You know you made it big when ...

... Google makes a cartoon for you.

Congratulations to the US WNT, Bibiana STEINHAUS and her whole team, for their outstanding performance.

Match Officials

Referee Bibiana STEINHAUS (GER)	Assistant Referee 1 Marina WOZNIAK (GER)
Fourth Official Jesica DI IORIO (ARG)	Assistant Referee 2 Katrin RAFALSKI (GER)
Fifth Official Maria ROCCO (ARG)

Match report and stats are courtesy of FIFA.

"There's a lot of money at stake for the players," Gulati said.

Gold medal will bring more green to U.S. women's soccer team

LONDON – How much does U.S. soccer value gold in these London Olympics? More than you might guess.

The color of the medal will determine the payout for the women's soccer team.

U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati says the women's team will split a $1.5 million bonus if the Americans beat Japan in the final here Thursday, which is more than they would earn with a loss, though Gulati declined to specify how much more. The expectation is that the money will be split by the 18 players on the current roster, a pool of about a dozen reserves and training staff. Not every person may receive a full share or a share at all. ...

See the whole story here, from USA Today.

Kicking Back Comments: Puff Daddy has it right. Now one thing that was not detailed in the article is how much US Soccer stands to gain in the process as well. I don't know if US Soccer gets a direct payout from the IOC, or if US Soccer takes a cut from each athletes award.

I would be very surprised if it did not as, lets face it folks, US Soccer is a business. 

No money for you?

The other day I opined in "Show me the money!!", that if the Federation spent the kind of money they pay their coaches, to pay a small group of referees ... truly professional referees ... we may increase our chances of getting through to a World Cup (and advancing) soon. While this is only one aspect of the problem, it is one significant aspect. A second is the "right" appointments to be seen and taken seriously at the international level, and a third is the political will & backing to help FIFA and CONCACAF make the right choice.

Even more striking that this topic (which is fodder for another day), was the difference in pay between the coaches of National teams in the US.

Take a look at Bradley's base pay of $449,025. This dwarfs Sundhage's base salary of $207,667. Some may say this has to do with it being a World Cup year ... but ... that would seem to be well compensated for in the bonus Bradley obtained, $345,000. While not explicit for World Cup performance, it would stand to reason it is.

Why such a difference in base salary? They are both National teams? They both represent the US? Why?

Is the women's game "less valuable" than the men's? US Soccer may seem to think so.

Now, truth be told, I am a capitalist at heart and have no issue if one is better than another at negotiating a salary. If that is really only the issue Pia needs some big help. My suspicion is that there is more in play here and the range of salary is not as great. I openly admit I could be wrong ... but such a wide gulf gives me pause.

It is odd to me too on another level. I would think that while US Soccer is trying to gain international acclaim for the mens program, it has international acclaim for the womens program. Remember the US WNT has placed in the top 3 for every single World Cup, and two of those they were Champions. This is compared to the MNT with the closest was 3rd place in 1930 ... and not all that close since (an exception being 1994 IMHO).

I would think that is worth something to US Soccer. Certainly pay bonuses on performance in World Cup years, but pay a base worthy of assuring the US continues its foothold in the women's game. Alternatively, reduce the men's base salary and pay out a larger bonus on performance ... where it really counts.

Kristine Lilly Hangs 'em Up

Quiet star Lilly exceeded them all

Girls often come in predictable groupings -- in literature, pop culture and even in real life. There's the "pretty" one, the "outgoing" one, the "smart" one, the "motherly" one. And then there's the other one, the quiet girl who rounds out the social circle.

Often the quiet one ends up with the biggest role. ...

See the full story here, courtesy of SI.com.

Think it's just football ... think again

With the fervor about helmet to helmet contact in the NFL that we spoke about the other day, and the life long damage it can cause in an athlete, it can be easy to forget that concussions are a serious issue  in a sport such as soccer. It all too often is associated with sports perceived to be "rougher", like grid iron football.

Lori Chalupny, midfielder for the Atlanta Beat, and US National team has sustained several head injuries in her role, and may be forced to retire because of it. A good report from the Washington Post about how these injuries can manifest in a player and how debilitating they are.

What Will Solo Do?

WWSD?

For those who follow the US WNT, you may recall the tirade by Hope Solo, not Han Solo, National team GK, not smuggler turned hero, (background here, official web site here) back in 2007 against Greg Ryan after losing to Brasil 0-4 in the World Cup in China that put the US into the 3rd place match.

Her comments were aimed at Ryan's decision to replace her with Briana Scurry the night before the Brazil match. To be sure Solo was not the only one being critical of his decision. Other notables such as Brandi Chastain were also particularly vocal. A full account of the events can be found here courtesy of SFGate.com. It is worth noting, she offered somewhat of an apology on her Facebook page over the incident ... to her teammates.

Flash forward to August 2010 when Boston played Atlanta where Solo serves as GK where she accused Boston fans of being sexist and racist through their comments, which were apparently later validated and a very civil exchange of apologies occurred (source) between the teams, fans, and players. The whole incident was apparently chalked up to a handful of unsavory fans.

So while I believe there is no place in the game, or life, for such epitaphs, I also believe participants at that level have to grow a bit of a hide and be ready to suffer some public criticism, even some insulting behavior. The article talks about songs sung, and other organized chants. Well gee folks, when does it have to be sunshine and lollipops all the time, or in the alternative, silence? Has anyone gone to a match where the crowd chants "you suck" before the taking of a goak kick? How about this classic "A rope, a tree ... ." How many times has a 14 year old referee been told to go packing by a group of adults?

Flash forward to the other day where Solo goes after the league and referee. This one is almost laughable as her comments were odd, to say the least. [I have to admit a bias here as I have worked with Kari (Seitz) a number of times and found her to be a tremendous professional.] One of the more memorable quotes was:

"Its official, the refs are straight bad. Its clear the league wanted dc in playoffs. I have truly never seen anything like this. Its sad. ... I am done playing in a league where the game is no longer in control of the players."

What?
You can see the whole mess here on Twitter.

Now I am curious to see what the disciplinary committee will decide this week about the tweeted comments (and please see the full story for the whole thing) as it would seem that there is a threat of sorts in there that she won't play if she can't get her way. We will see how serious about the league is regarding such comments about referees, and frankly the league itself. 

Imagine if nothing happens and YOU are the next referee who gets the pleasure of seeing her. Imagine further for a second if the shoe was on the other foot. What would the league, or US Soccer do against a referee who shot their mouths off about a player?

It may seem inequitable, but it  is the reality. Keep in mind too, that THE game is bigger that any individual.

In any event, given the string of incidents it would certainly seem there is a loose cannon on deck. I am curious to see how this is dealt with as it effects the womens league, the WNT, and the referees as well.