SUMMARY
- Wrexham Red Dragons demolished US Women's team 12-0.
- However, people forget to register the fact that it was a friendly tournament.
The online Soccer fraternity has been obsessing over an astonishing match played out between the Wrexham Red Dragons and the US Women’s Soccer team. The match became a centerpiece of attention due to its final scoreline. Wrexham ran riot against the US team and won the game 12-0.
Despite being a friendly game, the scoreline is being used to diminish Women’s Soccer online. This makes it essential for fans to know about the context behind the game.
The friendly was played as part of ‘The Soccer Tournament’ and was organized in North Carolina. Devised as a 32-team competition, the tournament mirrors the FIFA World Cup’s format by having 8 groups of 4 teams each. The top two sides move on to the knockout stages. The competition’s winner takes home a $1 million prize.
Even with the added cash incentive, the tournament remained casual and friendly, as evidenced by its rules. The matches featured just 7 players per team. Soccer staples such as offsides, slide tackles, and throw-ins were all been binned.
⚽🚨THE TST 2023 FULL FIELD AND GROUPS ARE SET🚨⚽ pic.twitter.com/wtHXwTnugQ
— TST (@TST7v7) May 4, 2023
The tournament had received a healthy turnout with teams from all over the world competing, including the likes of Borussia Dortmund, West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, and the aforementioned duo of Wrexham and US Women.
But to clarify, the primary squads of these teams were not present in the competition. Instead, they were represented by an alternative squad comprised of club legends and ex-players. The same can be said about the Wrexham Red Dragons and US Women. Both teams were made up of former players, and not current stars.
The reason why US Women lost by 12-0 to Wrexham Red Dragons
Without trivializing the efforts of the Wrexham Red Dragons, it can be said that US Women lost because the contest was uneven from the start. While the women’s team consisted of retired USWNT International players, Wrexham brought along a few club legends, some seasoned veterans, and even a few players from their current roster.
In practice, this meant that former USWNT player Lori Lindsey, who retired in 2014, came up against Scott Butler, a fresh-faced 20-year-old who signed for Wrexham just last season. An evident mismatch, the game leaned heavily towards the Red Dragons on paper. And unsurprisingly, Wrexham dominated affairs.
What a start for @Wrexham_AFC!
They score two QUICK goals against the US Women.
📺: @TST7v7 on @peacock pic.twitter.com/A9uo9OaPLn— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) June 2, 2023
By halftime, they were up by 7-0, and their ruthless goalscoring continued until full-time, eventually culminating in a 12-0 demolition. Despite their superiority in the game, it remains important to remember that the Women’s team on display was not the actual US Women’s national side.
US Women’s team player did not care about the score against Wrexham Red Dragons
The tournament, held in North Carolina, was a friendly tournament based on The Basketball Tournament. One of the US Women’s team players was quick to remind people that they did not care about the score in the post-match interview.
“We’re super proud. Hopefully, we’ve proved to anybody, just go for it, just live. What’s the worst that could happen? We lose 16-0 to Wrexham? We don’t care because we’re living, we’re being bold and we’re being brave. Here we have two amazing products that American soccer fans are getting behind. It’s just a ton of fun and it’s brought all of us together”, retired USWNT player Heather O’Reilly told NBC Sports Soccer.
After claiming victories in their three group stage matches including the match against the US Women’s team, Wrexham bowed out of the tournament in the next round. They were defeated by a team led by U.S. internationals Jimmy Conrad and DaMarcus Beasley in the RO16. Moreover, the tournament and $1 million was won by Newton Pride FC.