May 29, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) and guard Marcus Smart (36) react after the loss against the Miami Heat in game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals for the 2023 NBA playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
The USA is out of the Women’s World Cup after losing to Sweden in a thrilling 5-4 penalty shootout.
The defeat was the US’s earliest World Cup exit ever, and it was probably Megan Rapinoe’s last match as an American icon. In the eight prior tournaments, the US had advanced to at least the semifinals and had won four of them.
The majority of the American team’s chances were created during the game, but Zećira Mušović of Sweden saved vital shots against Lindsey Horan and Alex Morgan to retain the score 0-0 after extra time.
On Friday, the Swedes will take on Japan in the Women’s World Cup quarterfinals.
On Sunday, Megan Rapinoe made a heartfelt appearance as she witnessed her United States team eliminated from the Women’s World Cup.
The 38-year-old, who made her retirement from the game official in October after the 2023 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) season ended, entered the game late against Sweden but failed to convert a penalty kick in the shootout.
For me, it feels like a horrible joke. Rapinoe said to Fox Sports, “I’m like, ‘This is dark comedy, I missed a penalty.'”
Speaking following what may have been her final match for the US team, soccer icon Rapinoe opted to focus on the enjoyable moments she had while representing her nation.
Rapinoe helped the United States win two World Cup championships and won Olympic gold in London 2012 throughout her illustrious international career.
She remarked, “I still just feel so happy and grateful, and I know it’s the end, which is sad.”
“However, the fact that this is essentially the first instance in which I’ve encountered one of these (circumstances) at such a young age speaks much about my level of accomplishment and my desire of representing my nation and team. It has been a privilege.
With its long-standing dominance in women’s soccer, the US has set the highest standards for itself, so accomplishing a historic, unprecedented three-peat was always going to be challenging.
It is quite difficult to win three titles in a row at the professional club level in any sport, much less international soccer where no country has ever won three straight World Cups in the men’s or women’s competition.
Time and, most of the time, diminishing motivation are the two major obstacles to long-term sporting performance. The years in between World Cup editions only heighten the anxiety that comes with maintaining success over an extended length of time, which requires an incredible amount of skill, effort, and dedication.
At the club level, professional teams struggle to maintain a core championship group intact for three years in a row; the US women’s team tried to accomplish the same feat eight years after winning the 2015 World Cup. Only five players from 2015 were included in the tournament roster, reflecting the significant loss of the legendary generation of players that won that competition.
The Chicago Bulls of the 1990s, the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Lakers in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Boston Celtics and Montreal Canadiens in the middle of the 20th century, and the New York Yankees (again) in the 1930s and 1940s are just a few of the teams that have achieved a three-peat that are considered legendary.
