It's Time: WNT Begins Quest For World Cup on Monday

U.S. Women’s National Team vs. Australia
2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup – Group D
Winnipeg Stadium; Winnipeg, Canada
June 8, 2015 

U.S. WNT OPENS GROUP D PLAY AT 2015 FIFA WWC: The U.S. Women’s National Team will begin its quest for a third title when it opens the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup on Monday, June 8, against Australia at Winnipeg Stadium in Winnipeg, Canada. The USA’s opening game on the third match day of the tournament will be the first of three Group D matches which also includes clashes Sweden and Nigeria. The match will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 1 and NBC Universo at 7:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. CT). Fans can follow all the action on Twitter @ussoccer_wnt and @ussoccer_esp, and follow the team along its journey by following it on Instagram and on Snapchat (ussoccer_wnt).

HOW WE GOT HERE: The WNT won the 2014 CONCACAF Women’s Championship held last October in the USA. The USA officially clinched a spot in this year’s World Cup with a 3-0 semifinal victory against Mexico on Oct. 24. The USA capped off qualifying with a 6-0 win against Costa Rica in the title game on Oct. 26, led by four goals from Abby Wambach. Midfielder Carli Lloyd played every minute of the tournament and was named Most Valuable Player of the competition. Abby Wambach led the USA in scoring in the tournament with seven goals while Lloyd had five.

#SHEBELIEVES: While the U.S. Women’s National Team players want to make an impact on the soccer field during the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, they also are determined to make an impact on their fans, especially the young girls and women who will be watching them. Conceived and developed by the USWNT players, the #SheBelieves campaign is a message to young girls that they can accomplish all their goals and dreams. During the week of May 19-24, all 23 players went into their communities to give back and share the message that anyone’s dreams and goals can become a reality if one just believes.

• WATCH: #SheBelieves in her Community
• Read the USWNT’s letter

ONE NATION. ONE TEAM. 23 STORIES: As the team gets play underway in Canada at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, get to know each player through U.S. Soccer’s "One Nation. One Team. 23 Stories." series, presented by Clorox. Sprinkled with humor, fun and heartfelt stories, the videos give fans insight into the players’ personalities, families, motivations, and some of the challenges they’ve experienced on the different roads they’ve traveled to earn the right to represent the United States in the ultimate competition for a soccer player.

• Watch all 23 Videos

2015 LOOK BACK: On May 30, the USWNT wrapped up its three-game Send-Off Series in Harrison, New Jersey, with a 0-0 draw against Korea Republic. Another sold-out crowd of more than 26,000 fans came to see the WNT off to Canada during its last game in home soil. A week earlier on May 17, the USWNT defeated CONCACAF rival Mexico 5-1 at StubHub Center in Carson, California, in front of a sold-out crowd of 27,000 fans in its second Send-Off Series game. Sydney Leroux and Abby Wambach led the way with two goals each while Lori Chalupny added a tally, her second of the year. Just a week prior, the U.S. Women began the Send-Off Series with a dominating 3-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in San Jose, California. The Irish did not manage to get off a shot. Abby Wambach scored twice and defender Julie Johnston notched her third goal in three games to give the sold-out crowd a special win on Mother’s Day. The win was the second at home for the WNT in 2015, which had defeated New Zealand 4-0 on April 4 in the first domestic match of the year at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri. Earlier in the year, the WNT took home the trophy at the 2015 Algarve Cup in Portugal, where the Americans triumphed 2-0 against France in the championship game to win its 10th title at the annual tournament. The USA begins its run at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup with a 7-1-2 overall record so far in 2015.

GROUP D SCHEDULE: The U.S. Women’s National Team will face Australia, Nigeria and Sweden in Group D at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The U.S. opens the tournament against Australia on June 8 at Winnipeg Stadium, face Sweden on June 12 in Winnipeg, and finish Group D play against Nigeria on June 16 at BC Place in Vancouver. The USA, Nigeria and Sweden have competed in every edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup.

U.S. Women’s World Cup Team Roster By Position:
GOALKEEPERS (3): 18-Ashlyn Harris (Washington Spirit), 21-Alyssa Naeher (Boston Breakers), 1-Hope Solo (Seattle Reign FC)
DEFENDERS (8): 16-Lori Chalupny (Chicago Red Stars), 6-Whitney Engen (Western NY Flash), 19-Julie Johnston (Chicago Red Stars), 22-Meghan Klingenberg (Houston Dash), 11-Ali Krieger (Washington Spirit), 5-Kelley O’Hara (Sky Blue FC), 3-Christie Rampone (Sky Blue FC), 4-Becky Sauerbrunn (FC Kansas City)
MIDFIELDERS (7): 7-Shannon Boxx (Chicago Red Stars), 14-Morgan Brian (Houston Dash), 17-Tobin Heath (Portland Thorns FC), 12-Lauren Holiday (FC Kansas City), 10-Carli Lloyd (Houston Dash), 9-Heather O’Reilly (FC Kansas City), 15-Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign FC)
FORWARDS (5): 2-Sydney Leroux (Western NY Flash), 13-Alex Morgan (Portland Thorns FC), 23-Christen Press (Chicago Red Stars), 8-Amy Rodriguez (FC Kansas City), 20-Abby Wambach (unattached)

U.S. ROSTER NOTES:

