WOMEN'S SOCCER WORLD CUP 2011: Victory for Sweden and disaster for United States and Norway

Victory for Sweden and disaster for United States and Norway


Matchday 10 is one two former winners of the FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011™, namely Norway and USA, will want to forget. A pair of 2-1 defeats, to Australia and Sweden respectively, left them both suffering different fates. For Norway, it was the first time they had failed to qualify for the last eight in their past eight FIFA women's tournaments, while USA lost their proud unbeaten record in the group stage.

For Australia and Brazil, however, there were reasons to cheer. By virtue of their 3-0 win over Equatorial Guinea, the South Americans won their group for the fourth time in a row and, just like in 2007, they neither dropped a point nor conceded a goal. The Matildas, meanwhile, have reached the quarter-finals for the second successive time, gaining one more point in the group stage than four years ago. Today’s results complete the quarter final line-up, with Sweden meeting Australia in Augsburg and USA and Brazil squaring off in Dresden.

Results

Equatorial Guinea 0-3 Brazil

Australia 2-1 Norway

Sweden 2–1 USA

Korea DPR 0-0 Colombia

Goal of the day

Australia-Norway, Kyah Simon ‘57

Compared to yesterday, which boasted candidates for the Goal of the Tournament, stunning strikes on Matchday 10 were pretty much non-existent. But there may be no goal more dramatic at Germany 2011 than Simon's equaliser for Australia against Norway. Just 63 seconds after Elise Thorsnes had given her side the lead, Tom Sermanni’s team responded in the best possible fashion. Lisa De Vanna won possession near the corner flag, before pulling the ball back perfectly for Simon to side-foot home. It was the second-fastest equaliser at a FIFA Women's World Cup, level with Australian Dianne Alagich, who put through her own net to equalise for Russia at USA 2003. The quickest equaliser at a FIFA Women’s World Cup was scored by Nkiru Okosieme, who netted for Nigeria a matter of seconds after the Americans had scored against them 12 years ago.

Memorable moments

Me and my shadow

Coaches are always pleased when players follow the instructions to the letter. Therefore, Marcello Frigerio must have been delighted with Bruna for the job she performed on Marta during the first half of Equatorial Guinea's match with Brazil. The 27-year-old defender stuck to the five-time FIFA Women's World Player of the Year like glue, including chasing her in the South Americans' own area. Shortly before half-time, Marta went to Kleiton Lima to get some instructions and Bruna went too. Perhaps understandably, the two Brazilians decided not to talk!

Third time unlucky

Spare a thought for Ingrid Hjelmseth. Not only was she born in the same era as Norwegian great Bente Nordby, who relegated her to the bench for many years, but injury ruled her out of the past two FIFA Women's World Cups. Although she was fit and first choice for this campaign, she landed awkwardly on her left ankle after making a routine catch and required treatment. Although she was able to continue for the final 15 minutes of the first half, she was replaced at half-time by Erika Skarbo.

Dance and deliberance

Following stand-in captain Nilla Fischer’s 35th minute free-kick, which deflected off the unfortunate Amy LePeilbet, the Swedes performs their trademark celebration of Germany 2011: the dance routine of Moussier Tombola’s Logobitombo inside the penalty area. Just a few yards away, USA veteran Shannon Boxx was rallying the stunned Stars and Stripes. To all those in Wolfsburg it was a reminder that football is indeed a game of mixed emotions.

The stat

17 – Before this evening's game, USA had never lost any of their 17 group games at the FIFA Women's World Cup. Indeed, they had always finished at their section’s summit with a record of 15 wins and two draws. However, Sweden's two first-half goals condemned them to enter uncharted waters and a tricky looking quarter-final clash with Brazil in the process.

The quote

“I came off my line to collect the ball from Servet [Uzunlar], but because I was close to the edge of the box, I could collect it with my hands so I tried to use my head. It didn't work! Because I couldn't score a goal myself, I'm thanking God for the strikers that we have who were able to put the ball in the back of the net! Football is a funny game sometimes,” Melissa Barbieri, Australia goalkeeper and captain, explaining the circumstances which led to Norway’s goal in Leverkusen.

Next up

Saturday 9 July

England-France, Leverkusen, 18.00

Germany-Japan, Wolfsburg, 20.45


GERMANY VS JAPAN HUNTING FOR A BERTH ON SEMIFINALS
Two nations with very different FIFA Women's World Cup™ pedigree, Germany and Japan, will meet in Wolfsburg’s Arena Im Allerpark hunting a berth in the final four at Germany 2011. Germany have only missed qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup semi-finals once; that being in the 1999 tournament.


Conversely, Japan have reached the last eight just once, which was back at Sweden 1995. Indeed prior to this tournament the Nadeshiko had won just three matches in their five previous appearances among the world elite.

The game

Germany – Japan, Saturday 9 July, Wolfsburg, 20.45 CET

The stakes

The winner of this contest will face either Sweden or Australia in Frankfurt, and will leave them only 180 minutes away from FIFA Women’s World Cup glory. Germany will of course have the benefit of home crowd support; a backing which seems to be growing in intensity with every match they play.

Unsurprisingly, history heavily favours Germany who are undefeated in their eight meetings with Japan, recording seven wins. However the last match-up, played in July 2009 in Mannheim, finished 0-0.

Japan have yet to score a goal in three defeats against Germany in the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Additionally the Nadeshiko have never defeated a European nation at the tournament, losing eight and drawing just once. However Japan have crept up the international pecking order in recent years, claiming a number of significant scalps, and they were the seeded team in Group B at Germany 2011.

Japan will be hoping that Homare Sawa returns to the kind of goalscoring form which saw the inspirational midfielder score Germany 2011's only treble, in the second group match against Mexico. Now in her fifth tournament, Sawa is set to become the second most-capped Asian player on the world stage with 16 appearances, four behind China’s Sun Wen.

The match will be particularly special for Kozue Ando and Yuki Nagasato who both featured prominently in the most recent Bundesliga season, turning out for Duisburg and Turbine Potsdam respectively.

The stat

15 – Germany are unbeaten in their last 15 matches in the FIFA Women’s World Cup, claiming an incredible 14 wins and one draw during that period. Their last defeat dates back to the 1999 quarter-final, where the European powerhouse suffered a 3-2 defeat against USA who went on to win the tournament on home soil.

