Abby & Julie React to USA’s World Cup Win

Summary

Welcome to the Party: "Abby & Julie React to USA’s World Cup Win" (June 21, 2026)

Host: Treat Media
Guests: Abby Wambach, Julie Foudy, Carli Lloyd

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Episode Overview

This energetic episode bursts with celebration and reflection as soccer legends Abby Wambach, Julie Foudy, and Carli Lloyd get together to react live to the US National Teams' recent World Cup win. Partying with fans at an Airbnb Watch Party, they dive into the experience of watching alongside diehard supporters, the unifying spirit of communal sports, and share behind-the-scenes stories from their decorated careers in women’s soccer. The episode fluidly jumps between spirited banter, technical analysis, and emotional storytelling—anchored by the hosts' sense of camaraderie, humor, and enduring passion for the women’s sports community.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Watch Party Experience

• The team describes the electric atmosphere at their Airbnb Watch Party, celebrating with over 100 fans.
  • Quote: "We had the best. Welcome to the Watch Party. Airbnb Watch Party."
    —Carli Lloyd [00:04]
• Abby highlights the special feeling of sharing a win in community:
  • Quote: "There is nothing like being in a room together. It made me feel like I was on a team."
    —Abby Wambach [03:36]
• Everyone agrees that the team-building festivities, such as hula hoops and a rock-paper-scissors competition, helped set the tone for the day.
  • Quote: "Who allows us to do team building before a game?"
    —Julie Foudy [01:19]

2. Favorite Moments from the Game

• The group’s favorite, lighthearted moment was when the male referee cramped up, causing laughter among all attending and signaling how much everyone was emotionally invested.
  • Quote: "The best part is, … when the ref starts cramping, we all start cracking up."
    —Carli Lloyd [02:08]
• Abby recalls a similar situation from her own career, triggering shared groans and laughter about referees’ miscues.
  • Quote: "This guy's never gonna live that down."
    —Carli Lloyd [02:48]

3. The Power of Community

• Abby reflects on a fan’s touching comment about the magic of being among supporters at the party.
  • Quote: "There's something just so beautiful and special and important … watching with so many other people all cheering for the same thing."
    —Abby Wambach [03:00-03:42]
• Carli adds that the sense of unity isn't just around women’s teams but is “so healthy” for the broader soccer community to cheer on the men as well.
  • Quote: "We're celebrating the men. Which is so healthy, too!"
    —Carli Lloyd [05:03]

4. Tournament Analysis: Keeping Composure and Momentum

• In-depth discussion of tournament strategy:
  • Carli stresses the need for steadiness over emotional swings—“flatlining in a good way”—while advancing through rounds.
    • Quote: "You want to just kind of flatline in a good way… so you can finish first in your group."
      —Carli Lloyd [05:53]
  • Abby sees each tournament phase as a new challenge, urging players to "tap into the bigness of the energy":
    • Quote: "Every time we get into a different phase, there has to be something more you give… I was always trying to tap into the bigness of the energy."
      —Abby Wambach [07:16]

5. Player Praise and Tactical Breakdown

• The trio singles out Tyler Adams for his off-ball leadership and defensive acumen.
  • Quote: "Tyler just shows up. It feels like he comes out of nowhere and immediately places himself in between...and totally defuses the conflict."
    —Abby Wambach [10:19]
• Discussion on how Adams’ role allows others to attack, with Carli pointing out his crucial but often overlooked contributions.
  • Quote: "He doesn't get enough credit for that."
    —Carli Lloyd [10:54]
• Each shares their player of the game—Weston McKinney for Abby, Freeman and Adams for Carli, with Julie agreeing on midfielders' underappreciation.
  • Quote: "We midfielders never get the love."
    —Julie Foudy [12:08]

