The National Team: The Inside Story of the Women Who Changed Soccer

This book is absolutely amazing - it's a fantastic account of the relatively brief history of the USWNT and should be a must read for anyone that loves the game, supports our women's team's fight for equality, or even for those neanderthals that think the women's game is somehow "different" than the men's or that women athletes should be treated worse. I've been following the USWNT for 20+ years - we travel to see them whenever we can as a family (and are headed to France for the WWC finals, hopefully bringing home the 4th championship!) and my 8, 12, and 16 year old boys can name all the players.Even with this level of interest, and being familiar with the general concept that the USWNT were never treated equally to the much less successful USMNT, Caitlin Murray sheds light on the real struggles these champions have endured. I literally fought back tears of rage in some portions of the book - these women were world champions, pioneering the development of the women's game and inspiring young players all over the world, yet were doing it in spite of opposition from the very organizations (USSF and FIFA) that should have been embracing their efforts. It's one of the most maddening things I've ever seen, and it happened right under our noses into the 21st century - and even more infuriating is that the author does not go out of her way to bash the USSF/FIFA, just presenting the facts as they occurred is all that's necessary to grasp the level of misogyny that existed (and still does) in these organizations.As a fan of the USWNT team and as someone who loves soccer, I couldn't put this book down and finished it in a couple days on vacation. After reading it I'm more committed than ever to support these American champions any way I can, and can't wait to be in the stadium when they win the fourth Cup! Thanks to Caitlin Murray for compiling such a thorough account of our nation's most successful sports team.

Having followed the US Women's National Team closely over the years and read many/most of the books written about them ("Girls of Summer", the memoirs of Michelle Akers, Hope Solo, Carlie Lloyd, Abby Wambach, etc.), I wasn't sure that I would get much new out of this book, I was happy to find that there was indeed plenty to get out of it.Perhaps the most valuable part of the book is its documentation of the episodes when the team had to fight for equality and had its successes latched onto by free-loaders. Time and again on-pitch successes were followed by a time of conflict with US Soccer. Or, the on-pitch success nearly did not happen because the team had to threaten a boycott in order to get some measure of equality. This book covers all of those incidents as well as the aspects of the team's most recent collective bargaining agreement.While this book does not cover the history of the team in encyclopedic detail, it captures all of the World Cup and Olympic highlights and lowlights from 1991 through 2016 with a few pages devoted to the beginning (in 1985) and the team's situation post-2016 Olympics. All of the key moments are covered. From my reading of other accounts, I would say that the coverage of controversial moments (such as the Hope Solo's benching and her reaction to it in the 2007 World Cup) is balanced and provides a fair rendering of events.Whether the reader only started following the USWNT this year or has memories of 1999, I can recommend this book to all fans.

The National Team is impressive in its breadth and depth. The interviews, the stories, the sourcing, the photographs, and the mosaic of perspectives make this essential reading. This is simply outstanding sports writing. I almost cried reading the first story in the book about the USWNT arriving at the first game of the '99 World Cup. I won't spoil it for you, but wow.More than that, though, The National Team is an important book. My daughter has not stopped reading it since it arrived. She takes it everywhere. She may not ever finish because she is stopping on every page to read aloud or summarize a story for us. Representation matters, and here is a story--no, a saga--spanning more than 30 years of women daring to carve out and ultimately demand their rightful place in their sport.Highly recommended for everyone who cares at all about soccer.

Just like the title says, it is about the US Women's National Team. Some great insights into the history of FIFA Women's World Cup, the challenges of FIFA and US Soccer taking the Women's team seriously, and pushing the growth of women's sports throughout the world.I live in Portland, and I'm blessed to be able to watch the Portland Thorns week in and week out playing the best players in the world, both on our team and those that the Thorns face. While I watched a Women's soccer game here and there, Olympics, some friendlies, a couple games of the World Cups, it wasn't until a league started locally that I grew serious about watching women's soccer.Caitlin Murray's book would have been a fantastic read before the world cup (when I crammed it in at the last minute), but even now helps add depth the players, the NWSL league, and everything they've accomplished.Huge 5 star recommendation for this book for anyone who wants to learn about these amazing players.

The National Team was a phenomenal read. You get an inside view on the struggles that the USWNT have faced, especially internally from their federation. You get to appreciate players and their stories of perseverance and grit through all their struggles. Caitlin Murray does a great job at gathering various perspectives from players, coaches, administrators, and the media, to combine for a well-rounded insider’s view of what has unfolded from the time before the historic 99ers to the present day players. As a fan of the game, I appreciate reads like these and they reminds us of the still very real issues at hand in women’s sports, even as they continue to dominate the world stage. This novel is a cornerstone in telling the story of female athletes and their fight, and an important piece of literature, especially at the brink of another World Cup. A wholesome read & I would definitely recommend.

This was such a good read. You get the inside scoop on the USWNT and their fight for equality. It was nice to get the background stories. I would recommend this to fans of the USWNT and even those that was a good book to read.