The words

“You could see we wanted to win at all costs (in the final group match against France) and now we've got the confidence to face a very strong Japan side in the quarter-finals.” Silvia Neid, Germany coach.


Three and easy for Brazil, now in QF against United States 

An improved second-half showing from group winners Brazil saw them defeat Equatorial Guinea 3-0 at the FIFA Women’s World Cup Stadium in Frankfurt.

Brazil had a great chance to score with two minutes on the clock. A free-kick whipped into the box by Marta almost found both Cristiane and Erika who had made great runs, but the ball flew agonisingly between them.

The South Americans were the dominant side were enjoying a huge amount of possession. However, they were constantly let down by their wayward passing and poor anticipation. The order unforced errors gave the Nzalang Nacional confidence they grew in stature during the first half.

Indeed, an inswinging free-kick almost saw Equatorial Guinea take the lead. Anonman turned sharply to deceive her marker Ester and pounce on Dorine’s set piece, but Andreia came out to smother her goalbound effort.

Marta tried to score straight from the corner in the 27th minute, but Miriam at full stretch was able to palm the ball away. The first half petered out as a contest after that, but Brazil emerged from the from the break with more dedication.

They took the lead four minutes after the restart when Maurine’s cross-cum-shot was blocked by Miriam into the path of Erika who played the ball over Ana Cristina volleyed it home with her left foot. Six minutes later they doubled their advantage when Marta show powered down the left wing and delivered a perfect cross to the near post. Cristiane outpaced marker Dulcia to nip in ahead with her right boot.

Equatorial Guinea had their chances too. Carolina’s free-kick from 30 yards went narrowly wide and Anonman’s went even closer. Just as it seemed that the Africans may grab a consolation, Brazil scored the third of the game when Bruna far smarter in the box and from the resulting penalty Cristiane made no mistake.

Kleiton Lima’s side will now meet USA Dresden on Sunday 10 July.

Player of the match: Erika (BRA)

WOMEN'S SOCCER WORLD CUP: Germany thrill, win 4-2 to France and finish top

Following two uninspiring, single-goal victories, Germany, the hosts, holders and overwhelming pre-tournament favourites, exhilarated spectators at the third time of asking in this FIFA Women's World Cup™. Indeed Silva Neid's side beat France, who finished with ten players, 4-2 in the battle to see which team went through as Group A winners and which as runners-up. Kerstin Garefrekes, Inka Grings (2) and Celia Okoyino da Mbabi got the German goals in the tournament's highest-scoring match to date.


Germany will now meet Japan in a Wolfsburg quarter-final on Saturday, while France encounter England in Leverkusen on the same day.

Les Bleues, boasting the superior goal difference, required only a draw to finish at the section summit, and the first ten minutes in Monchengladbach were evenly balanced. Germany assumed control of possession thereafter, though, and after their attempts to employ through-balls to create chances were repelled, they decided to go down a different avenue by sending crosses into the box.

It paid dividends. First, Garefrekes leapt highest to powerfully head home an inviting Babett Peter free-kick on 25 minutes, and soon after Grings nodded a delightful Simone Laudehr cross past Berangere Sapowicz to make it 2-0.

Following the restart, Bruno Bini's girls demonstrated their own aerial prowess, with half-time substitute Marie-Laure Delie somehow winning the ball inside a congested area to head home a Sandrine Soubeyrand corner on 56 minutes.

Twelve minutes later, though, Germany seemingly put the contest beyond their opponents' reach. Fatmire Bajramaj was hauled down by Sapowicz, and the referee pointed to the spot and red-carded the France keeper. Celine Deville came off the bench to stand between the sticks, but the 29-year-old's first touch was to pick the ball out of the back of the net, having been sent the wrong way by Grings.

France nevertheless refused to throw in the towel, and four minutes later they halved the deficit via Laura Georges's thumping header from a corner. Moments later they were almost level, with Delie eluding her marker but pulling her shot narrowly wide from inside the box.

But that was to be the underdogs' final throw of the dice. Within moments, a fine Grings free-kick drew gasps from the crowd as it hit the side-nentting, before Bajramaj's effort was clered off the line by the sliding Camille Abily.

Germany finally got the fourth goal their pressure deserved a minute from time, with Okoyino da Mbabi Peter completing the move following nice work from Peter and Garefrekes. It sent the Monchengladbach crowd into raptures. Finally, their heroines had showcased the brand of football which had installed them as the competition's team to beat.

WOMEN'S SOCCER FIFA WORLD CUP: USA and Sweden got their victories

WOMEN'S SOCCER FIFA WORLD CUP, DAY REPLAYED

– There were wins for the favourites on the third day of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ as world No1 USA defeated Korea DPR, and Sweden saw off Colombia. However, once again the theme of the day was the closeness of competition in front of buoyant crowds enjoying warm German sunshine. It has been a recurring premise and after three days of competition, the tournament would have seen six matches completed without a two-goal winning margin, but for USA’s second clinching goal against Korea DPR.


The two-time world champions made their much-anticipated debut at Germany 2011, and the Stars and Stripes were made to work extremely hard before overcoming a typically resolute Korea DPR in Dresden. Lauren Cheney broke the stalemate nine minutes after the interval, before Rachel Buehler sealed the victory with around a quarter of an hour to play. Sweden found tournament debutants Colombia to be in equally stubborn mood although the European heavyweights spurned a number of goalscoring opportunities. Jessica Landstrom was the major culprit with a notable first-half miss, only to make up for it with a second-half conversion after being set up by the always impressive Lotta Schelin.


Results

Colombia 0-1 Sweden

USA 2-0 Korea DPR

Goal of the day

USA – Korea DPR, Lauren Cheney, 54

While not having the spectacular appeal of some of the goals seen in the opening two days, Lauren Cheney’s headed strike to break the deadlock against Korea DPR was meritorious in its own right. Abby Wambach created space on the left flank before delivering a telling cross onto the head of Cheney who, having lost her marker, was able to expertly direct her header back across goal and inside the far post.
Memorable moments

Well supported Boxx

USA’s veteran midfielder Shannon Boxx seemingly enjoyed the support of her own fan club in Dresden today. The veteran of two FIFA Women’s World Cups enjoyed the support of around 20 people holding a banner and cheering her every move. Perhaps her 34th birthday tomorrow also helped Boxx get through 90 torrid minutes in warm conditions at the Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion.

