LYON, France (Aug. 6, 2024) – Ahead Sophia Smith’s Ninety fifth-minute objective propelled the U.S. Ladies’s Nationwide Staff to a 1-0 victory in opposition to Germany and a spot within the gold medal match on the 2024 Paris Olympics. The late heroics got here after 90 minutes of scoreless motion, simply three days after fellow ahead Trinity Rodman despatched the U.S. to the semifinals together with her 105+2nd-minute game-winner in a 1-0 victory vs. Japan.

Whereas the USA had extra of the sport than Germany, main in photographs (19-15), photographs on objective (10-7) and possession (58%-42%), this win was concerning the super psychological and bodily toughness of the U.S. group that stored its endurance, stored battling and eventually discovered a manner by a superb Germany group simply 5 minutes into the primary time beyond regulation interval.

Smith’s effort to beat her defender to the ball and slide to shoot previous the onrushing German and NJ/NY Gotham FC goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger proved to be the distinction within the newest installment of a historic rivalry between the groups. It was the primary time the USA had ever performed long-time world energy Germany twice in a world championship event and thus, the first-time the U.S. Ladies have ever crushed Germany twice in a world championship occasion.

The objective was created by ahead Mallory Swanson, who performed a deft ball into the penalty space for Smith because the dynamic U.S. attacking trio of Rodman (22-years-old), Smith (23) and Swanson (26) continues to gentle up the scoreboard at Paris 2024, scoring 9 of the USWNT’s 11 targets and 10 of its 11 complete objective contributions in France.

With the win, the USA advances to the gold medal match for the sixth time in eight Olympic appearances and the primary since London 2012. The USA can be aiming for its document fifth Olympic gold medal. The USWNT will face the winner of Brazil-Spain on the historic Parc des Princes in Paris on Saturday at 11 a.m. ET / 5 p.m. native. It will likely be the USA’s eleventh remaining at a world championship occasion throughout the 17 which were contested.

Right this moment’s semifinal featured a showdown between two powerhouses of the ladies’s worldwide recreation with america and Germany being two of three nations to have gained a FIFA Ladies’s World Cup and Olympic gold medal. It was additionally the USA’s first match again on the Stade de Lyon because it capped off a dominant event to say its fourth Ladies’s World Cup title with a 2-0 win vs. Netherlands in 2019.

Hayes made two modifications to the group that took down Japan in dramatic 1-0 trend within the quarterfinals, reinserting midfielder Sam Coffey again within the squad after serving her suspension for yellow card accumulation and middle again Tierna Davidson, who missed the final two U.S. matches with a leg contusion. Coffey had a superb match as did Davidson, however she solely performed the primary 45 earlier than giving solution to Emily Sonnett, who was strong in serving to the USA shut out the sport. It was the identical XI that dispatched Germany 4-1 through the nations’ group stage conflict on July 28 in Marseille.

Razor-thin margins have outlined the knockout stage of the Olympic Ladies’s Soccer Event up to now, with three of 4 quarterfinals determined in or after time beyond regulation, together with two penalty kick shootouts, and this night in Lyon was no totally different with a tense, back-and-forth affair between the 2 heavyweights.

The USWNT did get off on the entrance foot as Davidson put a header on body in simply the second minute of play off a nook kick, whereas a pleasant run from Rodman set midfielder Rose Lavelle up for a shot simply two minutes later that was saved by Berger.

The Germans grew into the sport because the half wore on. Germany discovered its finest early probability within the twenty fourth minute as winger Jule Model drove previous the U.S. protection on the left aspect and put an effort on the right track earlier than it was swallowed up by a diving Alyssa Naeher. Naeher completed the evening with seven saves, her most ever in a World Cup or Olympic match, as she recorded her third shutout of the event. Naeher’s three clear sheets at Paris 2024 are tied with Hope Solo (2008 and 2012) for essentially the most by any USWNT goalkeeper at a single Olympics.

Enjoying fairly bodily protection, the Germans made plenty of arduous tackles that led to free kicks in advantageous positions, however the U.S. was unable to capitalize. Within the thirty first, a promising ball into the field from Lavelle ended with Berger simply dealing with a header from captain Lindsey Horan and within the thirty seventh, Germany stopped a shot from Swanson after a pleasant cutback cross from the ever-active Rodman.

