United States women's national soccer team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
United States

Nickname(s)	The Stars and Stripes
Association	United States Soccer Federation (USSF)
Confederation	CONCACAF
Sub-confederation	NAFU
Head coach	Emma Hayes
Captain	Lindsey Heaps
Most caps	Kristine Lilly (354)
Top scorer	Abby Wambach (184)
FIFA code	USA
First colors Second colors
FIFA ranking
Current	1 (December 7, 2018)
Highest	1 (various; most recently since August 2024)
Lowest	5 (June 2024)
First international
Italy 1–0 United States  (Jesolo, Italy; August 18, 1985)
Biggest win
United States 14–0 Dominican Republic  (Vancouver, Canada; January 20, 2012)
Biggest defeat
Brazil 4–0 United States  (Hangzhou, China; September 27, 2007)
World Cup
Appearances	9 (first in 1991)
Best result	Champions (1991, 1999, 2015, 2019)
Olympic Games
Appearances	8 (first in 1996)
Best result	Gold (1996, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2024)
CONCACAF W Championship
Appearances	10 (first in 1991)
Best result	Champions (1991, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2018, 2022)
CONCACAF W Gold Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2024)
Best result	Champions (2024)
Medal record FIFA Women's World Cup Gold 1991 China Team Gold 1999 United States Team Gold 2015 Canada Team Gold 2019 France Team Silver 2011 Germany Team Bronze 1995 Sweden Team Bronze 2003 United States Team Bronze 2007 China Team Olympic Games Gold 1996 Atlanta Team Gold 2004 Athens Team Gold 2008 Beijing Team Gold 2012 London Team Gold 2024 Paris Team Silver 2000 Sydney Team Bronze 2020 Tokyo Team CONCACAF W Championship Gold 1991 Haiti Team Gold 1993 United States Team Gold 1994 Canada Team Gold 2000 United States Team Gold 2002 Canada / United States Team Gold 2006 United States Team Gold 2014 United States Team Gold 2018 United States Team Gold 2022 Mexico Team Bronze 2010 Mexico Team CONCACAF W Gold Cup Gold 2024 United States Team

USWNT at a parade in their honor after the 2019 Championship

The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) plays for the United States in international women's soccer. The team is managed by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF. This is a group for soccer teams in North, Central America, and the Caribbean.

The USWNT is the most successful team in women's international soccer. They have won four Women's World Cup titles. These wins were in 1991, 1999, 2015, and 2019. They also have five Olympic gold medals. These were won in 1996, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2024. The team has also won nine CONCACAF W Championship titles and one CONCACAF W Gold Cup title.

They have won medals in almost every major tournament they have played in. The only times they didn't medal were in the 2016 Olympics and the 2023 Women's World Cup. In both cases, they lost to Sweden in a penalty shootout.

The team has often been ranked number one in the FIFA Women's World Rankings. They held the top spot for a long time, from March 2008 to November 2014. Since FIFA rankings began in 2003, the USWNT has been ranked first for a total of 13 years. The team has never been ranked lower than fifth in the world.

The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee named the team "Team of the Year" in 1997 and 1999. Sports Illustrated also chose the entire team as "Sportswomen of the Year" in 1999. In 2022, current and former USWNT players reached an agreement with the U.S. Soccer Federation. This agreement included a payment and a rule that male and female soccer players should be paid equally. This was a big step for equal pay in sports.

Team History

Early Years in the 1980s

In 1972, a law called Title IX was passed. This law made it illegal to treat people differently based on gender in school programs that received government money. This helped create many college soccer teams for women in the U.S. Women's soccer was also becoming popular around the world.

In 1985, the U.S. Soccer Federation sent a team of college players to a tournament in Italy called the Mundialito. This was their first international women's soccer event. They played their first game on August 18, 1985, losing 1–0 to Italy. They finished fourth in the tournament.

In 1986, Anson Dorrance, a coach from the University of North Carolina, became the team's first full-time head coach. He wanted to build a strong team for future tournaments. Under Dorrance, the U.S. team did much better. They beat teams like China and Brazil. Dorrance also brought in young players who would become stars, such as Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, and Kristine Lilly.