Debutants singing up storm

Colombia helped throw off their FIFA Women’s World Cup debutant nerves with some rhythmic singing and swaying in the tunnel prior to the match against Sweden. Skipper Natalia Gaitan led the way as the team went through their repertoire of Colombian songs which they have adapted to their own lyrics, however, the defender was far more reticent when asked for a reprise by the media after the match.

The stat

12 – The FIFA Women’s World Cup would have seen six consecutive matches decided by a margin of one goal or less for the first time, but for Rachel Buehler’s second goal for USA 14 minutes from full time against Korea DPR. Only once before had five consecutive matches had such close results, which was 12 years ago at the 1999 edition of the tournament in USA. Germany 2011 had previously seen four one-goal victories and a draw until this evening’s match in Dresden.

The quote

“The atmosphere was really great and you could really feel the support of the fans on the pitch. We want to get as far as possible in this tournament but we have a very hard group so we have to be fully focused for each game.” Sara Thunebro, Sweden defender

Today's Games
Wednesday 29 June 2011

Norway – Equatorial Guinea, 15.00 CET, Augsburg

Brazil – Australia, 18.15 CET, Moenchengladbach

USA made their Germany 2011 debut with a solid victory over perennial Asian challengers Korea DPR. What did you think of the Americans' debut and what are their chances of winning a third FIFA Women’s World Cup?

SWEDEN 1 COLOMBIA 0

Jessica Landstrom’s second-half goal proved to be the difference between Colombia and Sweden in Group C’s opening encounter in Leverkusen, but the scoreline failed to accurately reflect the Scandinavian’s dominance.


For anyone who watched this game in full the overriding question would be, 'how did it take Sweden 57 minutes to break the deadlock?' As early as the third minute they had a golden opportunity to take the lead but Colombia captain Natalia Gaitan was on hand to clear Lotta Schelin’s tame shot off the line.

Seven minutes later, Caroline Seger showed good skill to find Schelin in the box, but once again the Lyon forward was to be denied by her old foe Gaitan on the line, ably assisted by Andrea Peralta. Sweden's other striker Landstrom was also having a bad day and somehow contrived to fire over after being well picked out by Schelin.

The Scandinavians were completely dominating possession and play and were also giving Sandra Sepulveda in the Colombia goal some uncomfortable moments from set pieces. As the half wore on the South Americans did well to contain the Swedes, but they also struggled to create any chances of their own.

In temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius, he second half was much the same as the first. Ten minutes after the restart, Schelin was forced to watch on in agony as her shot, under pressure from Peduzine, beat the keeper but trickled across the face of the goal and wide. That chance was enough to make Sweden coach Thomas Dennerby rest his head on the top of the dugout in frustration, but a minute later he was dancing with delight.

Schelin showed great trickery down the right flank and her low cross which beat the keeper was easily prodded into the net by Landstrom’s left foot. After that, Sweden could and should have scored more. Missed chances came and went. Therese Sjogran opted to shoot herself rather than square the ball to the well-placed Landstrom and impressive substitute Sofia Jakobsson brought a smart save out of Sepulveda.

In response, Colombia rarely threatened and two dipping shots from Carmen Rodallega in the second half which narrowly missed the target were their only chance of note during the 90 minutes.

USA 2 NORTH KOREA 0

Second-half goals from Lauren Cheney and Rachel Buehler helped get USA off to the best possible start in Group C with a 2-0 win over Korea DPR in Dresden.


Pia Sundhage’s side were made to work hard for the three points by their spirited opponents, whose slick passing and pace ensured a busy evening for the US back four in the fourth meeting between these two teams at a FIFA Women’s World Cup.

There was very little to separate both sides in the opening half. After a tight start to the game, the first real chance came in the 11th minute for USA when Abby Wambach supplied Cheney inside the box, but her powerful right-footed shot was straight at Hong Myong Hui.

The North Koreans' best attacks were coming down the USA left, through Song Jong Sun and Kim Su Gyong, but Cheney and Amy Le Peilbet proved to be worthy opponents to limit them to half-chances.

USA went close again following a neat interchange between Heather O’Reilly and Wambach. Carli Lloyd was the grateful recipient of the chance, but she scuffed her effort and it was easy for the goalkeeper.

Arguably the chance of the half fell to the Asians in the 35th minute. Under pressure from Le Peilbet, Kim Su Gyong fired in a shot from a tight angle which Hope Solo did well to turn around the post. A few minutes later, Song Jong Sun fired a dangerous ball into the box, but neither Yun Hyong Hi nor Ri Ye Gyong could provide a finishing touch.

As so often happened during the half, play switched immediately to the other end and, in almost a carbon copy of the Koreans' earlier chance, Amy Rodriguez's ball was inches away from connecting with the stretching Wambach.

The opening minutes of the second half set the tone for what followed in the second 45 minutes. Wambach was close to opening the scoring, again just failing to connect with a pass, but vocal Americans in the crowd did not have long to wait to celebrate.

In the 54th minute, Ali Krieger dribbled down the left and found Wambach, who cut inside and crossed with her right foot. Cheney soared, connected and USA were in front.

Korea DPR almost had the perfect response five minutes later when Ri Ye Gyong’s shot from distance had the goalkeeper beaten, but clipped the top of the crossbar.

As the half wore on, the physical intensity of the game appeared to be taking its toll on the Koreans and in the 76th minute USA doubled their advantage when Buehler’s low shot crept just inside the post and beyond the outstretched arm of Hong.

Although the US had a goal disallowed for a foul on the goalkeeper late on, chances were at a premium in the closing stages, but Korea DPR almost grabbed a consolation when Ri Un Hyang powered a header wide from Jo Yun Mi’s corner.

RACHEL BUEHLER, ONE OF THE SHINING U.S. STARS

Rachel Buehler was wearing a bright smile when she faced reporters after USA's 2–0 victory over DPR Korea in their first group fixture. Her upbeat mood was prompted not merely by the victory, nor the terrific support both teams received from the good-sized crowd, but also because she had scored her side's second goal. Strikers finding the net is hardly a rarity, but Buehler plies her trade in defence, and goals are not really her stock in trade.


