Seems like every television I encountered last week was tuned to a soccer game. Computers, too. When I stopped by a colleague's desk, she confessed that, no, her headphones were not being used for a phone call; she was listening as the Netherlands beat Australia. People who are watching the World Cup from here instead of heading to Brazil likely won't go to Russia for the World Cup in 2018 or Qatar in 2022, either.
But how about Canada? So near, so simple.
That is where the 2015 Women's World Cup — the version that U.S. teams have actually won — will be played.
Team USA won the first ever Women's World Cup in 1991 and won again in 1999; the women have also brought home four Olympic gold medals. The current team is ranked first in the world by FIFA. (Our men's team is hanging in there at unlucky 13.)
Suffice it to say, the Women's World Cup will make for some exciting matches in cities that are relatively close to home.
At our house, we're already making plans, though tickets don't go on sale until September.
Women's World Cup 2015, from June 6 to July 5, will take place in six host cities spanning Canada: Vancouver, British Columbia; Edmonton, Alberta; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Ottawa, Ontario; Montreal, Québec, and Moncton, New Brunswick. It will be a coast-to-coast extravaganza of 24 teams facing off in 52 matches.
The closest city to us, Winnipeg, will host early matches in mid-June. The final two teams will vie for the top slot in Vancouver, a gorgeous city for reveling in victory, or recovering from a loss. Get more details at www.fifa.com/ womensworldcup.
