Women’s Sports And Competitions Today

The final game of the Women’s World Cup tournament will happen this weekend; it will air on FOX at 6:00 AM EDT.  Spain and England will play for the cup and Spain is a 4-to-5 favorite to win the game.  Like American football, there are many ways to place a wager on soccer games and this game has plenty of betting opportunities posted.

Of course, you can wager on who will be the winner; that is obvious.  In addition:

• You can wager on when the winning goal will be scored – – in regulation time, in extra time or on penalty kicks.
• You can wager on the total number of goals scored in the game somewhat differently that in American football.  For the World Cup Finals, you will get different odds if you bet over a certain total or under a certain total or exactly a certain total.  Moreover, there are 5 choices of “total goals” to choose from so there are 15 possible betting elements there.
• You can wager on whether both teams will score or only one side.  As of this morning the “No” side of that line is favored at 4-to-5.
• You can wager on whether a specific player will score a goal.  But that’s not all …  You can also wager on whether that goal will be the first one of the game or the last one of the game or just anytime during the game.
• You can wager on whether a specific player will be “booked” in the game.  Booking refers to a player receiving a yellow card from the referee and having the player’s number recorded in the little book that the referee carries in his pocket.

I watched both teams win their semi-final games; to my untutored eye, Spain fields the faster and more athletic side and England is the more focused/intense squad.  I will sleep in the living room on Saturday night so that my alarm at 5:30 AM will not wake my long-suffering wife; I will definitely be watching the final game.

Next up …  Given the failure of the USWNT to come close to expectations for this tournament, there is no surprise in the announcement this week that the coach has stepped down.  Vlatko Andonovski said this in part at the time of his resignation:

“While we are all disappointed by the outcome at this year’s World Cup, I am immensely proud of the progress this team has made, the support they’ve shown for each other, and the inspiration they’ve provided for players around the world. I will be forever thankful to the U.S. Soccer Federation for giving me the chance to coach this remarkable team.”

Well, at least he did not say he was resigning to spend more time with his family.  Andonovski’s record as coach of the team over almost 4 years on the job was 51-5-9 but his record in “major tournaments” over that period was a less gaudy 3-2-5.

The current assistant coach for the USWNT, Twila Kilgore, will be the interim coach as the team figures out how to regroup and prepare for the Olympics that begin in Paris in July 2024.  The US team is already qualified for the Olympics next year, but they still have work to do in the time leading up to the Games in Paris.  Kilgore is expected to be the coach of the USWNT for its next appointment games – – two friendlies against South Africa in late September of this year.  The US Soccer organization will conduct a search for a new permanent coach; frankly, given all the buzzwords uttered by the head of the search committee, I think this will be a painful process.  Here is just part of the management-speak:

“It is imperative that we continue to evolve and innovate, and we are excited about the path that lies ahead.  We understand the challenges and have engaged with stakeholders from various corners of our sport — players, coaches, and other individuals within the soccer landscape. The insights and perspectives gathered during these discussions have been instrumental in shaping our forward-looking plan.”

Moving on …  I think everyone here recognizes that I am not in favor of allowing post-pubescent transgender male athletes to compete against cisgender female athletes in sports involving strength and/or speed.  I believe that sports exist in a positive sense only if there is a level playing field.  Having said that, I was amused to read yesterday this headline on an AP report:

• “World chess federation bars transgender women from competing in women’s events”

First of all, I was not aware that chess had a men’s division and a women’s division.  Now that I do know that differentiation exists, my question is “WHY?”  As you might expect, this decision from the chess mavens has drawn criticism from transgender rights activists.  My position on the eligibility of transgender athletes is not anywhere near what transgender rights activists seek to be the prevailing norm; there are no transgender activists who would call me an ally for their cause.  However, in this specific case, the activists and the transgender women chess players are totally correct.

• This is an unnecessary and self-inflicted irritant created out of nothing by the chess mavens.
• Chess competitions have no more need for gender-identification divisions than do poker tournaments.  And the World Series of Poker is a unisex event.

Finally, since everything today has something to do with women’s sports/competitions, let me close with a few observations about women:

“Brigands demand your money or your life; women require both.”  [Nicholas Murray Butler]

And …

“When women kiss, it always reminds me of prize-fighters shaking hands,” [H. L. Mencken]

And …

“Women who insist on having the same options as men would do well to consider the option of being the strong, silent type.”  [Fran Liebowitz]

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………