Germany got here out reinvigorated after the half, persevering with its bruising protection whereas making extra forays into the U.S. remaining third. Model and middle ahead Nicole Anyomi prompted hassle on the suitable aspect for the U.S., however the again line held robust, led by one other excellent efficiency from middle again Naomi Girma. She beat her mark to win a header on a harmful ball into the six within the fifty fifth minute and stymied one other run from Anyomi within the 67th.

The U.S. seemed primed to tally the opening objective in a breakaway on the 62nd, countering after a German attacking run. Left again Crystal Dunn performed it to Swanson on the run and he or she drove ahead, wheeling across the diving Berger towards the top line and an empty web. With the 2 German middle backs monitoring again, Swanson wasn’t in a position to convert from the tight angle and hit it into the aspect netting. It wouldn’t have counted anyway because the flag was up for offside.

One other collection of probabilities got here for the USWNT late because it pushed for a winner in regulation. Within the aftermath of a nook within the 79th, Coffey and Girma did properly to maintain the ball alive within the air and play to Horan in entrance of objective close to the six. There, the captain put a header on-target close to the submit that was saved by Berger with a dive to her proper.

Ninety minutes of impasse meant that the USWNT would go to time beyond regulation for simply the second time in back-to-back video games on the Olympic Ladies’s Soccer Event, doing so 20 years prior within the semifinal and remaining at Athens 2004.

Germany had the primary few seems to be of additional time as Girma defused a promising attacking run within the 93rd and Naeher swallowed a hard-hit shot within the 94th, however the USA’s fearsome entrance three lastly broke by within the Ninety fifth. Swanson performed to Smith, the place the ahead chased the ball round her mark and chipped it over the sliding ‘keeper, sending the U.S. again to Paris the place it is going to goal for its first gold medal since 2012.

The USA had two extra golden probabilities to increase the lead as Smith received in on breakaways, however Berger saved them each to maintain the sport tight.

The drama wasn’t accomplished as Naeher made an incredible kick save close to the top of time beyond regulation off a German header to protect the win.

GOAL SCORING RUNDOWN

USA – Sophia Smith (Mallory Swanson), Ninety fifth minute: Midfielder Sam Coffey performed to Swanson simply previous the middle circle, the place she took a contact earlier than taking part in Smith chopping in from the suitable wing. It was a chase between the striker and German defender Felicitas Rauch for the ball and Smith received there a second sooner, sliding to raise the ball over the onrushing goalkeeper for the decisive objective. USA 1, GER 0

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• No participant on this present Olympic roster has gained gold, although eight gamers – Tierna Davidson, Crystal Dunn, Lindsey Horan, Casey Krueger, Rose Lavelle, Alyssa Naeher, Emily Sonnett and Lynn Williams – gained bronze on the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
• The USWNT has but to path on the Paris 2024 Olympics or at any level in its 9 video games beneath Emma Hayes. The final – and solely — time the USWNT went a complete Olympics with out trailing was throughout its run to the 2004 gold medal in Greece. The USWNT has gained three World Cups – 1991, 2015 and 2019 – with out trailing at any level within the event.
• That is the USA’s eleventh remaining all-time at a world championship occasion (six Olympic finals, 5 Ladies’s World Cup finals). No different nation has reached greater than 4 world championship finals (Germany – three World Cup finals, one Olympic remaining).
• By reaching the gold medal match, the USWNT is assured to win its seventh Olympic medal, having beforehand gained 4 gold medals (1996, 2004, 2008, 2012), one silver (2000) and one bronze (2020). Germany has gained the subsequent most Olympic medals all-time with 4 (one gold, three bronze).
• The USA will face the winner of Spain vs. Brazil on Saturday, August 10 at Parc des Princes in Paris (5 p.m. CET / 11 a.m. ET). The USA has performed Brazil two instances beforehand within the Olympic gold medal match, profitable each conferences in additional time in 2004 and 2008. The 2023 FIFA Ladies’s World Cup Champions, Spain is making its Olympic debut.
• This was the USA’s eleventh additional time match on the Olympics and simply the second time that the USWNT has ever gone to time beyond regulation in back-to-back situations on the Olympics. The one different incidence got here within the semifinals (2-1 win over Germany) and remaining (2-1 win over Brazil) of the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
• The USA is now 8W-1L-2D all-time on the Olympics in additional time matches, together with two time beyond regulation victories over Germany.
• The U.S. improves to 25W-5L-7D all-time in opposition to Germany, together with an ideal 3W-0L-0D on the Olympics and a 5W-1L-0D document within the knockout phases of the World Cup or Olympics. The winner of every of the earlier 5 knockout spherical conferences on the World Cup or Olympics between the USA and Germany went on to win the event. The USA has now crushed Germany 5 instances in knockout spherical play at main tournaments, together with 4 instances within the semifinals. The one different group to defeat Germany greater than as soon as on the Olympics or World Cup is Norway.
• The USWNT has now gained 13 consecutive matches in France courting again to the 2019 FIFA Ladies’s World Cup, its longest profitable streak in any nation outdoors of america. Three of these wins have are available Lyon, all within the knockout rounds (2019 World Cup Semifinal vs. England; 2019 World Cup Ultimate vs. Netherlands; 2024 Olympic Semifinal vs. Germany)
• Smith’s objective within the Ninety fifth minute was her third of the event, all of which have come in opposition to Germany. Smith is now tied with Mallory Swanson and Trinity Rodman for the group lead in scoring at this Olympics with three targets.
• Smith has now been instantly concerned in a objective 5 of the USA’s 5 matches on the 2024 Olympics and leads the group with 12 objective involvements in 2024.Smith leads the USA eight targets this 12 months and is tied for the group lead with 4 assists.
• Hope Solo recorded three clear sheets through the USA’s runs to gold in each 2008 and 2012. Naeher now has 4 profession clear sheets on the Olympics – one in 2020 and three in 2024 – tied with Briana Scurry for the second-most in USWNT Olympic historical past.
• Lindsey Horan made her one hundred and fifty fifth worldwide look, transferring right into a tie with Michelle Akers and Christen Press for twenty third on the USWNT’s all-time caps chart.
• Mallory Swanson made her 99th worldwide look and is now only one cap away from turning into the forty fourth participant in USWNT historical past to achieve the 100-cap milestone.

