USWNT - World Cup > Olympics

SoxFanInCali

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Solo always does that stutter step to one side. Basically, if they can put them in the corners, she won't save any of them.
 

SoxFanInCali

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The World Cup winner curse continues.

The US has won 4 of the 6 Olympic Gold Medals. The 2 they didn't? 2000 and 2016, after winning the 1999 and 2015 World Cups.
 

Cellar-Door

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The World Cup winner curse continues.

The US has won 4 of the 6 Olympic Gold Medals. The 2 they didn't? 2000 and 2016, after winning the 1999 and 2015 World Cups.
No reigning WC champ has won the Gold. However.... this is the first WC winner to not medal. 2000 US and 2012 Japan took Silver, 2008 GER, 2004 GER, and 1996 Norway took Bronze.
 

Ale Xander

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At least in 2003 it felt better in 2 months (diff sport)

This is gonna hurt for 3 years
 

Cellar-Door

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So is USSoccer going to cancel the victory tour, or will it be the "Congrats on 5th and the biggest chokejob in Olympic Women's soccer history" tour.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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Didn't watch. No reason to see the replay now. I think the record of teams after playing in Manaus are really quite awful.
 

Kliq

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The national team (well some of the people on it) annoys me so I'm going back to the fatherland; Heja Sverige and all that.
 

soxhop411

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“@kbaxter11: #USWNT’s Hope Solo ”we lost to a bunch of cowards. The better team did not win’ #Rio2016

Come on Hope. Act like a damn adult.


 

SoxFanInCali

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Ah, yes. The classic "why didn't the other team play to our strengths?" comment after a loss. Always a winner.

Solo just turned 35. Keepers can generally play longer than outfield players, so it's an open question whether she stays around for another cycle, or if US Soccer wants her to stay around.

Brazil has to be loving this, if they win tomorrow they get Sweden (who they already beat badly in this tournament) instead of the US to get to the Gold Medal game.
 

Cellar-Door

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Ah, yes. The classic "why didn't the other team play to our strengths?" comment after a loss. Always a winner.

Solo just turned 35. Keepers can generally play longer than outfield players, so it's an open question whether she stays around for another cycle, or if US Soccer wants her to stay around.

Brazil has to be loving this, if they win tomorrow they get Sweden (who they already beat badly in this tournament) instead of the US to get to the Gold Medal game.
Solo is already in decline, add in that she's a PR disaster between her comments, arrests, general douchbag nature, and there being no chance she isn't a distraction if benched and I doubt she makes it to the next major tourney
 

fiskful of dollars

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She's a disaster. Great talent but she's just a classless human being. Sweden played a smart tactical game. Their only chance was to park the bus and hope for a counter. They got it and won in PK's. That's soccer…not "cowardly".
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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Man, Solo is such a horse's ass. It's great following a team with a great keeper but she really puts that to the test. I'm sure the Swedish team is really down about their lack of courage this afternoon.
 

Titans Bastard

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They also terminated her contract with the federation, which is a big deal on the women's side.

This kind of response to her comments seems overly harsh, but it seems like this is a reaction to years of issues. Fair enough, but the the timing -- the USWNT doesn't have any big games in a while and that Solo is now facing the downslope of her career -- isn't exactly a profile in courage.
 

SoxFanInCali

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It's 3 years until the next major tournament, that looks like the not-so-gentle shove out the door.

It also looks like her national team contract was terminated. That's where a huge portion of her wages come from.

The players association is already fighting this, between this and the collective bargaining agreement issues, this will get ugly.
 

luckysox

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Probably out of chances now, though there isn't anything in the USWNT schedule, really, during her suspension. But I imagine she's officially at a zero tolerance point. What a dummy.
 

SoxFanInCali

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Probably out of chances now, though there isn't anything in the USWNT schedule, really, during her suspension. But I imagine she's officially at a zero tolerance point. What a dummy.
You're right that there won't be many games played during that period, but losing her contract means she loses her guaranteed salary/benefits. Everyone else on the team will be getting paid during this downtime in the schedule.

Here's the Player's Association statement. It touches on both First Amendment and sexism issues.