It was the 25-year-old's first appearance at the FIFA Women's World Cup™, and she freely admitted to an attack of the nerves. “I was very tense in the first half, but I just had to get on with it. I grew in confidence the longer the game went on, and I thought it was a pretty robust performance by the end," Buehler told FIFA.com. A solid defensive display against the powerful Asians was then crowned as her goal sealed the points.

However, the likeable player was keen to play down her own contribution to the win, preferring to emphasise a promising team display. “The Koreans pushed us all the way in the first half. They had some good moments, and we did too. But we had more possession in the second half and we were more dangerous on the attack. We steadily improved as the game went on. We played with a lot of heart and determination."

GERMANY: Ready for the next challenge

FIFA Women's World Cup™ holders Germany meet African champions Nigeria in Frankfurt on Thursday evening, and although it is only the second match for both nations, there is already plenty at stake. The hosts are hoping to continue riding the wave of euphoria currently sweeping the nation, but the Super Falcons urgently need a good result to make up for their poor start to the tournament. Last year's FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup provided an appetiser for Thursday evening's clash, as the German juniors beat their Nigerian counterparts 2–0 in the final. The meeting between the seniors could well be decisive in determining the final Group A outcome.


The game

Germany-Nigeria, Thursday 30 June 2011, Frankfurt, 8.45 pm (local time)

The stakes

The teams approach Thursday's clash in contrasting moods. Heartened by their 2–1 opening-day victory over Canada, and guaranteed the support of another huge and partisan home crowd, the Germans will be brimming with confidence as they pursue a second victory and top spot in the group. On the other hand, the Nigerians’ 1–0 defeat to France in their first match means they must go in search of points against the favourites for the trophy. That should make for an exciting game, as Ngozi Uche’s team cannot afford simply to defend and hope to come away with a draw.

Birgit Prinz and company thrashed the Nigerians 8–0 on a bitterly cold November evening in Leverkusen last year, on a night when pretty much everything went right for the home team. Nevertheless, Silvia Neid and her players know they will face far more motivated opponents this week. The Super Falcons are a robust, dynamic team always capable of putting their opponents under pressure, whereas the Germans will be looking to improve on their display in the Opening Match, after Neid expressed dissatisfaction with her team's passing in the meeting with Canada.

The stat

13 - No other player at the FIFA Women's World Cup 2011 scored as many goals in qualifying for the finals as Perpetua Nkwocha. The 35-year-old midfielder found the net on 13 occasions.

The words

"I think we'll see a very different Germany against Nigeria. We'll impose our authority on the match from the start until the end, and that'll give us a good chance of the three points," Germany defender Saskia Bartusiak

"We certainly have a chance of making the World Cup Final, and maybe even winning it," Nigeria keeper Precious Dede


The player praised the crowd’s passion and exuberance, citing it as a factor behind the American team's success. “Dresden was magnificent, and the atmosphere in the stadium was amazing, with so many spectators and so much support," she said. But for all the post-match delight, Buehler and her team-mates will not waste time basking in their victory, as the focus now turns to forthcoming opponents Colombia.

“We weren't able to watch the match between Colombia and Sweden, because we were totally focused on our game,” Buehler told FIFA.com, “but it will be very interesting to watch that match later on, so we can pick up some initial impressions. Colombia have a lot of talent, but as Pia [Sundhage] has told us all along, every team at the World Cup is very good. I know Colombia have a lot of talented players and skilled individuals. They'll be very dangerous."

WOMEN'S SOCCER WORLD CUP: Canada announces roster for Germany 2011

Canada announces roster for Germany 2011

Christine Sinclair



Canada has announced its official roster for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011. Coach Carolina Morace has selected 21 players eligible to play in the world’s biggest women’s sporting event, which runs this 26 June to 17 July in nine German cities.



All 16 national rosters will be officially posted this Friday 17 June on FIFA.com, including those of Canada’s opening round opponents Germany (26 June in Berlin), France (30 June in Bochum) and Nigeria (5 July in Dresden).



This will mark Canada’s fifth-consecutive participation in the FIFA Women’s World Cup dating back to 1995. The team has also already qualified for the next FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2015 when the event will be hosted by Canada.



Of note on the Canadian roster, goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc has been selected for her fourth FIFA Women’s World Cup, making her just the second Canadian to earn that distinction. Canada’s only other four-time FIFA Women’s World Cup participant is Andrea Neil, now an assistant coach (along with Elisabetta Bavagnoli) on coach Morace’s staff.



Canada’s captain and all-time leader in appearances is Christine Sinclair, now taking part in her third FIFA Women’s World Cup. Sinclair ranks amongst the top-5 all-time global leaders in international goals, with 116 to her credit in 159 career matches.



Canada’s vice-captain is Diana Matheson, who ranks second amongst active players with 122 career appearances for Canada. Sinclair, Matheson, Erin McLeod, Brittany Timko and Rhian Wilkinson are all taking part in their third FIFA Women’s World Cup.



Sinclair, Matheson, Timko (101) and Wilkinson (100) are all part of Canada’s century club. An additional seven players have made 50 or more appearances. Counting all 21 players, this squad has made 1,244 player appearances at the international level, an average of nearly 60 matches per player.



Nine players are taking part in their first FIFA Women’s World Cup. The youngest players are Jonelle Filigno (still only 20) and Chelsea Stewart (just turned 21), both of whom have won Canadian U-20 Player of the Year honours in recent years.



Of the nine first-time participants at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, three are actually taking part in their first-ever FIFA event: Christina Julien, Marie-Eve Nault and Kelly Parker. The other six players have all previously taken part in at least one FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.



Along with Canada’s official list of 21 players, coach Morace has selected four alternates that would be selected in case of injury before the opening match.



Canada, whose title sponsor is Winners and presenting sponsor is Teck, has a 2011 record of 10 wins, one draw and two losses in 13 matches. This marks the first time Canada has won 10 or more games in back-to-back seasons. Canada also enters the FIFA Women’s World Cup as the reigning CONCACAF champions, having won the confederation title back in November in Cancún, Mexico.





