Perhaps it was written in the stars (or the stripes?) for Mallory Swanson to get the winner. In our first knockout game it was Trinity Rodman putting the team on her back and booking a place in the semis. In the semis it was Sophia Smith. Heading into the final, the only one of our “triple espresso” who hadn’t scored a knockout stage game winner was Mallory Swanson, who would be on her 100th cap in the match. She picked up the baton in the 57th minute against Brazil, keeping her composure to slot it past Lorena for the game winner. What a way to mark your 100th game for the USWNT! 

The match didn’t start with such a rosy hue though. The first 45 minutes of the match were frenetic. As expected, Brazil came out and put the pressure on, and as expected we struggled to play through it. There were chances at both ends but the better chances fell to Brazil. Ludmila was in 1-on-1 with Naeher in the 2nd minute but hit it straight at Naeher. Ludmila then beat Girma 1-on-1 and roofed it over Naeher in the 16th but was called back for offsides. The US finally created a clear chance when Swanson got in behind Brazil’s right center back in the 26th minute, but this time Lorena made a great 1v1 save. Then Naeher pulled off the first of two fabulous saves she made in the final, when she pushed away a first touch shot from Portilho.

The USWNT needed the half-time whistle to be honest, Brazil had us on the ropes for the last 20 minutes and was by far the better team in the first half. We had plenty of notes on the tactics that Hayes was deploying…but it didn’t end up mattering because the second half was a completely different game.

Brazil must have used 100% of their pressing energy in the first 45. They never reached the same level of intensity on the press in the second half. As a result, chances started coming right away for the USWNT. We created 5 dangerous chances off our own pressure (also as expected!) in the first 15 minutes of the second half. The fifth time was the charm. We finally put one away when Mallory Swanson ran onto a through ball from Korbin Albert in the 59th minute. Not for the first time this game Swanson made Brazil’s RCB Lauren look like she had cement in her shoes, racing past her and breaking in all alone. It was a golden opportunity (pun intended) and she kept her cool to slot past Lorena to the back post.

The chances kept coming for the next 10 minutes, but we failed to put them away. You knew Brazil would create at least one more chance…they are a good team and it’s the gold medal game, so they weren’t going down without a fight. Brazil would create several dangerous situations, and two great opportunities…but we withstood the pressure. Emily Sonnet made her best play of the tournament with a key tackle in the box, then Naeher made another heroic last minute save in the 5th minute of stoppage time. From there we killed the game off and it there was nothing left to do but collect our gold medals and celebrate.

The USWNT now has 5 gold medals. Next closest is Germany with 1. If you factor in our 4 World Cup titles that’s 9 world championships. Germany is second in that as well with 3. There have been 17 women’s world championships ever contested, and the USA has won 9 of them. Damn.

And you wouldn’t bet against them extending their dominance at the 2027 World Cup in Brazil, or at the 2028 Olympics on home soil in LA, because this team looks capable of playing at the top level for a long time. Swanson is the oldest of the front 3 at 26, Smith turned 24 on the day of the final, and Rodman is only 22. Albert is younger still at 20. Fox is 26, Davidson 25, and Girma 24. The core of this team could be around for a long time. For the 2027 World Cup no one in that group will have hit 30 yet, and they’ll be able to fully implement Hayes’ system. Expectations will be sky high, but Hayes has already demonstrated she’s capable of keeping this team grounded, relaxed, and playing well under pressure.

Speaking of Hayes, you have to give her a tremendous amount of credit. She just took over 2 and a half months ago and the program looks completely different. It wasn’t supposed to be this easy. This was supposed to be a tournament where we began the rebuilding process en route to eventually reclaiming our spot atop the podium, but she just went ahead and won now. It seems like Hayes has this whole international manager thing figured out already, so maybe she can help with the men’s team in her spare time? In a post-game interview with Mike Tirico, she was clearly emotional, saying “I love America, it made me.” That quote shows the power of women’s soccer in this country and the impact the ‘96 Olympics and ‘99 World Cup teams (among others) had globally. It is literally unfathomable to think of a man from Europe who is involved in the sport of soccer saying the same thing.

Lastly, we can’t close without gushing a bit over what an amazing showcase this was for the sport of soccer in this country. Even though “only” 1 goal was scored, this game was anything but boring. There were tackles flying in left and right, near misses, great saves, and plenty of drama even into stoppage time. Even though Brazil was our opponent there was no one rolling around feigning injury. And most importantly, WE WON. Our women made the big plays in the key moments, booked their place in history, and made their country proud. Congratulations to Emma Hayes and the USWNT!