 

Papelbon's Poutine

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You're right that there won't be many games played during that period, but losing her contract means she loses her guaranteed salary/benefits. Everyone else on the team will be getting paid during this downtime in the schedule.

Here's the Player's Association statement. It touches on both First Amendment and sexism issues.

Honest question, how much do those contracts pay? I'd have to imagine it's on the lower side of her income or am I off base?
 

Cellar-Door

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Honest question, how much do those contracts pay? I'd have to imagine it's on the lower side of her income or am I off base?
Depends on her endorsements, I'd guess Nike is her biggest income, but the National Team money is significantly more than her NWSL money.

It is one of the sticking points of the debate with the players' association USSoccer (correctly) points out that they wanted to be paid significant yearly salaries at the expense of higher per-game payments (how the men do it). It was smart of them at the time since it means they all get paid no matter what, where the men tend to make less per player since there is more squad rotation, and if they are injured long term they get no callups and no $$. In retrospect though after the men re-negotiated and the women started drawing significantly bigger crowds the deal didn't look as good.
 

Mr. Wednesday

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Here's the Player's Association statement. It touches on both First Amendment and sexism issues.
The First Amendment has no bearing on anything. The USSF is not a government organization, so Solo has no First Amendment protection. Moreover, employees are always at risk when they bring negative attention to themselves and their employer... and I think that might even apply to government employees (who would otherwise be protected by the Amendment from government action).

I mean, I get that it's just PR, but misinterpretation of First Amendment protections bugs me, willful or not.
 

SoxFanInCali

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The First Amendment has no bearing on anything. The USSF is not a government organization, so Solo has no First Amendment protection. Moreover, employees are always at risk when they bring negative attention to themselves and their employer... and I think that might even apply to government employees (who would otherwise be protected by the Amendment from government action).

I mean, I get that it's just PR, but misinterpretation of First Amendment protections bugs me, willful or not.
Yeah, I'm with you completely. I only mentioned that the statement brought it up, didn't mean to infer that it is being correctly used. Someday people will realize that it doesn't mean you can say anything you want with no consequences, only that you won't be arrested for it.
 

riboflav

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Wow. Larry said so much worse in the 80s and wait so did KG in the 2000s and a host of other male superstars. But they're men so there you go. Women should act like "ladies" always and not call their competition "cowards." Perish the thought!

EDIT: Thankfully we have safe spaces now for women (and men).
 

Schnerres

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Wow. Larry said so much worse in the 80s and wait so did KG in the 2000s and a host of other male superstars. But they're men so there you go. Women should act like "ladies" always and not call their competition "cowards." Perish the thought!
1) She wasn´t penalized because what she said after the game as a single event, but because she probably was already "on probation" for her careerlong behaviour. Sometimes, it´s just too much.
2) I don´t understand the concept of contract with the US team. Best players get picked, so if there´s 5 keepers better, she won´t get picked, so how can someone have a contract? Or a contract about if you get picked, you get these payments, insurance, etc.?
So IMO, it´s a totally different relationship between Solo and the USWNT and Garnett and the Celtics. If Solo will fade eventually, she won´t get to play for the US. So why do you have to terminate a contract? Just to make a statement (and risk a problem with the Union?)? Just never ever pick her again, or at least for half a year, as there aren´t any meaningful games for the Team.

There were other male players kicked from National Teams as well due to their behaviour, so it´s not as if this is a female thing.
Just on the German Team it was Schuhmacher (called out Beckenbauer), Matthäus (called out Vogts 96) who was left of the Euro winning roster, Effenberg (showed the middle finger in the US94 WC) who was sent home, Kevin Großkreutz (who won the 14 WC but then went a little over his head while urinating in a hotel lobby and throwing a Burger/Döner at people in public), or the latest was Max Kruse who lost 75.000€ in a Taxi while being drunk and partied drunk on his birthday and robbing a reporter of his cam while picturing him, so that´s just from the top of my head...But it´s just the poor ladies who have to behave :)
 

