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Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Is media giving U.S. women’s soccer team a free pass for its World Cup Fail?

Consider this: LeBron James is taking part in for the U.S. men’s national basketball team. He goes 0-for-8 from the sphere and 1-for-3 from the road down the stretch, and the U.S. loses to Germany, 94-91 (Nowitzki celebrates again!), within the championship game. are you able to imagine the dump truck-load of grief he and his teammates would receive within the media? For one factor, he wouldn’t be allowed back to this country, except disguised as a girl (imagine the confusion within the TSA pat-down line). The smoke and warmth from all the LeBron jerseys being burned would soften the polar ice cap, leading to catastrophic flooding. It may quite literally be the top of the globe as we all know it.

But when it involves Abby Wambach or Hope Solo or the other of the U.S. women’s soccer team who blew it against Japan on Sunday, the media has been rather more forgiving. Why?

It’s true that the U.S. did beat Brazil, in what the media dubbed the “Miracle on Grass”: though i believe that additional aptly applies to the current story regarding Charlie Sheen obtaining a brand new sitcom. The U.S. played well during this World Cup, up till the ultimate game.

Then they blew it. once missing varied scoring opportunities, and losing 2 one-goal leads in regulation vs. Japan, the U.S. converted only 1 penalty kick to lose the shootout, 3-1. The prevailing sentiment within the media? ‘That’s OK, you probably did well, and therefore the Olympics are turning out.’

In alternative words: You played virtually … for a lady.

They were saying and scripting this in all corners of the media nowadays. In fact, the sole very harsh criticism of the U.S. team that I’ve seen thus far has return from ESPN’s Tommy Smyth, who said, entertainingly, that the U.S. girls “Couldn’t hit the broad aspect of a barn with a cannon.”

And he’s right, they couldn’t. Smyth additionally criticized the U.S. coaching (and rightly so), saying that with a late 2-1 lead, they ought to are plenty less aggressive:

“You place your foot on the ball, you progress it around amongst yourselves, and I’m unsure what the yankee coach was doing.”

This sounds abundant harsher when said in an Irish accent.

OK, the big apple Post’s headline: Kicked within the Grass, was pretty important. however it didn’t even rate a full cover: Most of the page was taken up by the Yankees’ seek for another pitcher.

Here’s the thing: This World Cup was imagined to be ensuing huge step for women’s soccer within the U.S. it absolutely was imagined to produce of these new fans, and facilitate place the game on a lower shelf at the sports supermarket, in conjunction with basketball, hockey and people Mint Oreos you usually get.

You know how i do know that didn’t happen? as a result of they lost a championship they ought to have won, and no-one very cared. “Oh that’s OK, they played hard” may be a nice observation if your team of alternative is that the Purple Ladybugs, who simply lost the under-10 AYSO women championship. however if you get that sort of sentiment when your team is representing the whole nation, which means your sport continues to be ordinary.

More folks were worried regarding obtaining Harry Potter tickets on Sunday than they were worried regarding the ladies losing. Women’s soccer can never be taken seriously till we have a tendency to see unwarranted displays of anger when our team fails. which goes particularly for the media, that overreacts to everything.

Where are the YouTube videos of some fan going nuts and destroying his TV over this loss? Where are the disconsolate Hope Solo fans rolling on the ground in agony? In Vancouver they’ve rioted for abundant less.

Then there was this headline nowadays within the Onion: SPORTSWIRE: Women’s World Cup Sets Record for many Creepy Tweets throughout One Event.

So few very care, and if they are doing it’s just for prurient reasons.

Women’s sports can never achieve full equality till a number of their groups are unfairly criticized on SportsCenter, or mocked by The Onion for reasons besides sex. And because the Women’s World Cup has shown us, we’re not there nonetheless. Not even shut.

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