FRISCO, TX (January 5, 2022) – Toyota Stadium in Frisco will host the U.S. Women’s National Team along with the Czech Republic, Iceland and New Zealand in the final doubleheader of the seventh annual SheBelieves Cup, presented by Visa, on Wednesday, February 23, 2022.
The USWNT welcomes two of Europe’s top up-and-coming sides to the 2022 SheBelieves Cup along with the Football Ferns, the co-host of FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023. Due to its automatic berth to the World Cup, New Zealand will be putting extra value on its international matches to prepare for the largest women’s sporting event in the world that runs from July 20-August 6, 2023, across four cities in New Zealand and five in Australia. The tournament will feature 32 countries for the first time.
“These will be the first matches of what will be a really important year, and as focus on World Cup qualifying, the SheBelieves Cup will be extremely valuable for the continued development of the team,” said USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski. “As a coaching staff, when we are integrating newer players, we need as many games as possible, and all three of our opponents are very hard to play against. They will all be highly motivated to have the chance to play in this great tournament, so we’re not only looking forward to competitive matches, but also playing in front of fans, as there was only limited attendance at last year’s tournament in Florida.”
The SheBelieves Cup is part of U.S. Soccer’s SheBelieves initiative to inspire and empower women and girls to achieve their goals in sports and beyond. The six-game tournament was first played in 2016. The USWNT won the inaugural edition and France took top honors in 2017. The USWNT won again in 2018, England finished first in 2019, but the USWNT returned to the top of the podium in 2020, the first title for Andonovski, and won again in 2021.
The match between the USWNT and Iceland will be the 11th match at Toyota Stadium for the USWNT. Toyota Stadium was the venue for the USWNT’s final match before the global pandemic shut down sports all over the globe in March of 2020.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
The competition format will be the same as for the previous six years with the teams each participating in three doubleheader events. The winner of the tournament will be determined by total points (three for a win, one for a tie), with the first tiebreaker being overall goal difference, followed by most total goals scored, then head-to-head result and lastly, Fair Play ranking if necessary.
SIX GAMES, TWO STADIUMS
The 2022 SheBelieves Cup kicks off on Thursday, February 17 at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California as Iceland takes on New Zealand (7PM CT) and the USWNT faces the Czech Republic (10PM CT on ESPN). The tournament resumes on Sunday, February 20, also at DHSP, with the USWNT playing the first match of the day, against New Zealand (2PM CT on ABC), while the Czech Republic will face Iceland (5PM CT) in the second match of the day. The tournament concludes on Wednesday, February 23 at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, with New Zealand taking on the Czech Republic (5PM CT) and the USWNT facing Iceland in the nightcap (8PM CT on ESPN). Broadcast information for the matches not involving the USWNT will be available at a later date. This year’s tournament also marks the first time the SheBelieves Cup has had matches contested on the West Coast.
While the entirety of last year’s SheBelieves Cup was held at one stadium in Orlando, this year’s tournament will be staged in two cities and two stadiums with the strict COVID protocols still in place during the organization of the event. The first two doubleheaders will take place at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, while the final doubleheader will move to Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.
2022 SheBelieves Cup, presented by Visa, Schedule
Feb. 17 | Iceland vs. New Zealand | Dignity Health Sports Park | 7PM CT
Feb. 17 | USWNT vs. Czech Republic | Dignity Health Sports Park | 10PM CT ESPN
Feb. 20 | USWNT vs. New Zealand | Dignity Health Sports Park | 2PM CT ABC
Feb. 20 | Czech Republic vs. Iceland | Dignity Health Sports Park | 5PM CT
Feb. 23 | New Zealand vs. Czech Republic | Toyota Stadium | 5PM CT
Feb. 23 | USWNT vs. Iceland | Toyota Stadium | 8PM CT | ESPN
COVID-19 WARNING AND EVENT SAFETY PROTOCOLS
An inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any place where people gather. COVID-19 is an extremely contagious disease that can lead to severe illness and death. You assume all risks, hazards and dangers arising from or relating in any way to the risk of contracting COVID-19 or any other communicable disease or illness, or a bacteria, virus or other pathogen capable of causing a communicable disease or illness, whether occurring before, during or after the event, however caused or contracted, and voluntarily waive all claims and potential claims against U.S. Soccer, Dignity Health Sports Park, Toyota Stadium, Ticketmaster, Live Nation, other Event Providers and their affiliated companies relating to such risks.
STADIUM SAFETY PROTOCOLSAdequate spacing between player benches, tunnels and warmup areas has been arranged. U.S. Soccer will follow official local health guidelines for this event. Fans are encouraged not to bring in bags of any kind. All tickets will be mobile-only. There will be reserved seating only; general admission will not be allowed. All concession stands will be cashless to reduce points of contact. Ticket holders are subject to U.S. Soccer’s Ticketing Terms and Conditions and Fan Code of Conduct.
COVID PROTOCOLS IN PLACE
Once the teams arrive in Los Angeles for the SheBelieves Cup, and then once the teams travel to Texas, all the players and staffs will operate inside highly controlled environments at the host hotels. The staging trainings and the matches will fall under the comprehensive U.S. Soccer Return to Play Protocols and Guidelines and in accordance with the Concacaf Return to Play Protocols. Everyone entering the controlled environment will be tested for COVID-19 before traveling, upon arrival and periodically thereafter. The teams will not begin full team training until the results of all arrival tests are confirmed.