Titans Bastard

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1) She wasn´t penalized because what she said after the game as a single event, but because she probably was already "on probation" for her careerlong behaviour. Sometimes, it´s just too much.
2) I don´t understand the concept of contract with the US team. Best players get picked, so if there´s 5 keepers better, she won´t get picked, so how can someone have a contract? Or a contract about if you get picked, you get these payments, insurance, etc.?
So IMO, it´s a totally different relationship between Solo and the USWNT and Garnett and the Celtics. If Solo will fade eventually, she won´t get to play for the US. So why do you have to terminate a contract? Just to make a statement (and risk a problem with the Union?)? Just never ever pick her again, or at least for half a year, as there aren´t any meaningful games for the Team.
There's very little money in women's soccer, so the salaries offered by NWSL clubs range from paltry to miniscule. To better support the women's national team program, the USSF signs top female soccer players to additional contracts. This allows them to be more financially stable and completely focus on soccer and it more fairly compensates them for their work on the NT level (the women's NT plays far more games than any men's NT).

EDIT: This is an article about the CBA dispute between the USSF and women's national team, but it shows that USWNT contract max out at $72,000.

To put things in context, the salary cap for an entire NWSL team is $278,000 (with USWNT players not counting against the cap). Some players like Alex Morgan probably rake in a lot of endorsement money, but I'd think most do not.


Your question about how and when players get added/dropped from national team contracts is a good one. I'm not sure how it works in normal scenarios (i.e. not the Hope Solo example). However, I don't think a contract is necessary to play for the USWNT. It's just a way to support players. In that way, it's more like endorsement/sponsorship money from the federation than a club contract.
 
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johnmd20

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Wow. Larry said so much worse in the 80s and wait so did KG in the 2000s and a host of other male superstars. But they're men so there you go. Women should act like "ladies" always and not call their competition "cowards." Perish the thought!

EDIT: Thankfully we have safe spaces now for women (and men).
There is a lifetime of behavior here for Solo. I get that you're going for the easy slam here, (SEXISM) but it's misplaced. This isn't sexist, it's opportunistic. Solo is on the downswing. If she said this when she was 28, she wouldn't have been suspended. It has nothing to do with sexism, just cold hearted analysis on where her career is headed. If anything, she's being treated like a man. If she could still perform, punishment would be minimal. She can't, so they are wiping her out. If Ray Rice was 25, he would be on an NFL roster.

Larry in the 80's? Great comp, love that. Seems like a solid contemporary example.
 

OCST

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The Olympics are different than pro sports. What Solo said isn't much different than is said by players interviewed right after Premier League games. It's pretty cheap for the Olympics. I'd support the move for any player, especially with a long history of loutish behavior.
 

Cellar-Door

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The NWSL is such a joke. USWNT players skip half the games between national duty and just not wanting to play. Also why not schedule around major tournament's?
 

Titans Bastard

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The NWSL is such a joke. USWNT players skip half the games between national duty and just not wanting to play. Also why not schedule around major tournament's?
The lack of coordination and cross-promotion between the NWSL and USWNT is a real lost opportunity, I think.
 

Ale Xander

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The NWSL is such a joke. USWNT players skip half the games between national duty and just not wanting to play. Also why not schedule around major tournament's?
They do schedule around the major tournaments
For example, the Breakers don't play between July 31 and August 28
 

SoxFanInCali

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Heather O'Reilly has announced her retirement from the national team after 15 years, 230 caps, 46 goals, and 54 assists. She was still in high school when she got her first cap, and has been around so long that she was the one that inherited the #9 jersey when Mia Hamm retired. She won 3 Olympic Gold Medals and the 2015 World Cup. One of her most memorable moments was running down the ball and putting in the cross for Alex Morgan's 123rd minute winner against Canada in the 2012 Olympics semifinal.

Her final game will be September 15th against Thailand in Columbus.
 

SoxFanInCali

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The USWNT takes on Thailand tonight at 8PM Eastern/5PM Pacific. The game is on ESPN2.

The play on the field itself will likely be secondary to many of the stories surrounding it. It's the team's first game since the Solo suspension, there will be a ton of talk about Megan Rapinoe and the national anthem, and it's Heather O'Reilly's final game after 15 years and 230 caps (7th all-time).

The Rapinoe thing will be interesting to me, as Columbus, Ohio seems like a region that may not be all that sympathetic to a protest. In addition, it seems a bit more significant to protest when actually playing for your country than it is when you are playing for your club.