22 incredible photos of the US women's soccer team that prove they're one of the best teams in the world
- The US Women's National Team, or the USWNT, is well on their way to taking home another World Cup.
- They're facing off against England in the semi-finals on July 2.
- This team has been on a hot streak since their 13-0 victory against Thailand, and these photos show what an incredible journey they've been on.
- Follow all of our Women's World Cup coverage here.
- Visit INSIDER's homepage for more stories.
This year's Women's World Cup has been full of surprises, heartbreaking losses, joyful wins, and, above all else, American dominance.
The No. 1 ranked team in the world has not been pulling their punches throughout the World Cup. They've broken records for goals scored, jerseys sold, and amount of viewers watching.
Follow along with their journey to the semis, and see for yourself how powerful this team really is.
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The reigning champs started off their first game of the tournament strong, with Alex Morgan scoring the US Women National Team's (USWNT) first goal.
It was not her, nor her team's, last goal of the game.
Morgan also scored the fifth goal ...
Morgan turned 30 on July 2 — the same day as her semi-finals match against England. Hopefully the team can pull off a birthday win for the superstar.
... and the eighth goal, the tenth goal, and the twelfth goal. She scored a record-tying five goals in a single game.
Morgan's five goals has her tied with fellow American Michelle Akers who scored five goals against Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) at the 1991 World Cup.
Morgan wasn't the only scorer of the game. Seven players scored a record-breaking 13 goals against Thailand.
Some people were unhappy with the team's blowout win, citing unsportsmanlike conduct, but the World Cup format actually supports this type of scoring. Plus, other soccer fans were calling the backlash sexist.
Co-captain Megan Rapinoe scored her first goal of the cup against Thailand as well, and hit back against critics. She said Team USA's "only crime was an explosion of joy."
Rapinoe, who never shies away from speaking her mind, was clear in her response to the controversy.
"Honestly, if anyone wants to come at our team for not doing the right thing, not playing the right way, not being the right ambassador for the sport, they can come at us," Rapinoe said. "I think our only crime was an explosion of joy last night."
The game started off the team on an amazing foot, a trend that has only continued through the World Cup.
The match broke three records, and tied one: most goals scored by a team in a World Cup match (men's or women's), largest margin of victory in a World Cup match, most individual goal scorers in a single Women's World Cup match, and Morgan's tie for most goals scored in a match.
Five days later, on June 16, the US took on Chile, and earned another clean sweep. Team USA won 3-0.
The USWNT's success has led to Nike selling a record number of USA women's soccer jerseys. Nike CEO Mike Parker confirmed that "the USA Women's home jersey is now the No. 1 soccer jersey, men's or women's, ever sold on Nike.com in one season," on the company's earnings call.
Co-captain Carli Llloyd scored Team USA's first goal of the match.
Carli Lloyd, the first scorer of the game, appeared to troll critics of her team by modestly golf clapping after her goal instead of doing a wild celebration.
And then she scored the third, as well.
She narrowly missed earning a hat trick — but two goals in a World Cup game is nothing to be sad about.
The US dominated the game, and earned enough points to make it to the next round of play, the knockout stage.
CBS News reported that Chile only had possession of the ball for 28% of the game, and only got one shot off.
Their next game, against Sweden, would see who'd win their group.
Their advancement to the knockout stage earned them their eighth consecutive knockout appearance at the World Cup.
Team USA earned another clean sheet by beating Sweden 2-0.
After the group stage, all team points revert back to 0.
Lindsey Horan and Tobin Heath each scored during the game. Horan's goal in the third minute of the match was the fastest of the World Cup so far.
Heath's goal was a little more controversial. The 2019 Women's World Cup is the first to employ the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). Her goal was reviewed for a significant amount of time, but it stood.
The US's victory was especially sweet, as Sweden knocked them out of medal contention at the 2016 Summer Olympics. On to the knockout stage against Spain!
Victory has never tasted so sweet, especially as Sweden knocked out the US after the country won via a penalty shootout.
Devastatingly, the USWNT gave up their first goal of the cup to Spain — but they ended up winning 2-1.
Rapinoe and Morgan are co-captains of this year's squad.
Both goals were penalty kicks scored by none other than Megan Rapinoe.
But even though they let in a goal, their win still secured them a spot in the quarterfinals against host country France.
In anticipation of the match against France, Rapinoe hoped that the game would be "a total s---show circus," and predicted it was "going to be totally awesome."
Spoiler alert: It was "totally awesome."
This victory marked their tenth consecutive win at the World Cup, tying the record set by Norway from 1995 to 1999.
The US emerged victorious over France, 2-1. Again, Megan Rapinoe scored both goals.
These last two goals have her in third place after teammate Alex Morgan and England's Ellen White for the Golden Boot Award (most goals scored). Morgan and White have each scored six goals to Rapinoe's five.
The US goalkeepers have given up just two goals in the entire tournament so far, an admirable achievement.
Goalkeeper Naeher was kept busy during the game, but her defenders were on their best behavior. By minute 55, 10 shots had been taken by France — Naeher didn't have to save a single one.
The game broke ratings records as 6.3 million viewers tuned in to watch the match.
The game, which was shown by Fox in the US, was viewed by 6.3 million people on TV, making it the most-watched Women's World Cup quarterfinal in American history, and the most-watched English-language soccer game since last year's FIFA World Cup.
The game picked up another 13 million viewers across digital and social platforms. It was the most-streamed Women's World Cup game ever.
Only two more games stand between the USWNT and their fourth World Cup victory. Next up, they face off against England on July 2.
This is the next step for the USWNT if they want to bring home the trophy for the second cup in a row.
- Read more:
- The US women's team moves on to the World Cup semifinal. Here's why American women are so good at soccer.
- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says she's 'happy to welcome' the US Women's National Team to Capitol Hill after its feud with Trump
- The Women's World Cup is more popular than ever, and for the world's most popular soccer video game, it's a missed opportunity
- USA-France could become the most expensive game in Women's World Cup history, with tickets hitting the secondary market for as much as $11,000