Going into the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the oddsmakers had the U.S. and France as co-favorites to win the tournament, but the American performance during the group stage – 3-0 and a 18-0 goal differential – made an impression.
The new odds to win the whole thing:
1. 7/4 ~ United States
2. 4/1 ~ France
3. 6/1 ~ Germany
4. 8/1 ~ England
5. 12/1 ~ Netherlands
6. 20/1 ~ Australia
6. 20/1 ~ Canada
8. 25/1 ~ Japan
The longest odds are for the two African entries: 100/1 for Nigeria and 250/1 for Cameroon.
¶
There are 19 players who scored two or more goals in the group stage; those with three or more:
5 ~ Alex Morgan (USA) and Sam Kerr (AUS)
4 ~ Christiane (BRA)
3 ~ Ellen White (ENG), Wendie Renard (FRA), Christiana Girelli (ITA), Carli Lloyd (USA)
Believe or not, there are odds on this too, with Morgan the overwhelming favorite:
1. 2/5 ~ Alex Morgan (USA)
2. 4/1 ~ Sam Kerr (AUS)
3. 20/1 ~ Christiane (BRA)
3. 20/1 ~ Carli Lloyd (USA)
5. 40/1 ~ Christiana Girelli (ITA)
¶
There’s also defense in football, and only two teams got through the group stage without allowing a goal, and three allowed just one:
0 ~ United States (3-0-0) with Alyssa Naeher in goal
0 ~ Germany (3-0-0) with Almuth Schilt in goal
1 ~ France (3-0-0) with Sarah Bouhaddi in goal
1 ~ England (3-0-0) with Karen Bardsley (2) and Carly Telford (1) in goal
1 ~ China (1-1-1) with Shimeng Peng in goal
China’s group stage play was about as close as you can get: 1-0 loss to Germany, 1-0 win vs. South Africa and 0-0 vs. Spain!
¶
Attendance for the first 36 games of the Women’s World Cup in France has been good, but no sell-out. The reported crowd count totals 665,916, for an average of 18,498 per match.
The biggest crowds:
1, 45,594 on 16 June for United States vs. Chile in Paris
2. 45,261 on 07 June for France vs. Korea in Paris (World Cup opener)
3. 34,872 on 12 June for France vs. Norway in Nice
4. 28,267 on 17 June for France vs. Nigeria in Rennes
5. 28,205 on 19 June for Scotland vs. Argentina in Paris
6. 25,055 on 10 June for Argentina vs. Japan in Paris
The smallest crowd was 8,009 on 20 June for Cameroon vs. New Zealand in Montpellier.
¶
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the U.S. women’s team has “tentatively” agreed to mediation with the U.S. Soccer Federation on the equal-pay and other issues raised in their suit.
The women, as a group, filed suit in March, alleging a variety of issues, but principally asking for equal pay, although their compensation model is much different than the U.S. men’s team.