Winning World Cups and Olympic Gold in the 1990s

After a test tournament in 1988, FIFA decided to create a women's world championship. This tournament later became known as the "World Cup." The U.S. team qualified for the first Women's World Cup by winning the 1991 CONCACAF Women's Championship. They scored 49 goals and didn't let their opponents score any!

At the 1991 World Cup, the U.S. team won all their group games. They beat Sweden, Brazil, and Japan. In the quarterfinals, they won 7–0 against Chinese Taipei. Michelle Akers scored five goals in that game.

In the semifinals, they beat Germany 5–2. The U.S. then won the first-ever Women's World Cup title. They defeated Norway 2–1 in the final. Akers scored both goals for the U.S. She was the top scorer of the tournament with ten goals.

Kristine Lilly (13) and Mia Hamm (9)

Even after winning the World Cup, the team didn't get much attention or support at first. But they kept playing and winning. In 1994, Tony DiCicco became the new head coach. He led the team to another CONCACAF Championship win.

In 1995, the U.S. team finished third in the 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup. They lost to Norway in the semifinals.

The team won the gold medal in the first-ever Olympic women's soccer tournament in 1996. They beat China 2–1 in the final.

A very important victory came in the 1999 World Cup. The team tied 0–0 with China after extra time. They then won 5–4 in a penalty shootout. This win made women's soccer and women's sports much more popular in America. Over 90,000 people watched the final game at the Rose Bowl. Brandi Chastain scored the winning penalty kick. Her celebration became a famous moment in sports history.

Olympic Gold Medals in the 2000s

Abby Wambach plays off a corner kick at the 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup bronze medal game against Canada

In the 2000 Summer Olympics, the USWNT won the silver medal. They lost to Norway in the final.

At the 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup, the U.S. team finished third. They beat Canada 3–1 in the third-place game. Abby Wambach was their top scorer. In the 2004 Olympics, the U.S. won another gold medal. They beat Brazil 2–1 in the final, with Wambach scoring the winning goal in extra time. This was the last major tournament for stars like Mia Hamm and Julie Foudy.

In the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup, the U.S. team finished third again. They had their biggest loss in team history, losing 4–0 to Brazil in the semifinals. Wambach was again the team's top scorer. The team won another gold medal at the 2008 Olympics.

World Cup and Olympic Wins in the 2010s

The USWNT at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup

In the 2011 Women's World Cup, the U.S. beat Brazil in a penalty shootout in the quarterfinals. Wambach scored a famous goal in the last minute of extra time to tie the game. The U.S. reached the final but lost to Japan in a penalty shootout.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, the U.S. won their fourth gold medal. They beat Japan 2–1 in the final at Wembley Stadium. This game set a record for the most fans at an Olympic women's soccer match. The USWNT won every game in this tournament, scoring 16 goals.

A ticker tape parade in Manhattan celebrating the team's 2015 World Cup victory

The U.S. team won the 2015 World Cup by beating Japan 5–2 in the final. They became the first team to win three Women's World Cup titles. Carli Lloyd scored a very fast hat-trick in the final. After this win, the team had a special parade in New York City. This was the first time a women's sports team received a ticker tape parade there.

In the 2016 Summer Olympics, the U.S. team lost to Sweden in the quarterfinals in a penalty shootout. This was the first time they didn't reach the Olympic gold medal game.

Alex Morgan being challenged by Hikari Takagi (15) during a match against Japan in Cleveland on June 5, 2016

In 2018, the U.S. team won the SheBelieves Cup and the Tournament of Nations. They also qualified for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup without losing a game.

The USWNT started their 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup with a huge 13–0 win against Thailand. This set a new record for goals in a Women's World Cup game. Alex Morgan scored five goals in that match. The U.S. went on to win all their group games. They then beat Spain, France, and England by a score of 2–1 in each game. They reached their third World Cup final in a row. They beat the Netherlands 2–0 in the final on July 7, 2019. This made them the first team to win four Women's World Cup titles.

