In the summer lull, in the sports media graveyard that is MLB All-Star week, (and with two lockouts in the NBA and NFL in top of it, meaning zero free agency news) THIS is what we needed. As Americans sports fans and sports news consumers, the U.S. Women’s soccer team stepped right in to fill the void.
Led by star player Abby Wambach, and her two extremely photogenic teammates Hope Solo and Alex Morgan, this team captivated a nation looking for sports conversation around the water cooler. The duo was also beloved by red-blooded American men everywhere. See the four links below for more evidence:
Hope Solo photo gallery
Alex Morgan photo gallery
Reader Poll: Hope Solo hotter as brunette or blonde?
Hotter woman: Solo or Morgan?
When Morgan, the youngest member of the team scored a goal to put the U.S. up 2-1, I thought “WE GOT THIS.” Actually I felt like the Obama graphic below, which was my Twitter pic after Navy S.E.A.L. team six took out bin Laden.
Unfortunately, Japan capitalized on what few chances they had throughout the game, and the U.S. botched so many of their chances. In the penalty kick shoot out, it was clear the U.S. just choked the game away. So it wasn’t a party like it’s 1999. Sorry to use that shopworn cliche, but considering that’s the exact year they won, I couldn’t resist.
But we loved this team, didn’t we? Rock out to James Brown’s “Living in America” one more time just for me.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports You can follow him on Twitter