CANADA

Number
Position
Name
Current club Numéro
Position
Nom
Club actuel

1- GK- Karina LeBlanc
Unattached / sans club

2- D- Emily Zurrer
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

3- M- Kelly Parker
USA / Atlanta Beat

4- M- Carmelina Moscato
Unattached / sans club

5- D- Robyn Gayle
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

6- M- Kaylyn Kyle
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

7- M- Rhian Wilkinson
NOR / Lillestrøm SK Kvinner

8- M- Diana Matheson
NOR / Lillestrøm SK Kvinner

9- D- Candace Chapman
USA / Western New York Flash

10- F- Jodi-Ann Robinson
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

11- M- Desiree Scott
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

12- F- Christine Sinclair
USA / Western New York Flash

13- M- Sophie Schmidt
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

14- F- Melissa Tancredi
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

15- F- Christina Julien
CAN / Ottawa Fury

16- F- Jonelle Filigno
USA / Rutgers University

17- D- Brittany Timko
Unattached / sans club

18- GK- Erin McLeod
USA / magicJack

19- M- Chelsea Stewart
CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC

20- D- Marie-Eve Nault
CAN / Ottawa Fury

21- GK- Stephanie Labbé
SWE / Piteå IF



CANADA A-Z

Name
Birthyear
Hometown
Active start Nom
Année de naissance
Ville natale
Début de carrière Chapman, Candace
1983
Ajax, ON, CAN
Ajax United Filigno, Jonelle
1990
Mississauga, ON, CAN
North Mississauga Gayle, Robyn
1985
Mississauga, ON, CAN
Mississauga Dixie Hearts Julien, Christina
1988
Williamstown, ON, CAN
Williamstown Kyle, Kaylyn
1988
Saskatoon, SK, CAN
Silverwood Rangers Labbé, Stephanie
1986
Stony Plain, AB, CAN
Spruce Grove Saints LeBlanc, Karina
1980
Maple Ridge, BC, CAN
Golden Ears Angels Matheson, Diana
1984
Oakville, ON, CAN
Oakville SC McLeod, Erin
1983
Edmonton & Calgary, AB, CAN
St. Albert Moscato, Carmelina
1984
Mississauga, ON, CAN
Dixie SC Nault, Marie-Eve
1982
Trois-Rivières, QC, CAN
Gazelles de l’Association Trifuvlien de soccer Parker, Kelly
1981
Saskatoon, SK, CAN
Saskatoon Soccer United Robinson, Jodi-Ann
1989
Richmond, BC, CAN
Richmond SC Schmidt, Sophie
1988
Abbotsford, BC, CAN
Abbotsford Scott, Desiree
1987
Winnipeg, MB, CAN
Maples Cougars Sinclair, Christine
1983
Burnaby, BC, CAN
South Burnaby Metro Club Stewart, Chelsea
1990
The Pas, MB, CAN
Real Colorado Tancredi, Melissa
1981
Ancaster, ON, CAN
Ancaster Timko, Brittany
1985
Coquitlam, BC, CAN
Coquitlam City Panthers Wilkinson, Rhian
1982
Baie d’Urfé, QC, CAN
Lakeshore Zurrer, Emily
1987
Crofton, BC, CAN
Cowichan Valley



CANADA
ALTERNATES

Beanlands, Rachelle
1993
Ottawa, ON, CAN
Gloucester Dragons Booth, Melanie
1984
Burlington, ON, CAN
Burlington YSC Buckland, Chelsea
1990
North Delta, BC, CAN
Walley SA McCalla, Brooke
1987
Pickering, ON, CAN
Pickering



CANADA
STAFF

Head of Delegation / Chef de délegation : Clive Wilkinson Head Coach / Entraîneure-chef : Carolina Morace Assistant Coach / Entraîneure adjointe : Elisabetta Bavagnoli Assistant Coach / Entraîneure adjointe : Andrea Neil Goalkeeper Coach / Entraîneur des gardiens : Max Colucci Fitness Coach / Préparateur physique : Mario Familari Video Coordinator / Vidéaste : Sian Bagshawe General Manager / Gérant d’équipe : Misty Thomas Equipment Manager / Gérante de l’équipement : Maeve Glass Doctor / Docteur : Dr. Pietro Braina Doctor / Docteur : Dr. Salvatore Delogu Physiotherapist / Physiothérapeute : Leonardo Raveggi Physiotherapist / Physiothérapeute : Fabrizio DiFrancesco Massage Therapist / Massothérapeute : Shoko Nagai Staff / : Andy O’Brien

 
Wilkinson makes 100th appearance for Canada

Rhian Wilkinson



Canada’s Rhian Wilkinson has made her 100th international appearance. Wilkinson reached the milestone as part of Canada’s starting XI for the 14 June Women’s International Friendly match against Korea DPR in Roma, Italia.



Wilkinson, 29, is in her ninth season with Canada’s national team. She made her debut back on 26 April 2003 against USA in Washington, DC. She was 20 years old at the time. Less than three months later, she made her second appearance against Brazil in front of friends and family in Montréal. Fast forward to 2011, Wilkinson is the eighth player to reach the 100-appearance milestone.



Wilkinson’s experience includes participation in two FIFA Women’s World Cups (not counting Germany 2011), one Women’s Olympic Football Tournament, four CONCACAF women’s championships and two Pan American Games. In November 2010, she helped Canada win the CONCACAF championship in Cancún, Mexico.



Wilkinson has most recently been named Québec’s female player of excellence in 2007 and 2008. She was named CanadaSoccer.com Fans’ Choice (most popular) player in 2006. With the Ottawa Fury of the W-League, she was the league’s scoring champion in 2005 and then a playoff finalist in 2006 (when the Fury lost to the Whitecaps). At the college level, she played for the University of Tennessee.

Women's Soccer World Cup: Germany Hoping for Another Summer Fairytale

Women's Soccer World Cup

Germany Hoping for Another Summer Fairytale

Germany is all set to host the 2011 Women's World Cup later this month. Fans are hoping for a "summer fairytale" to rival that enjoyed during the men's tournament in 2006, and many in women's soccer are hoping the sport will enjoy a global boom. Most players, however, just want things to get a little better.

It is a spring Sunday in Hamburg and a football match is underway in a stadium on Hagenbeckstrasse. A line of fans snakes away from the sole ticket booth and the food stand is doing a brisk trade in packets of muesli "hand-signed" by the home team, Hamburger SV, or HSV. Hamburg's coach is ranting on the sidelines, accusing the referees of colluding with the other team's manager, claiming they spoke before kickoff. Meanwhile, the woman guarding Hamburg's goal is urging a teammate, "Don't just stand there, Meike, come on!"

The game is HSV versus 1. FFC Frankfurt, both teams members of Germany's Frauen-Bundesliga, or women's national league. The setting could just as easily be that of a men's game in a regional league, but that's an unwelcome observation here. These players reject comparisons with men's soccer. After all, they say, no one would measure a female sprinter against a man's time in the 100-meter dash.

The next Sunday, a game takes place at the Karl Liebknecht Stadium in Babelsberg, just outside of Berlin. There are 6,000 spectators inside the stadium and another 1,000 still pushing their way in. The German president and the governor of the state of Brandenburg are both in attendance and the fans are chanting and singing their club's song. Still, it's occasionally still possible to hear the players from up in the stands. "We need a guy over there," Potsdam's co-coach calls out. Babett Peter, playing sweeper, warns a teammate, "Man on!" And when she assigns another teammate to a specific opposing player, it's "Your man."

The Language of Men's Soccer

It is the language of men's football. The women and girls who play, now believed to number over a million in Germany and around 30 million across the globe, have adopted the rituals of their male counterparts -- the songs, the high-fives, the post-game celebrations in which they spray one another with champagne as confetti rains down. After the cup final in Cologne, Rolf Töpperwien, a men's football commentator, acted as an emcee for the winners from Frankfurt and made a very male joke when he mentioned the bank that sponsored the team's "chests," referring to their shirts.

Female football players want to be seen as independent and not comparable to their male counterparts, but they're also still looking for their own identity, their own profile. This summer, though, is the moment when women's football is expected to make it big. The German Football Association (DFB) has declared this "the year of the woman" and urged all fans to come together to make the upcoming Women's World Cup "a collaboration." When Germany organizes an international football tournament, it doesn't do half measures.

Doris Fitschen, manager of the German women's national team, believes this World Cup should help bring about at least semi-professional status for all players in the women's national league, as well as an increase in viewers, respect and professionalism in the sport. It has certainly never had a higher public profile -- all 32 World Cup games will be shown live on either ARD or ZDF, German public broadcasters.

The future of soccer is female, FIFA president Sepp Blatter declared in 1995, and it seems this future may finally be starting. Everyone is looking to Germany as the land of women's football, the country that has won the Women's World Cup twice and boasts the globe's strongest league. If a World Cup here doesn't achieve the "quantum leap" functionaries in the sport are talking about, nothing will. That's how they see it, at least.

Following in the Kaiser's Footsteps

Steffi Jones is the world's biggest advocate of women's football. There could scarcely be a better candidate to explain how to build up a successful national team than the woman who played for Germany 111 times, including at the 1999 and 2003 World Cups, and was national champion six times in Germany, as well as once in the United States with the Washington Freedom.

Jones, 38, was known as the "Kaiserin", or "Empress", during her playing days, because she marshaled her defense like football legend Franz Beckenbauer -- famously nicknamed the "Kaiser." Now Jones is stepping into a Beckenbauer-type role once again, serving as president of the organizing committee for the 2011 Women's World Cup and traveling to all the participating countries, just as Beckenbauer did when he fulfilled the same role for the men's World Cup in Germany in 2006. Jones is an ideal representative for women's soccer, not least because of her ability to inspire -- and because of her own history.

Jones says she wants to increase her sport's popularity around the world and to open doors in countries where women's rights are something of an unknown concept. She doesn't see herself as a "front woman," she says, and she's not a women's libber. She's simply speaking from experience.



Lacking the Structures to Support Young Players

On a recent stop in Brazil, part of her global tour, Jones was gazing out at the ocean and cliffs shrouded in fog from her fifth floor Rio de Janeiro hotel room. She was there in part to meet with Joana Havelange, one of the organizers of the 2014 men's World Cup in Brazil. Havelange was looking for a few tips.

Brazil is a football country, but not a women's football country. The women were runners up at the last World Cup in 2007, fielding the world's best and most popular female player, Marta. But the association doesn't have a functioning league -- nor even a national championship -- and the best players go abroad. Brazil also lacks the necessary structures to support young players, precisely Jones' area of interest.

She heads to São Januário Stadium in the Vasco da Gama district of the city. The local club is the only one of Rio's four large clubs to also maintain a professional women's division. Jones stands in the middle of the field, where several girls' teams have lined up, and holds a speech in the rain. "You are all ambassadors of women's soccer," she says through an interpreter. The girls beam. Roberto Dinamite, former national player and now club president of CR Vasco da Gama, hands Jones a jersey, which she pulls on immediately. The president stares at her tattoos.

Girls Disappearing from Soccer

Her next appointment takes Jones to a football school run by Zico. A former star on the pitch, he works with around 400 promising young players on the outskirts of Rio. He relates that he had 70 girls here, but when they reached 16 or 17, they abandoned the sport, because there were no teams for them, no league. Steffi Jones looks discomfited at the news, but there's nothing she can do about it at the moment.

She herself was miserable when she was no longer allowed to play with the boys. DFB regulations stipulate the separation of boys and girls at age 13, which meant Jones had to switch to a girls' team in Praunheim, a different district of Frankfurt. As a child, she believed she had to be a boy to be allowed to play soccer and begged her mother to cut her hair short, "or I'll kill myself."

Steffi Jones' book about her career and her life, "Der Kick des Lebens" ("The Kick of Life"), published in 2007, served as a sort of therapy for herself and her mother. The alternative to writing, Jones says, would have been a visit to a psychologist.

The book describes a childhood in Bonames, a disadvantaged neighborhood in Frankfurt. Jones' father, an African-American US soldier, left the family when she was four, and her life was marked by racism and financial difficulties. Her older brother became addicted to drugs, ending up in a home and later in prison for theft. Her younger brother, a professional soldier with the US Army, lost both legs in the Iraq War. Steffi Jones believes she was "born on the shady side" of life. Football has been her stabilizing force since childhood, when others called her names like "little n****r" and "curly head."

Paying Female Players a Living

Still, the game didn't provide a living. Up until the point she moved to the American league, Jones had to earn money elsewhere, for example as a supermarket manager, and her clubs sometimes didn't fulfill the terms of their contracts. She once resigned from the national team over absences her employer had complained about -- she needed the income.

Now, Jones has formulated a plausible goal for her time as a FIFA functionary: for all female national league players to be able to live off the sport. After the World Cup, Jones will become director of women's football at the DFB. Her mother, who once wanted to forbid her daughter from playing the sport, is "very proud," Jones says.

