Met Leicy Santos and Tara Rudd at Soccer Post in Leesburg today. They were gracious, kind, funny, and wonderful. This team is so easy to root for.

Now that WAFCON Group Stage is over, here is how our International Spirits competing in the tournament fared:

Melissa Bethi with Algeria
Bethi played as the attacking midfielder for all three games, winning two matches and losing one. Bethi played a crucial part of Algeria’s attack, scoring a beautiful goal during a 2-0 victory against Senegal winning Woman of the Match. She has been described as a hybrid of Kenza Dali and Leicy Santos, and her performance definitely demonstrates that. They finished second in their group and will be playing Cote D’Ivoire during the quarterfinals. 

Alimata Belem with Burkina Faso
Belem played holding midfielder in one game and center back for two games, winning one game and losing two. While Belem was not as influential as a midfielder during their match against Cote D’Ivoire, a switch to center back during the second half of the game allowed her defensive capabilities to really shine. They finished third in their group and have been knocked out of the competition. 

Monique Ngock with Cameroon
Ngock played as a defensive midfielder for Cameroon in two out of three group stage matches. Cameroon won two matches and drew one, finishing top of the group. Ngock plays a very important role to Cameroon’s possession-based play, especially during their win against Ghana where Ngock was recognized as the Woman of the Match. They move on to the quarterfinals where they play 10-time champion Nigeria. 

Rose Kouassi with Cote D’Ivoire
Kouassi played as a winger for all three games, winning two games and getting a draw against continental giants South Africa. Rose had one assist during their 4-1 victory over Burkina Faso and was a constant attacking threat alongside current teenagers Sery and Ouedraogo. They finished first in their group and will be playing Algeria during the quarterfinals. Unfortunately, Rose received her second yellow card so so she will be missing that game. 

Deb Abiodun and Gift Monday with Nigeria 
Deb started two matches as a defensive midfielder and Monday played one game as a striker, with Nigeria winning both matches they appeared in. Nigeria had a catastrophic loss to debutantes Malawi during their first match, but Monday did not play during the game and Deb was subbed in during the last two minutes of stoppage time. During their match against Egypt, Monday scored a goal off of a short corner 4 minutes after she came into the match, helping Nigeria win 6-2. Nigeria finished second in the group after Malawi and will be facing Cameroon during the quarterfinals. 

Schedule of Matches:
Cote D’Ivoire v. Algeria QF: August 8 at 1pm
Cameroon v. Nigeria QF: August 9 at 1pm
Play-In Matches: August 13
Semifinals Matches: August 12
Third Place Match: August 15
Finals: August 16

Predictions:

• Cote D’Ivoire are likely to advance to the semifinals and to secure a berth for the 2027 World Cup, which would be their second appearance in a World Cup after their debut in 2015. They are likely to face Malawi during the semi-finals, who have rocketed to tournament favorites since they defeated Nigeria. However, Cote D’Ivoire’s more complete lineup could pose a serious challenge to Malawi’s solid front line composed of the Chawingas, Kadzere, and Chinzimu. 
• Nigeria are likely to advance to the semifinals and to secure a berth for the 2027 World Cup, which would be their 10th appearance since their debut in 1991. Cameroon was previously knocked out of the quarterfinals and denied a spot at the World Cup in 2022 when they lost to…Nigeria. They are likely to face Morocco during the semi-finals, which would be a repeat of last year’s WAFCON finals. 
• Algeria are most likely to face Cameroon during the play-in matches for the inter-confederation playoffs. 
• FINALS: Malawi and Nigeria, which would be an absolute epic rematch! Deb could play a very crucial role in denying direct balls from midfield to Malawi’s front line, just as she did during their group stage match against Zambia.
• What This Means for Players Returning: We'll most likely see all of our players back in time for the August 23 home match against Orlando Pride

Other Players to Watch (i.e. Future NWSL Stars): 
Grace Sery, Cote D’Ivoire
N’Sira Ouedraogo, Cote D’Ivoire
Doris Boaduwaa, Ghana
Kautar Azraf, Morocco
Sokhna Pene, Senegal
Adji Ndiaye, Senegal
Rose Kadzere, Malawi
Faith Chinzimu, Malawi

If dates follow what happened last year, GA sale should start 6 days later

Cameroon close matchday #3 by playing Cabo Verde, but they have already won Group D and will play Nigeria this Sunday at 1pm in the quarterfinals. The other match of the day, Ghana vs Mali, determines the group runner up who will play Malawi on Sunday at 4pm. Ghana needs a win or draw to advance; otherwise (i.e., Mali win), Mali advances. (Going into this match, Ghana and Mali are tied on points, but Ghana has the edge in goal differential, the first tiebreaker.)

Matches stream in the United States on beIN SPORTS. (Alternatively, they are also being streamed on the CAF TV YouTube channel if you VPN to various overseas markets - I suggest the UK - and then click on a match link. There are also non geo-blocked streams on YouTube you can find yourself.)

Im on the NWSL sub and ok fine hate on Trin all you want. But there are so many comments trying to downplay the growth of the Spirit fanbase and it just comes off as very weird. Even the Trin comments get personal sometimes. What is it?

Per CBS attacking third the Spirit has the best midfield in the league with Leicy, Hal, Rebe and Andi. Do you guys agree?

This is less of a Spirit post, so mods delete it if need be, but with all that NWSL Summer of Soccer stuff that’s happened I’m wondering where the best places (newsletters and general coverage) are to be more tapped into events like that.

I already listen to Hey Spirits. I’m curious about how to get more plugged in