MAPFRE Stadium will host the U.S. Women’s National Team as they return to Columbus for the 2018 SheBelieves Cup doubleheader against Germany and England versus France on Thursday, March 1.
England and France will kick-off at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the U.S. vs. Germany match at 7 p.m. ET. (TICKETS). This will be the eighth match for the U.S. Women’s National Team at MAPFRE Stadium and their first time back since their 9-0 victory over Thailand on September 15, 2016.
The SheBelieves Cup, now in its third consecutive year, is a four-team invitational women's soccer round-robin style tournament held in the United States. The U.S. Women’s National Team won the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2016, while last year’s tournament was won by France.
The last time the Women’s Team was in Columbus, Carli Lloyd only needed 39 seconds to notch her first goal, in what ended up being a three-goal, four-assist performance at MAPFRE Stadium. The other goal-scorers that contributed to the whopping 9-0 win over Thailand included Christen Press, Heather O’Reilly, Crystal Dunn, and Alex Morgan. This match also marked O’Reilly’s retirement from international duty.
Head coach Jill Ellis named 26 players to the preliminary roster on Wednesday morning, with 23 players to be selected for the final roster ahead of the tournament.
The Major League Soccer regular season will kick off just days after the SheBelieves Cup matches in Columbus, with Crew SC opening their season on the road at Toronto FC on Saturday, March 3 at 1 p.m. ET. Following the 2017 Eastern Conference Championship rematch, Crew SC returns to MAPFRE Stadium to host the Montreal Impact on March 10, 2018. TICKETS.
