When the '99 Women's World Cup was still in its planning stages, some
of the organizers wondered aloud whether they might be better off holding
the matches in cozy collegiate stadiums with capacities of about 15,000.
Oh ye of little faith...Fortunately, someone on the committee realized
the potential of this event and the small stadium idea was nixed. It's a
good thing too.
Largest crowd ever
Saturday's opener drew a record breaking 78,972,
the largest crowd ever to witness a women's sporting event of any kind in
the United States. Can you imagine the line for the women's bathrooms with
that many people crammed into one of those tiny stadiums?
The approaches to the stadium were lined with
people hoping for tickets as well as those who could provide the coveted
ducats...for a price.
The elaborate staging and choreography of teenage
heartthrobs Insync, put the international crowd in a festive mood. And the
highly visible soccer fanatics from Brazil, Mexico and Denmark joined their
equally fanatical hosts to confirm that this truly was a WORLD Cup.
Opener recaps
Game one of the double header saw Denmark's stout
defense frustrate the vaunted U.S. attack through much of the match. Ultimately,
Denmark learned that 90 minutes is an awfully long time to try and hold off
the likes of Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy and Kristine Lilly. And each tallied single
goals in the 3-0 U.S. win.
Game two turned out to be a mismatch between powerful
Brazil and first time qualifier Mexico. A pair of sleek greyhounds named
Pretinha and Sissi ran wild through the Mexican defense and each recorded
a hat trick in the 7-1 rout. It could have been worse had not beleaguered
Mexican keeper, Linnea Quinones come up with some sterling saves.
On a day when Mexico had little to cheer about,
Maribel Dominguez broke through the Brazilian defense and briefly tied the
score in the tenth minute. Her perfectly placed shot into the upper left
corner was a sight for sore Mexican eyes. But it went all downhill from there
for Las Tricolores. "A baptism" is what Mexico's coach, Leonardo Cuellar
called it. A drowning might be more accurate.
