U.S. Soccer and USWNT to host 5th annual SheBelieves Cup in March 2020

CHICAGO – Highlighted by the fifth annual SheBelieves Cup, U.S. Soccer will launch its most expansive SheBelieves campaign in history this March in multiple cities across the United States to inspire, encourage and empower people to accomplish their goals.

Inspired by the USWNT players, the #SheBelieves campaign was launched in the run-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 but has since grown into a special bond between the team and its fans, spreading its powerful message of empowerment and believing in oneself.

The SheBelieves Cup is the showcase event for the campaign and brings together many of the world’s most talented women soccer players to compete in the U.S., providing a stage to shine the spotlight on role models (athletes and non-athletes alike) and showcase their accomplishments both on the field and in culture at large.

The 2020 SheBelieves Cup will take place from March 5-11 as three of the top teams in the world – England, Japan and Spain – join the USA for the most elite four-team international tournament in women’s soccer. The format will be the same as the previous four years with the teams participating in three doubleheader events at three different venues over a seven-day period. All three of the USA’s matches will be broadcast on the ESPN family of networks and in Spanish on TUDN.

2020 SHEBELIEVES CUP, PRESENTED BY VISA, SCHEDULE

Date Matches Stadium City Kickoff (TV)
Mar. 5 Spain vs. Japan Exploria Stadium Orlando, Fla. 4:15 p.m. ET
Mar. 5 USA vs. England Exploria Stadium Orlando, Fla. 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2, TUDN
Mar. 8 Japan vs. England Red Bull Arena Harrison, N.J. 2:15 p.m. ET
Mar. 8 USA vs. Spain Red Bull Arena Harrison, N.J. 5 p.m. ET on ESPN, TUDN
Mar. 11 England vs. Spain Toyota Stadium Frisco, Texas 4:15 p.m. CT
Mar. 11 USA vs. Japan Toyota Stadium Frisco, Texas 7 p.m. CT on ESPNews, TUDN

“U.S. Soccer does such a great job staging this tournament and it’s a world class event for the players and the fans,” said U.S. Women’s National Team head coach Vlatko Andonovski. “We look forward to welcoming these really talented teams to the USA and there’s nothing better than facing players who force you to be your best in order to be successful, which is what we’ll get from England, Japan and Spain. There’s some great history between these teams – some very recent history — and I know all six games will be excellent displays to show why the women’s game keeps increasing in popularity and competitiveness.”

The tournament will mark the USA’s first meetings with England and Spain since last summer’s FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019. The USA played both countries in the knockout rounds in France, defeating Spain in the Round of 16 and England in the Semifinal, both by 2-1 scores. The USA’s most recent meeting with Japan was a 2-2 draw at the 2019 SheBelieves Cup. England, ranked sixth in the world coming off its fourth-place finish at the World Cup, has played in each of the four previous SheBelieves Cup tournaments. This will be the second appearance for 10th-ranked Japan, after participating last year, and the first for 13th-ranked Spain. Both Japan and Spain made the Round of 16 in France.

Beyond the tournament, 2020 will see U.S. Soccer continue to build on the movement by bringing back a number of initiatives, including the third annual SheBelieves Summit, presented by Deloitte, which will be held on March 14 in Chicago; the SheBelieves Hero™, a contest to honor an individual who embodies the SheBelieves spirit; the SheBelieves Internship Program; and, this Spring, U.S. Soccer will launch a new initiative called the SheBelieves Academy, a digital toolkit that will help empower communities of women across the U.S. through a series of workshops.

2020 SHEBELIEVES CUP, PRESENTED VISA, FORMAT
The winner of the tournament will be determined by total points (three for a win, one for a tie), with the first tiebreaker being overall goal difference, followed by most total goals scored, then head-to-head result and, lastly, Fair Play Ranking, if necessary. The USA won the inaugural SheBelieves Cup in 2016, France won in 2017, the USA won again in 2018 and England took top honors in 2019.