The United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) secured a 3-0 victory against Zambia in their opening match of the Paris Olympics on Thursday night. Mallory Swanson scored twice in the first half, while Trinity Rodman also contributed a goal, marking a strong start for the USWNT under new head coach Emma Hayes.
Swanson’s goals came within 70 seconds, in the 24th and 25th minutes, following Rodman’s 17th-minute strike. Rodman’s goal was set up by a pass from U.S. captain Lindsey Horan, who found Rodman in a favorable position to shoot past Zambian goalkeeper Ngambo Musole.
Zambia’s challenge was compounded in the 33rd minute when Pauline Zulu received a red card, leaving her team with 10 players for the remainder of the match. This numerical disadvantage contributed to the USWNT’s dominance throughout the game.
Hayes, who took over the USWNT in late May after completing her tenure with Chelsea in the Women’s Super League, made notable changes to the Olympic roster, including leaving veteran forward Alex Morgan off the team. Hayes aims to guide the team to its fifth gold medal while overcoming the disappointment of last summer’s Women’s World Cup, where the U.S. was eliminated in the round of 16.
Despite the win, Hayes noted, “If you had asked me at the beginning of the game, ‘Would you be happy with a 3-nil win?’ I probably would have said no. However, after the performance and the chances created and finding the back of the net we did, I don’t want to be too hard on the girls.”
Rodman, making her Olympic debut, was replaced by Lynn Williams after suffering an ankle injury late in the first half. Williams had initially been an alternate for Hayes’ squad, stepping in due to Catarina Macario’s unavailability because of minor knee irritation.
It was the first time the USWNT faced Zambia internationally. Horan acknowledged Zambia’s goalkeeper for her performance, stating, “A lot of credit to Zambia’s goalkeeper tonight, because in the first half I think we had a sequence of like six shots in a row that she saved or went off the post.”
Zambia’s star players, Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji, were unable to score. Banda, a notable scorer with 12 goals in 12 games for the Orlando Pride this season, had previously impressed with back-to-back hat tricks in the Tokyo Games group stage.
The USWNT will face Germany next on Sunday in Marseille.