– U.S. WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM MATCH REPORT –

Match: U.S. Ladies’s Nationwide Staff vs. Germany
Date: Aug. 6, 2024
Competitors: Paris 2024 Olympics Semifinal
Venue: Stade de Lyon; Lyon, France
Attendance: 15,107
Kickoff: 6 p.m. native / 12 p.m. ET
Climate: 81 levels, sunny

Lineups:
USA: 1-Alyssa Naeher; 7-Crystal Dunn (13-Jenna Nighswonger, 91), 12-Tierna Davidson (14-Emily Sonnett, 46), 4-Naomi Girma, 2-Emily Fox; 17-Sam Coffey, 10-Lindsey Horan (Capt.) (3-Korbin Albert, 91), 16-Rose Lavelle (8-Lynn Williams, 60); 11-Sophia Smith, 9-Mallory Swanson (6-Casey Krueger, 110), 5-Trinity Rodman
Substitutes not used: 18-Casey Murphy, 15-Jaedyn Shaw
Head coach: Emma Hayes

GER: 12-Ann-Katrin Berger; 15-Giulia Gwinn (Capt.), 3-Kathrin Hendrich, 5-Marin Hegering (4-Bibiane Schulze, 78), 19-Felicitas Rauch (13-Sara Doorsoun,106); 16-Jule Model, 8-Sydney Lohmann (14-Elisa Senß, 91), 6-Janina Minge, 17-Kiara Bühl; 9-Sjoeke Nüsken, 21-Nicole Anyomi (10-Laura Freigang, 69)
Substitutes not used: 1-Merle Frohms, 2-Sarai Linder, 18-Vivien Endemann
Head coach: Horst Hrubesch

Stats Abstract: USA / GER
Pictures: 19 / 15
Pictures on Objective: 10 / 7
Saves: 7 / 9
Nook Kicks: 5 / 4
Fouls: 10 / 19
Offside: 1 / 5 

Misconduct Abstract:
GER – Marina Hegering (Warning) forty fourth minute
GER – Jule Model (Warning) 108

Officers:
Referee: Bouchra Karboubi(MAR)
AR1: Fatiha Jermoumi (MAR)
AR2:Diana Chikotesha (ZAM)
4th Official: Yujeong Kim (KOR)
Video Assistant Referee: Ivan Bebek (CRO)
Assistant VAR 1: Tatiana Guzman (NCA)
Assistant VAR 2: Khamis Al Marri (QAT)

Michelob Extremely Superior Lady of the Match: Naomi Girma