Skip to content

Routine win over Chile sees USWNT secure knockout berth

Catherine Ivill - FIFA / FIFA / Getty

It wasn't double figures, but it was still more than enough.

The United States completed the formality of booking a place in the knockout stages of the Women's World Cup, easing its way to a 3-0 win over Chile on Sunday in Paris.

The Chileans, to their credit, offered a far more robust challenge than Thailand earlier this week, but ultimately the Americans' skill and physical superiority was simply too much to handle.

Carli Lloyd set a World Cup record by scoring in her sixth consecutive contest, her first-half brace sandwiching a bullet header from Julie Ertz. The 3-0 half-time scoreline was identical to the one the USWNT carried into the interval against Thailand; Jill Ellis' side famously smashed in 10 more in the second stanza of that encounter.

Were it not for the brilliance of Chilean 'keeper Christiane Endler on Saturday, Lloyd and Co. could very well have replicated that total. The Paris Saint-Germain star produced a handful of stunning saves - including an absurd one-handed stop on a Christen Press header - to limit the damage. An errant Lloyd penalty late in the contest also helped.

Despite the missed chances, the result was never in doubt.

Now sitting on six points after its opening two matches, the U.S. will go into its group stage finale against Sweden on Thursday needing only a draw to lock up top spot in Group F.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox