The U.S. Women’s National Team was in action Thursday night, playing their first match since winning a gold medal at the Olympics earlier this year. The game served as the official start of a new four-year cycle that will include the 2027 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics.
The long layoff since the Olympics was apparent early in the match. The Americans looked somnambulant for the first half hour. During that time, Iceland had more shots on target than the U.S. Eventually, Alyssa Thompson was able to break the ice with her first international goal in the 39th minute to give the U.S. a 1-0 halftime lead.
Absolute LASER from the teenager ☄️
🇺🇸 USA 1-0 ISL 🇮🇸#USWNT x @VW pic.twitter.com/7Mv7QKdEUk
— U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team (@USWNT) October 25, 2024
In the second half. Iceland refused to go away and make it easy on the U.S. Selma Sol Magnusdottir scored shortly before the hour mark to tie the game. Just when it looked like Iceland would do just enough to force a draw, Jaedyn Shaw made a brilliant run after coming on as a sub and nudged the ball between the keeper’s legs. Sophia Smith, another second-half sub by Emma Hayes, added a third goal a few minutes later to secure the win.
Overall, it wasn’t the most convincing 90 minutes…
