The USWNT are champions again. But regional powers are starting to flex their muscles

On its way to another international title, the US was confronted with the increasing talent in women’s football in Latin America.

So did the hemisphere’s other traditional powers at the inaugural Concacaf W Gold Cup, which the USWNT won by beating Brazil 1-0 on Sunday night.

Mexico earned its own ‘dos ​​a cero’ moment by beating the US 2-0 in group play. The three-time Women’s World Cup champions suffered only their second defeat in 43 matches La Triand only the second overall on home soil in 10 years.

In other surprise results earlier in the tournament, Puerto Rico – 103rd in the FIFA rankings – upset Panama, which made its first appearance at the Women’s World Cup last year, 2-1. Three days earlier, Las Boricuas held Brazil to one goal in a 1–0 defeat.

Then the reigning Olympic champion Canada needed extra time in a quarter-final for a 1-0 victory against Costa Rica, which almost won in the injury time of the second half. In another quarterfinal, Mexico survived Paraguay’s late surge to earn a 3–2 win after leading 2–0. Mexico’s Esthefanny Barreras made two consecutive saves in the second half – the first from a penalty, the second from a point on the rebound – to keep Paraguay at bay.

“A lot of players coming up now are extremely cunning. They have the ability to make magic out of nothing,” said USWNT forward Alex Morgan, who used one of her teammates to illustrate her point. “We saw that eight to ten years ago at Rose Lavelle. But now we see that every player simply has the ability to have the ball at his feet.”

Morgan, who has competed in four Women’s World Cups and three Olympic Games since 2010, has also noticed increasing tactical sophistication. “You see now that when you get the ball in the box it’s just a one-time finish,” she said. “Defenders close spaces so quickly that there is not enough time to make two or three touches. I think the space in the middle of the field is getting smaller, so using the width is a huge part.”

With players competing in the US and increasingly in Europe, women’s football in Latin America is becoming increasingly sophisticated. But as the sport matures, it faces spotty development across the region in the two areas most fundamental to its growth: domestic competitions and financial support.

Mexico showed how crucial a national competition can be in cultivating talent. When they debuted at the Women’s World Cup in 1999, 12 of their 20 players were born in the US and played at American colleges.

“We didn’t have a league back then,” said Andrea Rodebaugh, who started that tournament and is now director of the Mexican federation’s women’s national teams. “All we had were amateur leagues in different parts of the country. There was a big gap in preparation between the best players in Mexico and at international level.”

After allowing its internationals to play in the US, the federation founded Liga MX Femenil, which began play in 2017. The men’s clubs in Liga MX organized the women’s teams, which originally banned foreigners and predominantly featured players under the age of 23.

In each of the next four seasons, the league increased the age limit before eliminating it in 2020-2021. In 2019-2020, foreign-born Mexicans could play. In 2021-2022, each team could field two non-Mexican players and start youth programs.

Because of that gradual approach, 19 of the 23 players on Mexico’s roster played for the W Gold Cup on home soil.

“Mexico is doing things right and serving as an example for the region,” said Costa Rica defender Valeria del Campo, who plays in Liga MX Femenil. “It has an organized competition. There is a strategic plan. It has solid objectives. Ultimately, it will of course bring positive results for the players, the teams – and of course also for the national team.”

Costa Rica also has a national league, but players receive no salaries and often train in substandard facilities. “I believe that every player aspires to become a professional despite not having the best conditions,” del Campo said. “I have seen how Costa Rica tries to work with what it has. Sure, it’s not the best. That is the reality for many national teams in Latin America.”

Defining that reality is the conflict between resources, priorities and expectations. Panama striker Marta Cox, whose team finished last in their group at the W Gold Cup, expressed the frustration felt by many players in the region.

“We have been to a World Cup and I don’t see any change,” said Cox, who also plays in Liga MX Femenil. “We have to improve. For me it is best that people who have experienced this get involved in women’s football in Panama, who believe in it. As long as there is no competition in my country, as there should be, we cannot compete at the level that other teams do. A teammate is not going to train at home because we are missing a lot of things that we need.”

Argentina, which has played in the past two Women’s World Cups and won the Copa America Femenina in 2006, is recovering from a similar conflict. In 2015, the federation discontinued the women’s program to invest in the men’s team. When the federation reinstated the women’s team in 2017, the players went on strike to receive a promised increase in travel expenses.

“We are a country where women’s football is growing, but our development has certainly slowed down,” said Germán Portanova, the Argentina manager. “I think it would be great to have the goal of winning the Copa America or the World Cup, of course, but that is the last step on a long journey with many steps and hard work.”

Mariana Larroquette, who has played for Argentina since 2014, described some of those steps. “We now have a semi-professional league and we now have people working with the youth teams,” she said. “We receive no financial support, but the federation is planning more FIFA matches. With the infrastructure that allows us to train in Argentina, I think the funding will come in the long run.”

Puerto Rico, whose players protested for more support in 2018, is taking similar measures. The national federation organized under-15 and under-17 competitions to nurture local talent, and works with FIFA to identify players and develop coaches. The island has an amateur senior league whose players “often work or study on university scholarships to support their livelihood,” said midfielder Danielle Marcano, who was born in New Jersey, studied in Tennessee and plays professionally in Turkey.

Like Mexico 25 years ago, Puerto Rico relies on players who were born in the U.S. and have experience on U.S. collegiate teams. With their help, the island of Costa Rica moved into a tie for eighth place overall in terms of points, goal difference and goals scored at this year’s W Gold Cup. Costa Rica had to have their names removed from a pot to reach the quarter-finals.

To accelerate the development of women’s football, Concacaf came up with the W Gold Cup to provide its national teams with more competitive matches. The twelve-man field consisted of four South American teams. Two of them, Brazil and Colombia, qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The W Gold Cup is part of what Concacaf calls “a multi-million dollar strategic investment” in women’s football, which includes “six-figure travel and preparation subsidies” and “further financial benefits and prize money totaling $3.7 million” .

“We have a very large group of girls, future players, who watch matches that are very attractive and exciting for the fans,” said Pedro López, the Mexican coach. “I’m not talking about women’s or men’s football. I’m talking about attractive football. I think that beautiful and attractive football will grow women’s football in each of these countries. I also think it will help the football world in terms of marketing, because many companies and brands see an attractive product.”

These companies should be encouraged by the attendance at the W Gold Cup final: 31,528, the highest ever for a Concacaf women’s match.

Even with more financial support, some countries still have further to go than others.

“A baby can’t walk until it can crawl, and we’re still crawling,” said Eric Acuña, El Salvador’s manager. “In fifteen years we had no more official matches, and in three years we had 48. We don’t have to worry about the future, because I believe we will get the support. It’s not optimal, but we have to recognize where we are compared to the men’s team.”

Still, like many Latin Americans who support women’s soccer, Acuña anticipates the day when the baby stops crawling.

“One day we’re going to have to stop saying that word ‘construction,’” he said. “At the moment, that word fits the process. But one day, the team we build will have to respond with results. We have to show that we are good. I hope that very soon, within three years, we will stop doing that and start competing against whoever.”