Recent Years: 2020s and Fifth Olympic Gold

The USWNT started the 2020s by winning the 2020 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship and the 2020 SheBelieves Cup.

At the 2020 Summer Olympics (which were held in 2021 due to the pandemic), the USWNT lost their first game to Sweden. This ended their 44-match unbeaten streak. They later won the bronze medal, beating Australia 4–3. This was the first time the team won a bronze medal at the Olympics.

In July 2022, the team won their ninth CONCACAF W Championship title. This win also qualified them for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, the 2024 Summer Olympics, and the 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup.

Chaos in the USWNT's defense at the 2024 Olympics.

At the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, the USWNT hoped to win for a third time in a row. They won their first game against Vietnam but then drew with the Netherlands and Portugal. They finished second in their group. In the Round of 16, they tied with Sweden and lost in a penalty shootout. This was their earliest exit from a major tournament.

The USWNT qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics by winning the 2022 CONCACAF W Championship. They won all three of their group games. In the knockout rounds, they beat Japan and Germany, both in extra time. Even though they played two long games, they won the gold medal by beating Brazil 1–0 in the final. This was their fifth Olympic gold medal and their first since 2012. Many of their goals were scored by their attacking players, Trinity Rodman, Mallory Swanson, and Sophia Smith, who call themselves the "Triple Espresso."

Team Image

Young girls supporting the U.S. women's national soccer team at the ticker tape parade in New York City, celebrating their 2015 World Cup victory.

Media Coverage

Major TV networks like ESPN, ABC, Fox Sports, and Telemundo have shown the Women's World Cups. Other USWNT games are broadcast on TNT, TBS, and HBO Max. Olympic soccer tournaments are shown on NBC.

The 1999 World Cup final set a record for the most people watching a women's soccer game in the U.S. About 18 million viewers tuned in. This record was broken by the 2015 Women's World Cup final between the U.S. and Japan. That game had 23 million viewers, which was more than the NBA finals and Stanley Cup finals that year.

The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup was the most watched Women's World Cup ever, with over 750 million viewers worldwide. It is now the second-most watched FIFA tournament, after the men's World Cup.

In Popular Culture

The USWNT has been featured in books and documentaries. A book called The National Team: The Inside Story of the Women Who Changed Soccer tells the team's history. Another book, Girls of Summer: The U.S. Women's Soccer Team and How It Changed the World, focuses on the 1999 World Cup team. Netflix released a documentary series in 2023 called Under Pressure: The U.S. Women's World Cup Team.

HBO released a documentary in 2005 called Dare to Dream: The Story of the U.S. Women's Soccer Team. In 2013, a documentary about the 1999 World Cup team called The 99ers was made by former player Julie Foudy.

Attendance

The 1999 World Cup final had 90,185 fans at the Rose Bowl. This was a world record for a women's soccer event at the time. The record for Olympic women's soccer attendance was set in 2012. The game between the USWNT and Japan had 80,023 fans at Wembley Stadium.

Team Records

The USWNT has some impressive team records:

• Biggest victory: 14–0 against the Dominican Republic on January 20, 2012.
• Biggest defeat: 0–4 against Brazil on September 27, 2007.

Competitive Achievements

The USWNT has a strong history in major tournaments.

FIFA Women's World Cup

The team has played in every World Cup since it began. They won a medal in the first eight tournaments. In 2023, they lost to Sweden in the Round of 16.

FIFA Women's World Cup record
Host	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Coach
1991	Champions	6	6	0	0	25	5	Anson Dorrance
1995	Third place	6	4	1	1	15	5	Tony DiCicco
1999	Champions	6	5	1	0	18	3
2003	Third place	6	5	0	1	15	5	April Heinrichs
2007	Third place	6	4	1	1	12	7	Greg Ryan
2011	Runners-up	6	3	2	1	13	7	Pia Sundhage
2015	Champions	7	6	1	0	14	3	Jill Ellis
2019	Champions	7	7	0	0	26	3
2023	Round of 16	4	1	3	0	4	1	Vlatko Andonovski
2027	To be determined
2031	Qualified as co-host
2035	To be determined
Total	10/12	54	41	9	4	142	39

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

Olympic Games

The team has played in every Olympic tournament. They reached the gold medal game in most of them. In 2016, they were knocked out in the quarterfinals. In 2024, they won their fifth Olympic gold medal.

