US Women Ready

Team Lands in Chengdu Ahead of Opening WWC Game

All the preparation is over. Now let the games begin.

The United States Women’s National Team finished its final training session on Sept. 10 at Chengdu University and will now open the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup on Sept. 11 at Chengdu Sports Center Stadium against North Korea.

The game will be broadcast live on ESPN2 at a bright and early 5 a.m. ET back in the States (5 p.m. local time).

FIFA President Sepp Blatter will be in attendance at the match to watch the two-time World Cup champion USA take on rising power North Korea.

The final training brought 13 days of preparation in China to a close, although the U.S. players are entering the match with almost three years of preparing that has included 46 matches under head coach Greg Ryan.

This fifth FIFA Women’s World Cup is set to be the most competitive ever, with more strong teams than in any past tournament, including three of the top five ranked teams in the world playing in Group B (No. 1 USA, No. 3 Sweden and No. 5 North Korea).

The U.S. team traveled to Chengdu from Shanghai, where it spent the previous eight days training. While the U.S. team did not train on its travel day, it will practice almost every day in Chengdu leading up to the game, including a session at the stadium on Sunday, September 9.

The U.S. players got their first real taste of Women’s World Cup excitement at the Chengdu airport, as they were met by a posse of photographers and cameramen, all in a frenzy to get a glimpse of the world’s top-ranked team.

The 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup officially kicks off the day before the U.S. match, on Sept. 10 when defending champion Germany takes on Argentina.

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Women's World Cup Group Stage