6. Legendary World Cup Stories & Behind-the-Scenes Moments

• Julie and Abby reminiscence about World Cup highs and lows, especially Abby’s dramatic last-minute goal against Brazil in 2011 and its now-legendary aftermath.
  • Quote:
    • “Poetic justice just happens to show up on our door and she looks like Christy Rampone getting the ball on her own goal line…”
      —Abby Wambach [22:39]
  • Abby describes experiencing “blackout moments” after scoring and humorous mishaps like her infamous knee-slide celebration heading toward concrete.
    • Quote: “I was like, oh my gosh. And if you don’t know, you should just go rewatch the goal. But then watch this celebration after I knee slide, pop up, slip. Very uncooly.”
      —Abby Wambach [26:06]
• Julie describes hearing TV producers preparing for the US to lose—while she, as a commentator, fought the narrative in real time.
  • Quote: “I said, yo, I hear you, and stop it. Come on…it’s not done yet.”
    —Julie Foudy [29:17]
• Both women recall the overwhelming fan reception—even after US defeats.
  • Quote: “We had just lost the World Cup. And so they were having, like, a little party outside…welcoming us home as actual champions.”
    —Abby Wambach [32:47]

7. Lasting Impact of Women’s Sports

• Reflections on the cultural shifting and legacy of women’s soccer, referencing the '99 team, visibility, and the inspiration they continue to spark for fans everywhere.
  • Quote: “We wanted to show the world what was possible with women’s sporting events. …It’s happening.”
    —Carli Lloyd [20:00]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "There is nothing like being in a room together. It made me feel like I was on a team."
  —Abby Wambach [03:36]
• "We're celebrating the men. Which is so healthy, too!"
  —Carli Lloyd [05:03]
• "If we finish first in our group… carry that energy into that round of 16 game…why not us, Abby?"
  —Carli Lloyd [09:01]
• "Every time we get into a different phase, there has to be something more you give… I was always trying to tap into the bigness of the energy."
  —Abby Wambach [07:16]
• "Tyler just shows up…immediately places himself in between...and totally defuses the conflict."
  —Abby Wambach [10:19]
• "We midfielders never get the love."
  —Julie Foudy [12:08]
• On the famous 2011 goal:
  "Poetic justice just happens to show up on our door and she looks like Christy Rampone getting the ball on her own goal line…”
  —Abby Wambach [22:39]
• "We had just lost the World Cup. And so they were having, like, a little party outside…welcoming us home as actual champions."
  —Abby Wambach [32:47]

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Important Timestamps

• 00:50 – Opening: Watch Party intros and the day’s spirit
• 01:26 – Team building antics; hula hoops & competitions
• 02:08 – Referee cramping and the group’s favorite game moments
• 03:00-03:42 – Abby on the magic of live sport and soccer community
• 05:19 – Tournament scenarios and strategizing for success
• 07:16 – Phases of the tournament & harnessing energy
• 10:19 – Tyler Adams’ leadership; defensive breakdown
• 12:08 – Underappreciated midfielders; interior team roles
• 20:00 – Legacy and impact of ‘99 team on today’s culture
• 22:39 – Abby’s 2011 Brazil goal: the play-by-play and aftermath
• 26:06 – Celebration mishaps: the infamous knee-slide
• 29:17 – Julie confronting negativity in broadcasting perspective
• 32:47 – Losing but still being celebrated as champions

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Tone and Style

The hosts and guests maintain a lively, conversational, and humorous tone throughout. Stories are candid, sometimes self-deprecating, and always genuine—exuding passion and joy for soccer. Their camaraderie and sisterhood shine, making sports analysis and fan community feel accessible and inviting.

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Conclusion

This episode is a joyous, nostalgia-rich celebration of both the present and past of US soccer, packed with pro insights, laughter, and the uplifting reminder that the power of sport lies as much in who we watch with as in the results on the scoreboard. Whether you’re a dedicated fan or a community newcomer, this World Cup party has a seat at the table for you.

Closing rally:

• "USA on three. One, two, three…Boom. We finally did it perfectly."
  —Julie Foudy & crew [34:41]

Transcript

[Julie Foudy]

Let's go.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Usa.

[Julie Foudy]

Usa.

[Carli Lloyd]

We had the best. Welcome to the Watch Party. Airbnb Watch Party.

[Abby Wambach]

Didn't you have so much fun?

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah, that was amazing.

[Abby Wambach]

After I'm scoring that goal, an 11. Watch this celebration after I knee, slide, pop up, slip. Very uncooly. I was like, Megan was so freaking far away and her area is, like, right at my face. And all I could do was go like this.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Attention,

[Abby Wambach]

the party is about to commence.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Welcome to the party.

[Julie Foudy]

What's up, party people? I'm Julie Foudy.

[Abby Wambach]

And I am Abby Wambach.

[Carli Lloyd]

Julie, show them your face paint.

