The United States women enter this match on the back of a … shall we say … muted performance against World Cup debutantes Vietnam last week. The team pulled off a 3-0 win, but things were tenser and less fluid than we’ve come to expect from the USWNT.
The good news? The Netherlands is in precisely the same boat. It beat an inexperienced Portugal team 1-0 and faced its fair share of criticism for racking up a scoreline that tight. “Portugal were really combative,” coach Andries Jonker said after the match. “There were moments when we were great and moments where there is room for improvement.”
The USWNT and the Netherlands: two old enemies, opponents in the last World Cup final, each entering this group stage clash with the same weight of expectation draped over their shoulders. Who will be victorious? Who will surprise the world? And, most importantly, how should we bet on it?
The bet: Result
The USWNT is the slight favorite here, given the team’s top global ranking and performance against the Netherlands in 2019 final. But these two teams met again between that game and this one — in 2021, at the Tokyo Olympics. It was a slightly different story, with the Netherlands holding on for a 2-2 draw before ultimately losing the match on penalties.