Olympic finals and the birth of USWNT legends
Read how Carli Lloyd, Tiffeny Milbrett and Abby Wambach became Olympic icons as USA seek new heroines in Saturday’s Paris 2024 final.
USA arrived at Paris 2024, in the words of Emma Hayes, “firmly focused on creating a new history”.
With the likes of Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe already consigned to the team’s past, the omission of Alex Morgan from Hayes’ squad had cut yet another tie to the back-to-back FIFA Women’s World Cup™ winners of the last decade.
In the absence of these all-time greats, the creation of a new history would, Hayes knew, necessitate the emergence of new icons. Those heroines, despite plenty of pre-tournament hype, had not materialised at last year’s Women’s World Cup, when the US toiled en route to their earliest-ever elimination.