A Historic Victory: 13-0 Unsportsmanlike?
Last Tuesday, the United States Women’s National Soccer Team made headlines for a historic win over Thailand. The next day, headlines either praised or criticized the players for a record setting game winning 13-0.
The debate revolved around whether the 13-0 victory portrayed poor sportsmanship by the team continuing to score and celebrate their goals.
While watching the women play Chile yesterday, I asked a few close friends (some past college athletes) their opinion on the headlines.
I hesitated to express my opinion on this subject mostly due to the fact I played almost every sport except soccer and I am still learning the game. I’m not extremely educated on the sport or the history.
However, the more I thought about it, the more I realized this wasn’t just about soccer. These headlines and the coverage of this topic hit right at the core of women’s sports.
Last Tuesday should have been a celebration.
A historic moment for a multitude of reasons.
The United State Women’s National Soccer Team broke the record for most goals scored by any World Cup team - men’s or women’s.
Alex Morgan tied the tournament record for most goals scored in one World Cup game.
A huge success on the biggest stage in their careers.
Instead, these moments were met with immediate negativity claiming the 13-0 victory was disrespectful, classless, and unsportsmanlike.
Three reasons I believe the women’s victory against Thailand was not a disrespectful or unsportsmanlike showing.
1. Goal Count
First and foremost, goal count matters.
During group play, when teams are tied in wins and losses, the tiebreaker goes to goal count. That means there is a chance the amount of goals could determine whether a team advances or not. This point alone should end all discussion on whether scoring thirteen should be seen as unsportsmanlike. In a group with powerhouse Sweden, why wouldn’t the U.S. play their hardest to make sure they put themselves in the best position possible to advance?
“This is a world championship, so every team here has been fantastic to get to this point...” Head Coach Jill Ellis told AP News. “It’s a tournament where goal differential is important,” Ellis said.
2. RESPECT
Respect the game.
Respect your opponent.
Respect yourself.
As a retired college athlete, I can’t imagine not respecting the game I love more than anything. I also couldn't imagine not respecting my opponent or myself.
With my experience, the most disrespectful thing to the game and to an opponent is to purposely not play your best.
If I knew a team or player was purposefully not playing hard, nothing would infuriate me more.
I don’t care what the scoreboard says.
Maybe this thought process is from being an athlete or maybe it’s a competitive mentality.
Purposefully not going all out is more disrespectful to the game and the opponents than playing your best and winning 13-0.
As a competitor, I want the other team to give it their all.
I want their best.
No matter win or lose.
Alex Morgan told ESPN, “ I think it’s disrespectful if we don’t show up and play our best and play our game for 90 minutes. It’s disrespectful to the Thai team, “ Morgan said. “I believe they wanted us to play them straight up. And for the celebrations, these are goals that we’ve dreamt of our entire life.”
Part of being an athlete is the ability to come back from a devastating loss or blow out.
To show resilience and perseverance.
All 32 of these teams worked unbelievably hard for a chance at the World Cup and are elite athletes.
Every athlete knows big losses are part of the game.
Every athlete has them.
No one is immune.
Each one of these goals were special and athletically spectacular. All 13 goals highlighted below.
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Now, I understand some of the backlash was not due to the goal count itself, but however, more focused on how the goal celebrations were handled.
If they didn’t celebrate, imagine how that would look. They now would be criticized for being too arrogant and cocky. No celebration, would have been a worse look on the team and even more disrespectful to their opponent.
Let’s play a quick game:
Imagine making your lifetime dream come true.
You are a soccer player for the United States National Team.
You just scored your first goal in a WORLD CUP.
You have dreamt of this day your entire life.
Your parents, family, and friends are in the stands.
You are representing your country and you are on the biggest soccer stage in the world.
And you are told not celebrate your first goal due to your team being up too many goals?
...
No, that’s absurd.
Respect your hard work.
Respect the sacrifices made.
Respect your ability.
You’ve trained your whole life for this.
You have dreamt of these goals.
Now, do I think there is a respectful way to celebrate? Yes.
Did that line get crossed in the game Tuesday?
That one is for you to decide.
3. Momentum
Everyone knows momentum is one of the most important aspects in a game.
Some believe in it, some don’t.
These women are some of the best athletes in the entire world.
I believe when a coach or player mentions letting up on an opponent, they run the risk of ruining any momentum going into the next game.
Much less ruining the momentum for the rest of the current game.
When a team is clicking so seamlessly like the USWNT, letting off the gas could have a devastating effect on the team play.
Continuously playing and letting them play their best brings the team together and creates consistent momentum.
Even the celebrations keep momentum and team bonding high.
Back in 2017, the NFL relaxed the rules on group celebrations after touchdowns.
Zach Ertz, professional football player and husband to Julie Ertz told CBS, “When you're on a good team the best way to build team chemistry is seeing other people as happy for your success as they are for their own. And seeing the girls celebrate… other people's success I thought was crucial for them long term.” Ertz said. “Because you see how close these women were getting."
Playing their best and celebrating each others victories were momentum building and impactful for the long World Cup run ahead.
Side note: At the end of the game, many U.S. players were seen consoling and encouraging the Thailand players after the game.
Nothing unsportsmanlike about that.
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Were some of the goal celebrations overboard? Possibly.
Should the focus of such a historic game be on anything but what these women achieved? No.
The attention shouldn’t be on the fact of whether the game was unsportsmanlike or not. The attention should be on the historic victory and the achievement of these players.
If there is going to be a conversation about anything other than the achievements and play, it should be about the wage gap controversy.
“According to a lawsuit filed on March 8 by the U.S. women’s national soccer team, these female athletes are being paid less than the men’s team, in some cases earning just 38 percent of pay per game. This, despite the fact that in recent years the women’s team has generated more profits and revenue for the U.S. Soccer Federation, earned larger viewing audiences, and played more games than the men’s team. The women have also won three World Cup titles and four Olympic gold medals,” stated in The Atlantic.
Unfair pay should be the headline and conversation. Not the debate if a 13-0 win is unsportsmanlike or not.
Link for a great read about the pay gap and Tuesday’s Game:
The Sexism Behind the ‘controversy’ Over the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team’s 13-goals