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<SPAN class=art-title2>A good year for women’s football</SPAN> <TABLE cellSpacing=5 cellPadding=5 width=150 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
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<SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Japan goalkeeper Miho Fukumoto braces herself for the inevitable as Kerstin Garefrekes (R) prepares to pull the trigger during a 6-3 friendly match for the top-ranked women's team on 23 November 2006 at the Wildpark Stadium in Karlsruhe.
</SPAN><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>(AFP)</SPAN> <SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>DDP/TORSTEN SILZ
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<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">(FIFA.com)</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">22 Dec 2006</SPAN>
<SPAN class=art-text>Germany are once again top of the FIFA Women’s World Ranking and head the end-of-year standings for the fourth year running. Second and third position are held by the USA and Norway respectively, with Sweden and Korea DPR completing the top five, each climbing one position compared to the end of last year. The only South Americans to feature in the top ten are Brazil, who finish the year ranked 6th, followed by France (seventh), Denmark (eighth), China PR (ninth) and Japan (tenth, up 3).
Among their many achievements this year, Germany did not drop a single point in their FIFA Women’s World Cup 2007 qualifying campaign and suffered only one defeat in 13 matches played in 2006 (friendly match v. China PR). Perhaps their most memorable match came in the final of the Algarve Cup, where they defeated the USA on penalties in spectacular fashion. The USA, however, have also had a good year; save for this penalty loss,they did not lose any of their 22 matches played and came out eventual victors in the Gold Cup, narrowly defeating neighbours Canada in the final with a penalty in extra time.
In a general overview, women’s football has celebrated a highly successful year, highlighted by the record-breaking number of matches played (currently at 448, previous record was 367 in 2003) and number of teams ranked (140).
The ranking is calculated on the basis of a number of factors, including match results, home advantage, significance of a match and strength of the opposition. The ranking is published four times per year. According to the Big Count survey published by FIFA in 2001, 22 million women and girls around the world play football.</SPAN>
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<SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Japan goalkeeper Miho Fukumoto braces herself for the inevitable as Kerstin Garefrekes (R) prepares to pull the trigger during a 6-3 friendly match for the top-ranked women's team on 23 November 2006 at the Wildpark Stadium in Karlsruhe.</SPAN><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>(AFP)</SPAN> <SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>DDP/TORSTEN SILZ
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<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">(FIFA.com)</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">22 Dec 2006</SPAN>
<SPAN class=art-text>Germany are once again top of the FIFA Women’s World Ranking and head the end-of-year standings for the fourth year running. Second and third position are held by the USA and Norway respectively, with Sweden and Korea DPR completing the top five, each climbing one position compared to the end of last year. The only South Americans to feature in the top ten are Brazil, who finish the year ranked 6th, followed by France (seventh), Denmark (eighth), China PR (ninth) and Japan (tenth, up 3).
Among their many achievements this year, Germany did not drop a single point in their FIFA Women’s World Cup 2007 qualifying campaign and suffered only one defeat in 13 matches played in 2006 (friendly match v. China PR). Perhaps their most memorable match came in the final of the Algarve Cup, where they defeated the USA on penalties in spectacular fashion. The USA, however, have also had a good year; save for this penalty loss,they did not lose any of their 22 matches played and came out eventual victors in the Gold Cup, narrowly defeating neighbours Canada in the final with a penalty in extra time.
In a general overview, women’s football has celebrated a highly successful year, highlighted by the record-breaking number of matches played (currently at 448, previous record was 367 in 2003) and number of teams ranked (140).
The ranking is calculated on the basis of a number of factors, including match results, home advantage, significance of a match and strength of the opposition. The ranking is published four times per year. According to the Big Count survey published by FIFA in 2001, 22 million women and girls around the world play football.</SPAN>
</TD><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>2200</TD><TD class=tableblue02>3</TD></TR><TR class=bluecolour02 align=middle><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>10</TD><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>
</TD><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>1932</TD><TD class=tableblue02>23</TD></TR><TR class=whitecolour01 align=middle><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>25</TD><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>
</TD><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>1512</TD><TD class=tableblue02>-35</TD></TR><TR class=bluecolour02 align=middle><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>55</TD><TD class=tableblue02 vAlign=center>
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