[Abby Wambach]

Where are we? Look at this.

[Carli Lloyd]

How cute is that?

[Abby Wambach]

Look at your face paint. My face paint? Juneteenth. Obviously, the men's national team game that just wrapped.

[Carli Lloyd]

We just had a party, bro. We had the best. Welcome to the Watch Party. Airbnb Watch Party.

[Abby Wambach]

Didn't you have so much fun?

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah, that was amazing.

[Abby Wambach]

I had so much fun.

[Carli Lloyd]

This venue is amazing. This, like, we did team building.

[Julie Foudy]

Who allows us to do team building before game?

[Abby Wambach]

I know, but they had so much fun also. I had so much fun watching them do a lot of team building.

[Julie Foudy]

I know. We did Hulu hoops.

[Carli Lloyd]

We did the rock paper scissors competition, which gets insane.

[Abby Wambach]

Julie, what is your favorite part of the day

[Julie Foudy]

outside of the USA men's team winning?

[Carli Lloyd]

Do you remember? Okay, this isn't game related. My favorite part of today is when the referee cramped up.

[Abby Wambach]

I knew to say that you stole mine.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

God, it's so bad.

[Abby Wambach]

I gotta go first.

[Carli Lloyd]

The best part is, like, the whole. The whole place we've got, you know, 110 people sold out, by the way.

[Abby Wambach]

Sold out, by the way.

[Julie Foudy]

And. And all of a sudden, when the

[Carli Lloyd]

ref starts cramping, we all start cracking up. And when the woman head referee, Katia Garcia, she's the only Mexican head referee that's a female.

[Abby Wambach]

No way.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah. Main ref.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

And.

[Julie Foudy]

And.

[Abby Wambach]

And she comes.

[Julie Foudy]

She starts running out to sub in, and we all were like, yes, she's coming in.

[Carli Lloyd]

She almost got in.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

He's like, I'm good.

[Julie Foudy]

I'm good.

[Abby Wambach]

Well, because. And that happened to me and one of my World cup games that the world. The ref, the center ref, had to go off because she incurred an injury.

[Carli Lloyd]

Really?

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah. I think it was in Canada. I'll have to look up. It was in 15.

[Carli Lloyd]

This guy's never gonna live that down.

[Abby Wambach]

No, he's not.

[Julie Foudy]

They're, like, rubbing out his cramp.

[Abby Wambach]

He's not.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Okay.

[Carli Lloyd]

Your part of today.

[Abby Wambach]

Honestly, my favorite part of today was when we were leaving and I felt the exact same way, a woman came up to me and she said, you know, I love watching you all play. I love watching the men's national team play. There's something just so special about it. But it's usually from the comfort of my own home and coming into a different space in community with so many other people that I know we're all cheering for the same thing. There was something just so beautiful and special and important, and I have goosebumps right now talking about this because I think that it's so true. It was. It's true for me. You know, we watch a lot of our sporting events from home.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yep.

[Abby Wambach]

And there is nothing like being in a room together. It made me feel like I was on a team.

[Julie Foudy]

I know.

[Abby Wambach]

It made me feel like I was on a cheering team.

[Carli Lloyd]

That might have been the team building, too.

[Abby Wambach]

Not only the team building, because we're excellent leaders at team building, but, yeah, I guess, like, the thing that I miss the most about playing is, like, feeling that camaraderie and that energy that you get to co create with the people around you.

[Julie Foudy]

Exactly.

[Abby Wambach]

And that was happening. We were chanting. I was standing on chairs. My wife Glennon, came, and it was really cool because you were on a

[Carli Lloyd]

chair after the first.

[Abby Wambach]

I know. For the second goal. After. Who scored the second goal? I'm losing my mind. Tillman.

[Carli Lloyd]

No, Freeman.

[Abby Wambach]

Freeman, right?

[Carli Lloyd]

Was it Freeman?

[Abby Wambach]

It was Freeman.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah. There was. There was this. This interesting thing that happened where we didn't know if it was a goal because they had a check with var. So we were like, yay. And then we were like, no. And then we were like, yay. And that is what I think Glennon's favorite part of the whole day was, too. I love you, honey.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

I do.

[Abby Wambach]

I see you. I see you.

[Julie Foudy]

You're right over there nodding and smiling.

