Lilly Frenzy

The U.S. team got its first real taste of World Cup atmosphere at the airport in Chengdu as they were met by a frenzied group of media, photographers, cameramen, and fans, as well as a phalanx of heavily armed SWAT team type guys. The U.S. team has likely not seen a media frenzy like this since the 1999 Women’s World Cup, and several times media members and fans had to be pushed back to allow the team to get to its bus. Captain Kristine Lilly, who played in the 1991 Women’s World Cup in China, accommodated the media hordes with a brief press conference outside the team bus before the squad got on the road to the hotel. Ladies and gentlemen, now it feels like a World Cup.