The SheBelieves Cup is an invitational women's association football tournament held in different cities in the United States in late February or early March. In its first three years (2016, 2017, and 2018), it was contested by the same four teams: the United States, England, France, and Germany. Since 2019, the tournament lineup has featured different teams each year. For 2024, due to the change in FIFA competition windows and the staging of the Concacaf W Gold Cup in February and March, the format of the SheBelieves Cup was changed. While there were still four participants, there were four matches instead of the usual six and the teams only played semifinals, a third-place match and the championship game.[1]

SheBelieves Cup
Organizing bodyUnited States Soccer Federation
Founded2016; 8 years ago (2016)
Region United States
Number of teams4
Current champion(s) United States (7th title)
Most successful team(s) United States (7 titles)
WebsiteOfficial website
2024 SheBelieves Cup

The SheBelieves cup is played at the same time of year as the Algarve Cup, the Arnold Clark Cup, the Cup of Nations, the Cyprus Women's Cup, the Istria Cup, the Pinatar Cup, the Tournoi de France, the Turkish Women's Cup and the Women's Revelations Cup.

History

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The SheBelieves movement was inspired by the U.S. national team in their 2015 run-up to the World Cup. The movement is meant to encourage young women to achieve their dreams, regardless of whether or not they are tied to athletics. As part of regular society, SheBelieves is dedicated to women's empowerment. This theme of empowerment has evolved into a bond between U.S. soccer and its fans, as the team has spread this message to communities across the country. United States Soccer serves as SheBelieves Ambassadors, launching a new program to unite and elevate nonprofits, women's sports organizations, and influencers with the shared goal of positively impacting girls and women.[2]

SheBelieves Summit

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The SheBelieves Summit, which took place virtually in 2021, is a major component of programming around the tournament itself. Its purpose is to empower young women and girls using the three core pillars of SheBelieves: confidence, career, and community.[3] The summit includes panels, fireside chats, and breakout sessions designed to provide event attendees with hands-on experience and tools for success.[3] Event programming features various female speakers, from women in STEM to professional athletes.[4]

In its third year, some notable speakers for the 2021 event included:[4]

Tournament format

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The four invited teams play in a round-robin tournament. Points awarded in the group stage followed the formula of three points for a win, one point for a draw, and zero points for a loss. A tie in points would be decided by goal differential; other tie-breakers are used as needed in the following order: goal difference, goals scored, head-to-head result, and a fair play score based on the number of yellow and red cards.

Results

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# Year Winner Runner-up Third place Fourth place Teams
1 2016  
United States
 
Germany
 
England
 
France
4
2 2017  
France
 
Germany
 
England
 
United States
4
3 2018  
United States
 
England
 
France
 
Germany
4
4 2019  
England
 
United States
 
Japan
 
Brazil
4
5 2020  
United States
 
Spain
 
England
 
Japan
4
6 2021  
United States
 
Brazil
 
Canada
 
Argentina
4
7 2022  
United States
 
Iceland
 
Czech Republic
 
New Zealand
4
8 2023  
United States
 
Japan
 
Brazil
 
Canada
4
9 2024  
United States
 
Canada
 
Brazil
 
Japan
4

Medals

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RankNationGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1  United States (USA)7108
2  England (ENG)1135
3  France (FRA)1012
4  Germany (GER)0202
5  Brazil (BRA)0123
6  Canada (CAN)0112
  Japan (JPN)0112
8  Iceland (ISL)0101
  Spain (ESP)0101
10  Czech Republic (CZE)0011
Totals (10 entries)99927

Nations

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Team 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Years
  United States 1st 4th 1st 2nd 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 9
  Argentina 4th 1
  Brazil 4th 2nd 3rd 3rd 4
  Canada 3rd 4th 2nd 3
  Czech Republic 3rd 1
  England 3rd 3rd 2nd 1st 3rd 5
  France 4th 1st 3rd 3
  Germany 2nd 2nd 4th 3
  Iceland 2nd - 1
  Japan 3rd 4th 2nd 4th 4
  New Zealand 4th 1
  Spain 2nd 1
Total (12) 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 _

Summary

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As of 2024
Rank Team Part M W D L GF GA GD Points
1   United States 9 26 19 5 2 47 15 +32 62
2   England 5 15 5 3 7 17 16 +1 18
3   France 3 9 3 3 3 10 8 +2 12
4   Brazil 4 11 5 0 6 12 15 −3 11
5   Germany 3 9 3 2 4 7 10 −3 11
6   Canada 3 8 4 0 4 6 11 −5 8
7   Japan 4 11 2 2 7 12 18 −6 8
8   Spain 1 3 2 0 1 4 2 +2 6
9   Iceland 1 3 2 0 1 3 6 −3 6
10   Czech Republic 1 3 0 2 1 1 2 −1 2
11   New Zealand 1 3 0 1 2 0 6 −6 1
12   Argentina 1 3 0 0 3 1 11 −10 0

Best player

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Year Player
2016   Alex Morgan
2017   Camille Abily
2020   Alexia Putellas
2021   Rose Lavelle
2022   Catarina Macario
2023   Mallory Swanson
2024   Sophia Smith

Top goalscorers

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As of April 9, 2024
Rank Name Total
1   Mallory Swanson 8
2   Megan Rapinoe 7
3   Ellen White 5
  Alex Morgan
5   Debinha 4
  Christen Press
7   Eugénie Le Sommer 3
8   Vanessa Gilles 2
  Adriana Leon
  Toni Duggan
  Beth Mead
  Camille Abily
  Anja Mittag
  Mana Iwabuchi
  Yuka Momiki
  Lucía García
  Alexia Putellas
  Tobin Heath
  Carli Lloyd
  Catarina Macario
  Kristie Mewis
  Sophia Smith

References

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  1. ^ "Ninth annual Shebelieves cup will open on april 6 in Atlanta". www.ussoccer.com.
  2. ^ "SheBelieves | U.S. Soccer Official Website". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "U.S. Soccer 2021 SheBelieves Summit, Presented by Deloitte, to Take Place on February 11 and 12". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "SheBelieves Summit 2021 Panels". U.S. Soccer. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
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