99’ Women's WC Final: A Retrospective
In the run-up to the 1999 Women’s World Cup, the women’s game had been haunted by the specter of systematic exclusion which loomed over its short history. Constrained by low public interest and shackled by a lack of investment, women’s football was an afterthought consistently bludgeoned by a patriarchal footballing culture. It is in front of this contextual backdrop and a crowd of over 90,000, that the U.S women’s national team would take on China in the final. The match would prove a compelling demonstration of the demonstrable merit inherent within women’s football. The ramifications of the tie were so pervasive that it is widely considered the catalyst which ushered women’s football into the public consciousness. Andrei Markovits highlights the magnitude of this exposure, writing that the tie “proved far and away the most popular and successful event in the entire history of women's team sports.” Perhaps more concretely, Markovits emphasizes the sheer size of the audience beyond the stadium which was “the highest American television audience ever attained for any soccer game, male or female.”
Watching the match, it is impossible to escape the familiar excitement and tension I have come to expect from the men’s game. Suspense and intrigue are palpable throughout the trajectory of the match; captured by Kristine Lilly’s goal-line clearance in the 100th minute or Brandi Chastain’s winning penalty. This level of visibility coupled with excitement of the tie demanded a commensurate shift in public opinion. Markovits outlines the significance to the public: writing that the players had “attained star status in the sense that their names and faces have become recognizable to the larger American public beyond the narrow confines of the soccer world.” Although fleetingly, the final had captivated the American media juggernaut which lent much needed exposure but also served to highlight challenges that still persisted in women’s football. Tellingly, Brandi Chastain’s jerseyless goal celebration would become the enduring image of the final, eternalized on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Yet despite the media’s fixation, the women’s game was able to leverage the exposure to usher in a new era in women’s football; an era defined by the establishment of a women’s football league. Diane Pucin establishes direct credit writing that “the professional women’s soccer league [was] spawned from the successful 1999 women’s World Cup” Unfortunately this new era would prove short lived and the league would fail; Goldblatt believes the inability to capitalize on “the euphoria of 1999” is responsible for the league’s failure. WUSA’s failure laid bare the crux of the obstacle which continued to endure in the women's game: capitalism. Without the demand to justify the investment women’s football could not survive. Neal Pilson, a “noted sports-television consultant” outlines challenges of sports television: ''There is no oughts and shoulds in sports television, it's whether you can generate revenue.” To Pucin, WUSA’s failure was met with “knowing head shakes and ‘I told you so’ statements” It felt as though the footballing patriarchy had reared its ugly head to remind women’s football of its place. WUSA’s collapse was fraught with negative ramifications for the women’s game. According to George Vecsey “43 proud professionals who were paid by the W.U.S.A. last season and who will play in the [World] Cup must now consider themselves unemployed.” Crucially, young girls will have been deprived of consistent exposure to footballing inspiration.
Confronted with the establishing overhead shots of the sold-out Rose Bowl, it is incredibly easy to grasp the significance of the 1999 World Cup Final. A pivotal tie for Women’s football but also a landmark victory in the ongoing struggle for gender equality. Beyond football the final serves as a powerful indication of the possibilities in women’s football. The match itself is strong evidence that women’s football has a vibrant future and a distinct identity. It felt refreshing to break away from the cautious (often sluggish) build-up that holds a tactical hegemony over the men’s game. The end to end, relentless attacks of the 99’ final were a welcome contrast. If you need evidence that the women’s game is unique you must only watch how the USWNT took its goal kicks in the final: with 9 outfield players in the opposing half. To me these differences create intrigue and engender a great deal of curiosity. I am confident the record breaking audience was similarly affected by the tie. Ultimately the final held pervasive ramifications both within the women’s game and within the scope of its political and social influence.
