An exploratory opening win shows the USA women are still a work in progress

Opening matches at World Cups are often a practice in figuring out what works. The USWNT’s 3-0 win over Vietnam to launch their three-peat bid suggests they’re not yet an entirely finished product

Sophia Smith admitted that she was nervous – and she is never nervous. Savannah DeMelo? She had some nerves, too, after finding out less than 24 hours earlier that her first international start would take place in the United States’ opening match of the 2023 World Cup.

“I mean, it’s a World Cup,” Smith said of the nerves. “I feel like that just shows how much it means.”