England vs. United States

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The United States women's national team was defeated by England in a friendly at Wembley Stadium.

In front of a sellout crowd, the entertainment on the field lived up to the hype, particularly in the first half, when three goals were scored. England got the goals they needed, either side of a goal from Sophia Smith that briefly drew the U.S. level.

The U.S. was denied a second goal in the first half when the video assistant referee ruled that the Americans were not in an obvious position to score.

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"They're an incredible squad and they showed once again they're very good," the USWNT coach said after the game. They have players that can make a difference if you give them some room.

I wouldn't mind facing them in the final again because they have an incredible coach.

The match was very competitive according to England's coach. We were both trying to get a goal. We don't win a World Cup now, but it's great to have this moment in preparation for the World Cup next year.

Sally Yates released a report detailing abuse and mismanagement in the National Women's Soccer League. The players from both teams held a banner and wore teal before the game to show their support for victims of abuse.

After the whistle sounded, the intensity on the field was much higher than that of a regular friendly and the U.S. players had said that the game was a welcome distraction from an exhausting few days. The meeting between the U.S. and England teams that had gone 23 and 22 games, respectively, was a sequel to the World Cup semifinals.

It was a chance for both teams to check out where they are in their preparation for the World Cup.

The home crowd was happy after just 10 minutes. The Golden Boot winner broke clear down the right and sent in a cross. The U.S. defender slowed the ball to the point where it ended up in the path of Hemp who finished from six yards.

The Americans had not been behind in a game since last year's Olympics semifinal against Canada. The deficit could have been doubled, too, but the shot was blocked.

Smith was starting to feel like she belonged at the other end. The Portland Thorns forward started in the center of the U.S. forward line in Alex Morgan's absence.

She scored 14 times in 18 appearances in the NWSL this year. Smith fired into the bottom corner of the net after Lindsey Horan robbed Stanway as England tried to play out of the back.

It didn't take long for Stanway to get over her mistake. Less than five minutes after the U.S. pulled level, the referee was called to look at a high boot by Hallie Mace on England's Lucy Bronze.

Stanway sent the U.S. goalkeeper the wrong way after a penalty was awarded.

If the USWNT were unhappy with the involvement of VAR in that instance, they were even more upset. After Megan Rapinoe dummyed a Smith cross into the path of Trinity Rodman, the visitors thought they had equalized. A long VAR review ruled that Smith had been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Bronze and Smith were close to scoring in the second half.

The youngest USWNT debutant since 2016 was turned to by Andonovski, who was still in search of an equalizing goal.

England won for the fifth time in 19 meetings with the four World Cup winners.

She insists her team won't get carried away with talk that England has overtaken the U.S. as the best in women's soccer.

We didn't win the World Cup because you are the best team in the world. There are a lot of good countries and it's tight.

We need to work hard and get our plans. Everyone needs to be available and fit for the World Cup. It's nice to see our team grow, but we need to do better.