Congratulations to the US team- very well played, literally.

And of course, it's great to see football continue to take over the world

Personally, I like the concept of 'mob football' from medieval England, which "would be played between neighbouring towns and villages, involving an unlimited number of players on opposing teams who would clash en masse, struggling to move an item, such as inflated animal's bladder to particular geographical points, such as their opponents' church, with play taking place in the open space between neighbouring parishes. The game was played primarily during significant religious festivals, such as Shrovetide, Christmas, or Easter, and Shrovetide games have survived into the modern era in a number of English towns".

A sort of human pinball

Whatever your views, this is the era of 'inclusion and diversity' where it's really happening (ref. TV, movies e.g. Marvel, politics, the corporate workspace and boardrooms). Funding and other dramatic changes are afoot for women's football e.g. most premier league clubs have women teams, there are calls for more TV coverage and presenting results for both genders' matches together, a large shift in funding ongoing. What interests me as much as the effects of increased female funding is the impact of reduced male funding. I've seen workplaces which are 70% female because the corporation has overdone diversity. Will this happen in sports?

Will men get turned off football as it feminizes? As men still account for 90% of the funding/market could this cause a financial crisis for football (soccer)?

A related point that I find interesting is how women in football wear the same clothes as the men rather than briefer/'sexier' outfits as in athletics, tennis etc. This removal of sexuality from the equation seems to be helping them. Sepp Blatter famously wanted women to wear brief shorts and be 'sexy'. Whilst this may have increased ratings more quickly, it would have suppressed women being taken seriously as has been happening recently.

Lots to discuss in all of this!