This week, five major women’s soccer matches will be televised in the United States: two international friendlies between the USA and the Republic of Ireland, plus the NCAA College Cup (two semifinals and the final). For more details on those matches, plus other news of note, read on…
USWNT FAN TRIBUTE TOUR — The USA continues its post-Olympics celebration tour this week with two matches against the Republic of Ireland. Both matches will be televised live on FOX Soccer. The first match is on Wednesday, November 28th, in Portland, with TV coverage beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET. Then, on Saturday, December 1st, the Tour moves to Glendale, Arizona, with TV coverage starting at 9:00 p.m. ET. For a write-up on Ireland’s roster, see this earlier post. And, a week from Saturday, the USWNT begins its final series of the tour, with three matches against China: on December 8th, 12th, and 15th.
NCAA COLLEGE CUP — Last weekend, Florida State, Penn State, North Carolina, and defending National Champions Stanford booked their tickets to the College Cup, which takes place later this week at the University of San Diego’s Torero Stadium. The semifinals will be played on Friday, November 30th, with Florida State facing Penn State at 8:30 p.m. ET and Stanford taking on North Carolina at 11:00 p.m. ET. The FSU/PSU match will be streamed live on ESPN3, while Stanford/UNC will be televised live on ESPNU (but blacked-out on ESPN3.com). The winners of the semifinals will play each other in the National Championship match on Sunday, December 2nd, at 4:00 p.m. ET. That match will air live on ESPNU. And, before that match, FSU/PSU semifinal will be re-aired on ESPNU, starting at 2:00 p.m. ET.
U.S. SOCCER FEMALE ATHLETE AWARDS — On Monday, U.S. Soccer opened the voting for the 2012 Female Athlete and Young Female Athlete of the Year awards, which is voted on by fans. The five nominees for 2012 Female Athlete of the Year are Carli Lloyd (midfielder), Alex Morgan (forward), Megan Rapinoe (midfielder), Hope Solo (goalkeeper), and Abby Wambach (forward). For 2012 Young Female Athlete of the Year, the five nominees are Jane Campbell (U-17, goalkeeper), Vanessa DiBernardo (U-20, midfielder), Crystal Dunn (U-20, defender), Julie Johnston (U-20, defender), and Kealia Ohai (U-20, forward). Tip: When voting, click on the photo of your preferred candidate rather than using the radio buttons.
VANESSA DiBERNARDO: OUT OF THE HOSPITAL — On November 16th, the U-20 midfielder suffered a collapsed lung during Illinois’ tournament match at North Carolina (Facebook). She was released on Monday (26-Nov) after spending ten days there recovering from surgery (Twitter).
GERMANY-FRANCE FRIENDLY — Germany will host France in a friendly on Thursday, November 29th at 15:15 CET (9:15 ET a.m. USA). That match will be televised live in Germany on ARD.
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD RANKINGS — The next update will be released on Friday, December 7th.
And, if you missed it earlier…
CONFIRMATION OF THE NEW WOMEN’S LEAGUE — Last week, U.S. Soccer held a conference call where they confirmed plans for a new domestic professional women’s soccer league, which will start in the Spring of 2013, with eight teams. For more on the yet-unnamed league, see this earlier post.
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