada are currently ranked No. 8 in the world, while China are ranked 14th, New Zealand are 15th and New Zealand are 19th.
Canada will open the tournament against China on June 6 in Edmonton, Alberta, and will follow against the Netherlands on June 11 in Edmonton and close the group against New Zealand on June 15 in Montreal.
If there’s any consolation to the American and Canadian squads, the 24-team Women’s World Cup allows for slightly more wiggle room than the 32-team men’s World Cup. While the top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout round, the four teams with the best third-place finishes will also qualify to fill out the final 16-team bracket.
The US men’s national team were drawn into what most experts considered the Group of Death in the World Cup this summer, but managed to advance to the knockout round.
Despite their pedigree of international success and gold medals in each of the past three Olympic games, the US women have not won a World Cup since their iconic breakthrough in 1999 on American soil. They finished runner-up to Japan in 2011 and in third place in both 2007 and 2003.
Canada, meanwhile, finished fourth in 2003 but have not advanced past the group stage in four of the past five tournaments.
The semifinals of the Women’s World Cup will be in Edmonton and Montreal, while the final will take place on July 5 at BC Place in Vancouver.
