CHAPTER 1 SHOOTOUT AT THE WORLD CUP In 1999 two soccer teams met in Pasadena California for the Women’s World Cup finals At the end of two hours of play the United States and China were tied 0 0 The match went to a shootout Players from both teams would take turns shooting the ball Only the goalie would be allowed to defend the goal At the 1999 World Cup US player Kristine Lilly competes with China’s Liu Ailing 5
Some critics had questioned whether fans would watch women’s soccer But the fans showed up Approximately 90,000 people attended the game between the United States and China That crowd was the largest ever for a women’s soccer game Another 40 million people watched the game live on TV The US team featured players known as the Fab Five These players were Mia Hamm Joy Fawcett Kristine Lilly Brandi Chastain and Julie Foudy Each member of the Fab Five had been on the team for more than 10 years Some of them had been high school sophomores when they joined the team 6
The 1999 Women’s World Cup took place at a sold-out Rose Bowl in Pasadena California To reach the finals the United States and China had defeated some great teams In the semifinals the US team beat Brazil China beat Norway Both of those games were hard fought 7
