England’s World Cup women ‘underdogs with a chance’
As England women’s World Cup squad for Germany 2011 is unveiled, Channel 4 News speaks to coach Hope Powell and a leading women’s football blogger about the Lionesses’ chances of glory.
The 2011 Women’s World Cup in Germany begins in just over two weeks and the names of the England squad have now been revealed.
The England team is tenth in the world rankings and in good form after beating the world’s best, the United States, in April.
Former player Jen O’Neill edits SheKicks.net, a leading online women’s football community and magazine.
She told Channel 4 News: “England are considered a team that could go to Germany and cause an upset and win. They are the underdogs who have a chance, they’re seen as entertainers as well.”
England’s leading goal scorer Kelly Smith was an obvious choice for coach Hope Powell’s World Cup squad, and O’Neill describes her as “arguably one of the best three or four players in the world”.
England are considered a team that could go to Germany and cause and upset and win. Jen O’Neill, SheKicks.net
The squad has an average age of 26, offering a mixture of youth and experience, and all but five of the players have experience of a senior international tournament. Sixteen of the 21 play their club games in England, for Women’s Super League (WSL) teams. The remaining five players are at Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) teams in the US, including Smith who plays for Boston Breakers.
On the longterm future of the women’s game, manager Hope Powell said improvement is about “continued investment”.
She told Channel 4 News: “We now have to invest in the next generation coming through and that’s what [Germany] are good at.
“We’re working hard to get there, but it is about sustainability.
“I think it’s great now that girls can go into an environment where they’re getting coached and it’s safe, free and fun.”
Power balance
But Jen O’Neill said it’s important the culture around women’s football in the UK grows too.
“The power balance in international football isn’t quite the same as in the men’s game,” said O’Neill. “The culture and history of how the game has developed in certain countries has had an impact on which teams are the best and strongest internationally.
“Soccer isn’t so massive in the US and this has enabled women’s soccer to develop. Soccer in general in America is the 5th most popular sport, for men and for women.”
Soccer isn’t so massive in the US and this has enabled women’s soccer to develop. Jen O’Neill
Germany are ranked second in the world after suddenly becoming a growing force in the mid 1990s. The 2011 World Cup hosts are widely seen as the favourites, as O’Neill explains: “Germany are the one team that everyone thinks are going to win it, I can’t personally see past them. Most people would agree with that, but it’s football so in one game everything could go horribly wrong.”
Scandinavian countries have a reputation for success in women’s football. Fifth-ranked Sweden, who will face the US in the group stages, and 9th-ranked Norway are expected to do well and have a strong supporter base behind them.
O’Neill explains: “Scandinavian countries have much more egalitarian societies, so were happy to push women’s football a lot sooner than what you would accept from the more traditionally stong men’s footballing cultures.”
Big crowds expected
Germany’s World Cup organisers are making a massive effort in promoting women’s football, according to O’Neill. She said: “They have a deal where if TV shows the men’s national team playing live, then they have to show the women’s national team live.
The hosts are expecting at least 70,000 at the opening game between Germany and Canada on 26 June.
“It’ll be huge. The problem for everyone else in the game is that this coverage and support will make Germany even stronger,” said O’Neill.
But she admits that it has not been easy for women’s football to get exposure: “When people want to be interested or attempt to give it coverage it’s always been quite impenetrable.
“At least everybody knows what a World Cup is and you can get interested in that and you can cope with finding out the main personalities. The last two big tournaments have given people a bit of an insight into the main England players and hopefully this World Cup will do the same.
“The BBC is showing England matches live and Eurosport will show the whole tournament, so if people want to they can watch it.
“The FA hopes that if England do well then that will generate even more interest when the WSL kicks off again at the end of July.”