Fansided

USWNT had little choice but run up the score in World Cup opener

By Clemente Lisi

REIMS, FRANCE - JUNE 11: Samantha Mewis of USA celebrates after scoring her team's fourth goal with team mates during the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup France group F match between USA and Thailand at Stade Auguste Delaune on June 11, 2019 in Reims, France. (Photo by TF-Images/Getty Images)
REIMS, FRANCE - JUNE 11: Samantha Mewis of USA celebrates after scoring her team's fourth goal with team mates during the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup France group F match between USA and Thailand at Stade Auguste Delaune on June 11, 2019 in Reims, France. (Photo by TF-Images/Getty Images) /
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The USWNT’s 13-0 win against Thailand drew both praise and criticism for how it went down, but the Americans had little choice but run up the score.

The USWNT delivered the most-lopsided scoreline in Women’s World Cup history on Tuesday, triggering a flurry of criticism from some who considered it poor sportsmanship to humiliate a weaker opponent.

“We know that every goal could matter in these group-stage games,” said striker Alex Morgan, who tallied five goals. “I think it was a very good team performance and it was important for us to celebrate with each other.

Indeed, the 13-0 win stirred debate among Fox Sports commentators and on Twitter that coach Jill Ellis should have pulled some of her best players and that the Americans should not have celebrated after the scoreline reached double digits.

Goal differential, the first tie breaker after points, could be a determining factor in Group F, which also features Sweden and Chile. In an effort to guarantee themselves a spot in the round of 16, the No. 1-ranked USWNT had to do everything it could, like Morgan said, to score as many goals possible.

FIFA makes the rules on how teams qualify for the knockout stage, not U.S. Soccer, Morgan or Ellis.

Ellis said in order to “be respectful” to teams like Thailand, one should “play hard” against them.

While Morgan, a veteran of the U.S. team that captured the World Cup in 2015, scored a record-tying five goals (equaling the mark set by Michelle Akers in 1991), players like Sam Mewis and Mallory Pugh scored their first ones ever at a World Cup.

“These are massive moments for these players,” Ellis added.

There was nothing Thailand could do to prevent the onslaught. Morgan and her teammates were just too strong for a side that lacked the physical tenacity and experience to keep up with the three-time World Cup winners.

That also brings up another point about the women’s game. The 24-nation tournament has shown in the past (and this U.S. win again proved it) that there is a big gap between the have and have nots in women’s soccer. Nations like Thailand don’t have the financial backing needed to develop the game.

If there is a lesson to come out of this USWNT win it is that FIFA needs to do more to grow women’s soccer around the world. The sport’s world governing body also needs to be aware that expanding participation at major tournaments could lead to more humiliating results.

A player-by-player guide to the USWNT World Cup roster. dark. Next

World Cup blowouts, even at a men’s soccer tournament, are not rare for a sport where goals can often be scarce. Germany downed Brazil 7-1 in the semifinals of the 2014 World Cup, a defeat that sent the South American nation into mourning. After that game, the Germans were praised for their power; Brazil criticized for wilting under the pressure of playing a World Cup at home.

“Part of me is sitting here wondering,” Ellis said, “if this is 10-0 in a men’s World Cup, are we getting the same questions?”

The U.S. will take this confidence-boosting win into their second match this Sunday against Chile in Paris.