SOCCER-WOMEN/RALLY Los Angeles stages the first rally for U.S. women soccer team

Record ID: 148150

  • Title: SOCCER-WOMEN/RALLY Los Angeles stages the first rally for U.S. women soccer team
  • Date: 7th July 2015
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) SARAH ALEZXI, FAN, SAYING: "It's crazy, we've been waiting to win for such a long time, now that we finally made it here in L.A. and we're just ready to celebrate." CROWD CHANTING (SOUNDBITE) (English) JILL ELLIS, HEAD COACH OF THE U.S. WOMEN'S NATIONAL TEAM, SAYING: "I know you know this, this is a remarkable group of women, I couldn't be more proud
  • Embargoed: 22nd July 2015 13:00
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  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVADFCRJC4N2IZMPV1L9A91OBSHQ
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Two days removed from winning the women's soccer World Cup, star midfielder Carli Lloyd teased the idea of capturing another one in 2019 as thousands of flag-waving fans cheered the U.S. team on Tuesday (July 07) at a boisterous outdoor rally in Los Angeles.
    "Every day it feels great to wake up as a world champion," Lloyd, who scored three goals in Sunday's 5-2 victory over Japan in the championship match in Vancouver, Canada, told the crowd. "And that feeling won't get old. We're going to have to bring it home four years from now, another World Cup."
    Lloyd, 32, won the Golden Ball as the player of the tournament. She tallied six goals in seven World Cup matches.
    While the fans who packed the downtown celebration near the Staples Center arena strained to take pictures of the team, many of the players on stage took photos and videos of the raucous crowd.
    Many of the people in the crowd were dressed in red, white and blue and chanted "U-S-A, U-S-A." Sunday's victory gave the U.S. women their third World Cup championship and first since 1999.
    "It's crazy, we've been waiting to win for such a long time, now that we finally made it here in L.A. and we're just ready to celebrate," said fan Sarah Alezxi.
    Sunday's game, which capped a month-long tournament played in six Canadian cities, was the most-watched soccer match of all time in the United States as 25.4 million Americans tuned in, world soccer body FIFA said on Tuesday.
    Members of the U.S. team wore shirts at Tuesday's rally emblazoned with the words "World Champions."
    "I've always thought that that if I play well this team is going to win and now I know that sometimes it takes less to be more, to be more," said 35-year-old Abby Wambach, the 2012 FIFA Player of the Year who was a reserve for this year's World Cup.
    For many, the return of the Women's World Cup is a meaning of a new era in enticing young girls to play the sport.
    "We want to win not just because we want to be World Cup champions, but because we want to continue to propel the sport, we continue to open up new barriers for little girls to dream bigger dreams, I mean I was fortunate enough to have 1999 team to look up to now I'm so glad we can be an inspiration you know, we're now the 2015ers that little girls can look up to so, it's fantastic," said midfielder Tobin Heath.
    The US Women National team will be touring different parts of the country, their next stop is New York on Friday, July 10.
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