The spring evening in Rio belongs to the Germans, as they present their Women's World Cup to 150 invited guests in the century-old Villa Riso. The logo for the tournament looks like a queen bee standing upright. In one video clip, German star Martina Müller calls Wolfsburg, one of the host cities for the Women's World Cup, "a city full of dynamism." A brochure offers a description of another host city: "Leverkusen's most important sight is the water tower."

Loss of Feminine Grace

Of course, this self-fulfilling boom also has to do with creating new markets for the sport. Player numbers have been stagnating in Germany, with only the number of women and girls still on the rise. Women's soccer is the fastest growing team sport, according to DFB President Theo Zwanziger.

Until 1970, the DFB forbade its clubs to establish women's divisions. Soccer, it was thought, meant the loss of feminine grace. When an unofficial World Cup took place in 1981, Germany sent the team SSG Bergisch Gladbach to Taiwan, since it lacked a national team. In 1989, a win at the European Championships earned the team a coffee set from Villeroy & Boch. Now, a World Cup win would see each player receive €60,000 ($86,800).

Siegfried Dietrich, 53, manages 1. FFC Frankfurt, the club considered the women's football equivalent of perennial men's powerhouse Bayern Munich. The club has signed Germany star Lira Bajramaj of Turbine Potsdam for next season, as well as Kim Kulig of HSV. Dietrich considers them "leaders of the new generation." He has also been Kulig's personal manager since 2009, a double role surely tolerated only because of his unusual position: Dietrich is essentially Mr. Women's Football.

A New Career

Dietrich was once a massage therapist for the national figure skating team, and describes how he met Katarina Witt and put together an ice skating gala for her. He then opened an agency alongside his massage therapy practice, launching a new career.

In the early 1990s, someone in Frankfurt introduced Dietrich to women's football. He put the club in contact first with a partner for stadium advertisements then with a jersey sponsor. Eventually, he obtained marketing rights to the club and has since guaranteed it a yearly advertising payment in exchange. It was a risky investment. Dietrich adds: "I knew this sport could go on a downward spiral -- because that's football."

Dietrich isn't shy about praising his nose for talent. He had Nia Künzer signed long before she attained fame for her golden goal which won the World Cup for Germany in 2003. He also provided Steffi Jones with advertising revenue. He establishes personalities, Dietrich says, and around 15 female players in his club now make their living from the sport. "We give them security," he says. "The World Cup will be the starting shot into a new dimension."

At the moment, the women's league remains a business reliant on subsidies. The DFB pays each national league team €180,000 per year. That brings Turbine Potsdam, recently German champions three times in a row, to a budget of €1.5 million. The club also benefits from a neighboring elite sport school, which supplies it with young talent.

Women's Football has "Reached its Limits"

Bernd Schröder has been the trainer of Turbine Potsdam for four decades, minus a brief interruption. His office is on the grounds of the sport school. Once again, his team has reached the Champions League final. Turbine Potsdam began as part of a sports group supported by a publicly owned East German utility company. Schröder has supervised the team on a volunteer basis since 1971. He refers to players' agents as "hypocrites" and views with suspicion anyone who wants to make money from the amateur sport of women's soccer. "Women's football has reached its limits," he says. "There won't be a sustainable boom." Why would more than 1,000 spectators, on average, come to a game, he asks, and "why would a man identify with women's football?"

Schröder studied mining science and says he doesn't really hold with "subjunctives." He's clearly the spoilsport in this World Cup year, and he offers his views to visitors from his spot behind his desk, between stacks of yellowed newspapers.

Many of his players are semi-professionals, working other jobs by the hour or participating in sport promotion groups run by the German military, the Bundeswehr. Schröder says he could have had Bajramaj too, but he "wasn't interested in horse trading." Besides, he says, the hype surrounding her is damaging. "Overly promoting her like this won't make her better."

Unter den Linden, Berlin's famous boulevard, hosted a reception a couple months ago for ambassadors from the countries participating in the Women's World Cup. On the menu were meatballs and fig mustard. Steffi Jones, president of the organizing committee, declared: "We're going to see good games and have good weather."

Jones has a marionette hanging in her Frankfurt office -- Jim Knopf, a character known both from a German children's story by Michael Ende and an adaptation of the same story at the famous puppet theater in Augsburg. The character fits her, Jones says: an orphaned child with dark skin, who arrived in the fantasy kingdom of Morrowland one day by mail.

Augsburg, in fact, is one of the World Cup's nine venues, and its puppet theater has created a play specifically for Jones. The title, "Steffi - ein Sommermärchen" ("Steffi - A Summer Fairytale"), references the "fairy tale" summer of 2006, when Germany hosted the Men's World Cup.

And Jones no longer has to be a boy.

WORLD CUP BEAUTIES : Germany Women’s Soccer players pose for Playboy

Five members of the German women's soccer team have posed for Playboy to show they are just "normal" girls, The Local news website reported Friday.


The cover of the July issue of the magazine's German edition shows the players posing in a very risque version of the national team's black and white soccer uniform, including very low-cut tops and bikini bottoms.

The five players said they agreed to participate in the erotic photo shoot to help throw off the perception that they were all tomboys.

"With these photos, we want to disprove the cliche that all female footballers are butch," Germany midfielder Kristina Gessat told the magazine.

"The message is: look, we are very normal — and lovely — girls!"

Midfielder Julia Simic said, "More and more sweet, pretty girls are playing football who also go shopping and place value on their appearance."

Germany's been a perennial women's soccer power for years and is preparing to host the World Cup, which begins June 26.

Germany team players saucy photoshoot for Playboy before Women's World Cup

What better way to promote the Women's World Cup than for your national side to show off their new strip?

That's the approach these young fraulein, members of Germany's national squad have taken.

But their approach, it can be safely assumed, did not have the the sanction of the blazered and booted herren of the Deutscher Fussball-Bund.

Wet look: Bayern Munich players Annika Doppler, 19, Ivana Rudelic, 19, and Julia Simic, 22, as well as Gütersloh's Kristina Gessat and Wolfsburg's Selina Wagner leave little to the imagination as they frolic


The madchen took part in their raunchy photo-shoot for the German edition of Playboy magazine, which went on sale yesterday and will be found on top shelves all over the host country during the duration of the three-week tournament that kicks off in Germany on June 26.

