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The USWNT have been knocked out of the FIFA Women's World Cup run after losing to Sweden on penalties in the Round of 16 in Australia on Sunday (August 6).
The Round of 16 clash between the USWNT and Sweden went into penalties after the scoreline read 0-0 at the end of normal time and extra time. The latter eventually earned a 5-4 win after Megan Rapinoe, Sophia Smith and Kelley O'Hara missed their respective spot-kicks.
The USWNT have, therefore, been forced to head home despite dominating Sweden during the 120 minutes before penalties. Vlatko Andonovski's side boasted 58% possession, played 583 passes and registered 11 shots on target, while Sweden had just one.
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US goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher thought she had saved Lina Hurtig's winning penalty. However, the goal was awarded after it was deemed that the ball crossed the line following a VAR check, thus ending the Stars and Stripes' hopes of winning the tournament.
The defeat also ended the team's dreams of winning the Women's World Cup for the third time in a row. This is also the first time that the defending champions have finished outside the top three of the competition in their history.
Sweden, meanwhile, continued their 100% record in this year's World Cup with the win against the USWNT. They will hope to take the streak to five games when they face Japan, who have also won each of their four games, in the quarterfinals on Friday (August 11).
How did the USWNT fare in previous FIFA Women's World Cups?
The United States women's national soccer team are the most successful team in the FIFA Women's World Cup history. They won the competition four times since its inception in 1991, with Germany winning twice and Japan and Norway winning once each.
The USWNT won the inaugural edition of the Women's Cup in China in 1991, beating Norway 2-1 in the final. In 1995, they finished third behind Norway and Germany. They reclaimed their crown at home in 1999, beating China 5-4 on penalties.
The CONCACAF outfit finished third in 2003 and 2007 and were the runner-up in 2011. They beat Japan 5-2 in Canada to return to the top in 2015 and went on to defend their crown in France four years later, earning a 2-0 win against the Netherlands.
They went into the ninth edition of the Women's World Cup with the hopes of winning their fifth title. However, things did not go to plan as they lost to Sweden on penalties in the Round of 16.