• On April 14, U.S. head coach Jill Ellis named the 23-player U.S. Women’s World Cup Roster. All 23 players were a part of the 25-player roster that was called up for the Algarve Cup in March and the match vs. New Zealand game on April 4 before Ellis named her final group.
• In its last nine games, the U.S. has surrendered just two goals and has scored 20. Its only loss of the year came on the first match, a 2-0 loss to France on Feb. 8, 2015, in Lorient, France.
• Forward Abby Wambach leads the U.S. roster with five goals in 2015.
• U.S. midfielder Megan Rapinoe’s next goal would give her 30 for her career, making her the 13th U.S. female player to score 30 goals and tally 30 assists. She currently has 32 assists.
• Lori Chalupny scored against New Zealand in her hometown of St. Louis, marking it her first goal for the USA since she scored against the Republic of Ireland on Sept. 20, 2008. She scored her second goal of the year against Mexico on May 17, just 45 seconds after coming into the match as a second half sub.
• Meghan Klingenberg scored her second National Team goal on a long-range blast against New Zealand. Her first goal was a similar long-range effort that came against Haiti on Oct. 8, during Women’s World Cup qualifying tournament last year.
• Julie Johnston has three goals in 2015, all coming in consecutive games. Her three goals were all from set pieces and all assisted by Lauren Holiday.
• Ten different players have scored for the USA in 2015: Alex Morgan, Abby Wambach, Amy Rodriguez, Christen Press, Johnston, Klingenberg, Morgan Brian, Chalupny, Sydney Leroux and Carli Lloyd.
• U.S. captain Christie Rampone is currently the second most-capped player in U.S. and world history with 306 appearances.
• Rampone earned her 300th cap against with Mexico on Oct. 24, 2014, and currently has 306 games, the most of any active player in the world and behind only former teammate Kristine Lilly.
• Defender Becky Sauerbrunn is the only player on the roster to start and play every game for the USA. She has played the most minutes (879) of anyone on the team.
• Carli Lloyd currently sits at 195 caps and could hit the 200 mark during the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup. She would become the 10th player in U.S. history to reach that mark and the fourth in the current roster. Rampone, Wambach and Heather O’Reilly are the other three.
• Lauren Holiday leads all U.S. players on the rosters in assists with five in 2015. Holiday was the 2014 U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year.
• Brian, the USA’s youngest player at age 22, was the 2014 U.S. Soccer Young Female Athlete of the Year. She was also named the 2013 and 2014 Hermann Trophy winner while playing for the University of Virginia.
• While Wambach is the USA’s top scorer on the roster with 182 goals, Lloyd is next with 63 career international goals and Morgan has 51. Heather O’Reilly has scored 41.
• Christen Press’ four-goal performance against Argentina in Brazil last December was the ninth such game in U.S. history and second of 2014 after Wambach scored four times against Costa Rica in the final of the CONCACAF Women’s Championship. It was the first-career hat trick for Press.
• All nine NWSL clubs are represented on the Women’s World Cup roster.

2015 FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP NOTES:

• The USA is making its seventh appearance in a FIFA Women’s World Cup and is one of seven countries to appear in all seven editions of the tournament, the others being Brazil, Germany, Japan, Nigeria, Norway and Sweden.
• The U.S. WNT is one of four CONCACAF representatives at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup after winning the 2014 CONCACAF Women’s Championship. The runner-up of the qualifying tournament, Costa Rica, is participating in its first Women’s World Cup. Third-place finisher Mexico and World Cup host Canada are also in the tournament.
• The U.S. is the only country to have reached semifinals of every FIFA Women’s World Cup. The USA won in 1991 and 1999.
• The 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup features six venues: Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Moncton Stadium in Moncton, Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Frank Clair Stadium in Ottawa, BC Place Stadium in Vancouver and Winnipeg Stadium in Winnipeg. Nine matches, including the semifinal, will be played at Olympic Stadium.
• The 90,185 spectators on hand at the Rose Bowl for the USA’s victory against China PR in the 1991 FIFA Women’s World Cup represent the largest attendance in the tournament’s history. The largest venue at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup is Olympic Stadium, which seats 66,308.
• Abby Wambach’s 13 goals in FIFA Women’s World Cup competition rank third all-time. She trails only Brazil’s Marta and Germany’s Birgit Prinz who have 14 goals apiece.
• The U.S. WNT is 27-5-4 all-time in the Women’s World Cup, outscoring its opponents 98-32 in 36 games. The 27 wins, 36 games played and 98 goals scored are all FIFA Women’s World Cup records.
• The USA’s most lopsided victory in the tournament was a 7-0 win against Chinese Taipei in 1991.
• Michelle Akers’ five goals against Chinese Taipei are the most in a single match in tournament history.
• The U.S. holds two other individual records with Kristine Lilly playing a record 30 games in five World Cups and goalkeeper Briana Scurry earning a record 10 shutouts.
• The USA is 4-0-2 all-time in its Women’s World Cup openers, drawing China 3-3 in 1995 and North Korea 2-2 in 2011.
• The only other time the USA has met Australia in a Women’s World Cup was in 1995 in Sweden, when the Americans came away with a 4-1 victory to finish group play.

MATILDAS PRESENT A FAMILIAR OPPONENT: The USA has faced Australia on 24 previous occasions, with 22 of those games being friendlies, one an Olympic match and the other a World Cup game. The U.S. holds a record of 22-0-2 against Australia, and has outscored them 83-20 throughout its history. With a series that dates back to 1987, the USA has shut out the Matildas on 10 occasions, allowed one goal 10 times, and only allowed two or more goals during four meetings between the two countries. The worst result against Australia came on May 3, 2008 in Birmingham, Alabama, when the USA allowed four goals in a match for the first time in a 5-4 victory. Most recently, the USA and Australia met on Oct. 20, 2013 in San Antonio, Texas, where the WNT earned its 10th shutout with a 4-0 win.