Olympic Games record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Coach
1996	Gold medal	5	4	1	0	9	3	Tony DiCicco
2000	Silver medal	5	3	1	1	9	5	April Heinrichs
2004	Gold medal	6	5	1	0	12	4
2008	Gold medal	6	5	0	1	12	5	Pia Sundhage
2012	Gold medal	6	6	0	0	16	6
2016	Quarter-finals	4	2	2	0	6	3	Jill Ellis
2020	Bronze medal	6	2	2	2	12	10	Vlatko Andonovski
2024	Gold medal	6	6	0	0	12	2	Emma Hayes
2028	Qualified as hosts
Total	8/9	44	33	7	4	88	38

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

CONCACAF W Championship

CONCACAF W Championship record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Coach
1991	Champions	5	5	0	0	49	0	Anson Dorrance
1993	Champions	3	3	0	0	13	0
1994	Champions	4	4	0	0	16	1	Tony DiCicco
1998	Did not participate1
2000	Champions	5	4	1	0	24	1	April Heinrichs
2002	Champions	5	5	0	0	24	1
2006	Champions	2	2	0	0	4	1	Greg Ryan
2010	Third place	5	4	0	1	22	2	Pia Sundhage
2014	Champions	5	5	0	0	21	0	Jill Ellis
2018	Champions	5	5	0	0	26	0
2022	Champions	5	5	0	0	13	0	Vlatko Andonovski
Template:Country data 2026	To be determined
Total	10/12	44	42	1	1	212	6

¹ The U.S. team directly qualified for the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup as hosts of the event. Because of this, they did not participate in the 1998 CONCACAF Championship, which was the qualification tournament for the World Cup.

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

CONCACAF W Gold Cup

CONCACAF W Gold Cup record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Coach
2024	Champions	6	4	1	1	15	4	Twila Kilgore
Template:Country data 2029	To be determined
Total	1/2	6	4	1	1	15	4

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

Other Tournaments

The USWNT has also won many other invitational tournaments. They have won the SheBelieves Cup seven times, including in 2016, 2018, and every year from 2020 to 2024. They also won the Tournament of Nations in 2018.

The team has a great record in the Algarve Cup, winning it ten times. This tournament was held in Portugal and was considered very important. They won it in 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2015.

Honors

FIFA World Ranking

Last updated on September 5, 2024

     Best Ranking       Worst Ranking       Best Mover       Worst Mover  

United States' FIFA World Ranking history
Year	Rank at year end	Best		Worst
		Rank	Move	Rank	Move
2024	–	1	4	5	3
2023	2	1		3	2
2022	1	1		1
2021	1	1		1
2020	1	1		1
2019	1	1		1
2018	1	1		1
2017	1	1	1	2	1
2016	1	1		1
2015	1	1	1	2
2014	2	1		2	1
2013	1	1		1
2012	1	1		1
2011	1	1		1
2010	1	1		1
2009	1	1		1
2008	1	1	1	1
2007	2	1	1	2	1
2006	2	2		2
2005	2	1	1	2	1
2004	2	2		2
2003	2	1		2	1

Images for kids

• 

  A soccer game between the United States and Canada, seen from behind one of the goals

• 

  The USWNT at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup

• 

  Alex Morgan being challenged by Hikari Takagi (15) during a match against Japan in Cleveland on June 5, 2016

• 

  Chaos in the USWNT's defense at the 2024 Olympics.

See also

In Spanish: Selección femenina de fútbol de los Estados Unidos para niños

• Dare to Dream: The Story of the U.S. Women's Soccer Team – 2005 HBO documentary
• List of United States women's national soccer team hat-tricks
• U.S. Women's National Team Players Association
• U.S. women's national soccer team pay discrimination claim
• USWNT All-Time Best XI
• National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), 2013–present
• Soccer in the United States
• United States men's national soccer team