Germany begin their defence of the tournament in Berlin on June 26, when they play Canada. England kick off their campaign with a match against Mexico the next day.

Cover girls: Back row left: Annika Doppler (Bayern Munich), Kristina Gessat (FSV Gutersloh). Front from left: Selina Wagner (Wolfsburg), Julia Simic (Bayern), Ivana Rudelic (Bayern).


Nina van Splunter of German Playboy, said: 'For us, this makes a lot of sense.

'Everyone knows how popular football is in Germany and, just like their male counterparts, the female team are very successful.

'The girls we have used are not yet first-team players with Germany, but they have all represented their country at various levels.

Van Splunter added: 'We have only just published, so we're waiting to hear comments.

'There was not agreement - we didn't ask the DFB, we went direct to the ladies.

'But it should be OK, otherwise they would have been told not to do it by their clubs."

Annika Doppler, 19, Ivana Rudelic, 19, and Julia Simic, 22, play for Bayern Munich; Kristina Gessat plays for Gütersloh and Selina Wagner plays for Wolfsburg.

In the accompanying interview, Gessat says: 'The message is, look, we are normal - and lovely - girls.'

One can only hope that Wayne Rooney never follows suit.



Las anfitrionas del Mundial de la categoría, que parte el 26 de junio se sacaron la ropa para promocionar su actuación en la cita.



Cuando resta menos de un mes para que Alemania se anfitriona del Mundial Femenino de Fútbol, el seleccionado local decidió romper con los esquemas y promocionar su actuación en la cita posando desnudas para edición de julio de la versión germana de la revista Playboy.



Todas jugadoras profesionales de los mejores clubes de la Bundesliga local, no tuvieron problema para mostrar su lado más sexy y así entusiasmar a los fanáticos para que llenen el estadio Olímpico de Berlín el 26 de junio, en el duelo inaugural de la cita ante Canadá.



Las futbolistas además se dieron tiempo para entregar algunos conceptos deportivos, y compararse con algún jugador hombre.



- Annika Doppler / 19 años / Bayern Munich / Volante / Campeona de Europa Sub 17 / se compara con Arjen Robben.



- Cristina Gessat / 20 años / Gütersloh FSV / Volante / Campeona del Mundo Sub 20 / se compara con Sami Khedira.



- Ivana Rudelic / 19 años / Bayern Munich / Delantera / Campeona de Europa Sub 17 / se compara con Didier Drogba.



- Julia Simic / 22 años / Bayern Munich / Volante / Campeona de Europa Sub 19 / se compara con Andrés Iniesta.



- Selina Wagner / 20 años / VfL Wolfsburgo / Volante / Campeona del Mundo Sub 20 / se compara con Mesut Özil.



Germany

Selección alemana de fútbol femenino se desnuda para Playboy

Las anfitrionas del Mundial de la categoría, que parte el 26 de junio se sacaron la ropa para promocionar su actuación en la cita.

Cuando resta menos de un mes para que Alemania se anfitriona del Mundial Femenino de Fútbol, el seleccionado local decidió romper con los esquemas y promocionar su actuación en la cita posando desnudas para edición de julio de la versión germana de la revista Playboy.


Todas jugadoras profesionales de los mejores clubes de la Bundesliga local, no tuvieron problema para mostrar su lado más sexy y así entusiasmar a los fanáticos para que llenen el estadio Olímpico de Berlín el 26 de junio, en el duelo inaugural de la cita ante Canadá.

Las futbolistas además se dieron tiempo para entregar algunos conceptos deportivos, y compararse con algún jugador hombre.

- Annika Doppler / 19 años / Bayern Munich / Volante / Campeona de Europa Sub 17 / se compara con Arjen Robben.

- Cristina Gessat / 20 años / Gütersloh FSV / Volante / Campeona del Mundo Sub 20 / se compara con Sami Khedira.

- Ivana Rudelic / 19 años / Bayern Munich / Delantera / Campeona de Europa Sub 17 / se compara con Didier Drogba.

- Julia Simic / 22 años / Bayern Munich / Volante / Campeona de Europa Sub 19 / se compara con Andrés Iniesta.

- Selina Wagner / 20 años / VfL Wolfsburgo / Volante / Campeona del Mundo Sub 20 / se compara con Mesut Özil.

Germany

Germany Soccer players pose for Playboy

Five members of the German women's soccer team have posed for Playboy to show they are just "normal" girls, The Local news website reported Friday.


WORLD CUP BABES

No wonder they call it the beautiful game. Just check out the babes at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The cover of the July issue of the magazine's German edition shows the players posing in a very risque version of the national team's black and white soccer uniform, including very low-cut tops and bikini bottoms.

The five players said they agreed to participate in the erotic photo shoot to help throw off the perception that they were all tomboys.

"With these photos, we want to disprove the cliche that all female footballers are butch," Germany midfielder Kristina Gessat told the magazine.

"The message is: look, we are very normal — and lovely — girls!"

Midfielder Julia Simic said, "More and more sweet, pretty girls are playing football who also go shopping and place value on their appearance."

Germany's been a perennial women's soccer power for years and is preparing to host the World Cup, which begins June 26.

FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011 Media Planning

FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011: Canada's Media Planning


The FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011 runs this 26 June to 17 July. The Canadian team is expected to arrive in Germany on 19 June.
Media accreditation

Media accreditation for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011 is available via FIFA. The accreditation window is open from 1 March to 1 May 2011. Please visit the FIFA Media Channel for more information. (You can also read more at this link).

Canadian media contact in Germany

Canada’s media contact in Germany will be Richard Scott. The best mode of contact is phone at 613.818.0305.

Group Phase

Canada will move from city to city with each match. In the group phase, Canada plays in Berlin, Bochum and Dresden. Canada’s expected travel schedule is:

19 June - arrive into Berlin

27 June - depart Berlin for Bochum

1 July - depart Bochum for Dresden

Media availability

Accredited media will have access to the Canadian team every day of the competition. That access may be limited to one window/media session each day (usually following the training session), but that access will be granted every day.
FIFA will organize a press conference on the day before each match. The press conference is expected to take place at the official match stadium.
During the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Canada’s official media schedule will be posted and updated regularly in the FIFA Media Channel.