The main observation I’ve made from this year’s Women’s World Cup — Hope Solo has the ability to produce force fields.
The United States goalkeeper hasn’t surrendered a goal in 513 minutes, the second longest streak in World Cup history.
The streak was extended in the United States’ 2-0 win Tuesday against Germany, in part because the Germans missed a penalty. The best penalty kick taker for a country who had never missed a penalty in World Cup history missed the goalmouth entirely.
That’s strange.
But the force field surrounding her goal is not the strongest barrier Solo has working for her this tournament. She has still been forced to make difficult saves and did allow a goal in the first match of the World Cup against ?Australia.
What Solo hasn’t done? Answered a single question about the pending domestic violence case against her. She hasn’t been forced to deflect away a tough question. Her defense has kept all threats from coming near her.
After the opening match against Australia, the United States’ public relations team allowed reporters to speak to Solo but with the instruction not to ask Solo about the open criminal case surrounding her. Or, you know, they told reporters not to do their jobs.
The following details are all from the police report of Solo’s arrest.
In June 2014, Solo became intoxicated and attacked her half-sister, Teresa Obert, and her 17-year-old nephew.
The teenager and Solo’s relationship was strained at best before the incident, but by all accounts the relationship never became ?physical.
According to Obert, the two engaged in a verbal altercation, and the teenager walked away toward the garage. Solo followed him into the garage, where the insults continued to fly. Then, the teenager said Solo took a swing, making slight contact.
She continued to charge at the boy, landing several more punches.
Eventually, the teenager subdued his aunt on the garage floor, and Obert instructed her son to let Solo go, saying it was over. He obeyed, but then Solo grabbed him by the hair and repeatedly struck him in the face. Then, Solo jumped on top of him and repeatedly slammed his head into the cement garage floor.
The altercation continued until the police finally arrived, after Obert managed to call 911. But even a year after the altercation, Solo’s interviews on the subject are limited to two. One with ESPNW, in which Solo denied the incident, and one on Good Morning America in which she did the same.
And the casual observer of the Women’s World Cup has no idea of these allegations, because Fox, the station with broadcasting rights to all games, has never mentioned the incident.
I don’t know why an open criminal case against the best goalkeeper in the world hasn’t been mentioned, but I can’t help but think it has something to do with Fox’s rights to the 2018 World Cup in Russia, sure to be a massive source of revenue for the network desperately trying to compete with ESPN.
Nothing has been mentioned. Not by play-by-play announcers or their color commentators. Not by studio hosts or analysts. Not by anybody.
Someone needs to break down this force field surrounding Solo. Someone needs to make her answer at least one question about the criminal charges.
Or maybe ask someone from the U.S. Soccer Federation about the reasoning behind letting her even take field.
But if even the Germans, the most technically sound penalty takers in the World, couldn’t break Solo’s force field, there may be no hope anyone else can do so.
michhugh@indiana.edu
