Pride of the Country: USWNT

The United States Women's National Team is coming into the 2019 FIFA World Cup as the defending champions from four years ago, and the clear favorites to hoist the cup again this year. The main leadership of this team is all returning with even more experience than last time. With the spotlight focused on them, now more than ever, will they be able to secure what they believe is rightfully theirs.

Since bringing home the cup in the last tournament, the women's team has been riding high on confidence and recognition. This may be the first time in American soccer history that the national women's team is more popular than the struggling Men's National team. That is a huge statement to make, but I feel it is justified with the recent performance from both sides. With the men's team sliding further and further into obscurity, the women haven taken the reigns and given this country a team they can believe in.

Evey four years the world is fixed on the game of football. Even though soccer is not the most popular sport in the United States, we still take pride in rooting on our country when the biggest tournament rolls around. A year ago, at this very time, the Men's National team was embarrassing the country by watching the World Cup from their couches. This really hurt the United States view of the team, and our ability to play football globally. It made us, as a soccer nation, have a dose of reality and come to terms that we wouldn't make it in. The mindset of basically being an automatic lock every four years was shattered right in front of our eyes.

That pill was hard to swallow for a lot of die hard American football fans, and something that was really hard to watch. Fast forward one year and the Women's National Team is not only in the World Cup tournament, but they are the defending champions and the odds on favorite. This has really elevated these women to a stratosphere that they rightfully deserve, and has made them household names around the country.

These amazing athletes are in this position now to lead this country to the Cup, and give it the pride that it so desperately yearns for. What is even more important to remember in this day and age is that it is not just the fact that the men's team is struggling that has put these women at the forefront. It's the fact they have worked their lives for this, and have earned everything that they have taken. These women are the leaders of an amazing movement that is occurring in our country, and our country is embracing them right back with open arms. That is something that I believe every American soccer fan should be proud of.

USA 13 - Thailand 0

The proof is in the pudding, as the women's team scored the most points in a FIFA World Cup game (men or women) in their opening bout against Thailand. This was the largest margin of victory for any team in a cup match, and showcased the utter dominance this team can possess. The leader stood out also, as Alex Morgan scored five goals, and assisted another three goals, to give her a world cup record of eight points in one game.

This was an incredible feat and I'm sure it gave the whole country a reason to feel pride in this team. Hopefully this dominance can continue, and they can ride it all the way to a repeat finish from the last cup. All my support goes to the amazing women that wear the flag on their jerseys. Thanks for reading and go USA!

#OneNationOneTeam