[Carli Lloyd]

I do love that we gotta do it with all these hardcore fans, too.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Like.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Carli Lloyd]

Like, chanting with the party people. With the party people. Chanting USA together. Celebrating every goal, like, and not even, like, celebrating the women. We're celebrating the men.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Carli Lloyd]

Which is so healthy, too.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Carli Lloyd]

Like, oh, my God, we get to watch them take over this country in such a positive way. And I know we've been talking about this a lot on the podcast, but they have this incredible opportunity because with

[Julie Foudy]

six points, y', all, plus five goals.

[Abby Wambach]

What are you thinking? Like, what do you think? What do you. What are you feeling? If the circumstances was yours?

[Carli Lloyd]

I think the most important thing in a tournament like this because you're. If you're thinking, okay, why not us? Which is, right, the question, they keep saying, why not us? Then you're thinking, okay, there could be a potentially eight games and you do not want a lot of this.

[Abby Wambach]

Right?

[Carli Lloyd]

Right. There's no roller coasters. You want, you want to stay steady. So you're thinking, okay, because there's the potential to go, shit, we're sitting on six points.

[Julie Foudy]

Look at us.

[Carli Lloyd]

We've had two great games, right? Two good wins, and yet you want to just kind of flatline in a good way. Not like you want to feel the emotion, but you want to be like, okay, we're good. Because you gotta. If you can finish first in your group and get that game in California against a potential third place team, that's a game changer. Because that round of 32 game, hopefully you can actually get through that.

[Abby Wambach]

That would be at Levi's, right?

[Carli Lloyd]

Yep. But Levi's in Northern California. You stay in California, then if you win that round of 16 game, then you have the potential of a quarterfinal in Los Angeles. Again, let's not think ahead of ourselves.

[Abby Wambach]

I agree with you on some level level that like during the group stage and where the boys are at right now, like they want to maintain kind of equilibrium in a way. I kind of look at it a little bit differently. I look at it as like different notches and different phases. So, you know, the group stage is like one mini tournament. Then you get to the round is 32 and it's another little tournament and it's like another little challenge and then as you go, but there's, there's more, there's going to be more hype surrounding the further you go. And I think that tapping into the excitement and the energy that the fans are gonna bring, that they themselves are also gonna bring to each other. Cause it's the most exciting thing that's

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

ever happened to them.

[Abby Wambach]

I think that if we want to go deep into this tournament, like really want to go deep. I really feel like every time we get into a different phase, there has to be something more you give, there's more that has to. There's a bigger energy that comes in. So to me, I wanted, I was always trying to tap into the bigness of the energy, which is why I think I was able to do crazy cool shit at the end because I was like not afraid of the energy. I was like utilize. I was like harboring the energy in a way.

[Carli Lloyd]

Well, I do feel these three games will give them a great base of continuity to Go and tap into that energy. To your point. Because I don't feel that we had that coming into this tournament and now I get a sense of like, these guys have played together. So to your point, like, I wouldn't change the lineup entirely because you'd want to have some continuity and you want that build to happen. But you also, you got to keep your players red card free or at least keep them in games. You've got to keep Pulisic healthy if you're going to assume that they're going to go on a deeper run. So managing his minutes, of course. Or at least getting him some sometime. So. But all to say, they're in a really good spot.

[Abby Wambach]

Totally. I think that they're in. They're in. They're sitting pretty. As many a soccer person would say. Sitting pretty.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah. Do you know the farthest we've ever gone in a World cup outside of 1930?

[Abby Wambach]

Quarters. Yeah, quarters.02.

[Carli Lloyd]

And I think that's. I think that's. We could beat that. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think we could beat that.

[Abby Wambach]

To get through the quarters.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Wow. That's a final.

[Carli Lloyd]

No, I think we.

[Abby Wambach]

Semis. Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

Get to the semi. I think that if we finish first in our group. Right. We hit a third place team. Round of 32. You carry that energy into that round of 16 game. You just have to run around 16 to get to the corner. And then why not us, Abby?

[Abby Wambach]

Why not us? I. I mean, look, I. I'm going to be the first one to tell you I believe that they can get there. I also know that the game can be cruel sometimes. And I also know that things just have to kind of go right.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

You have to have some luck.

[Abby Wambach]

And I'm like, worried that things are going right too early right now. Like, you need a little bit of more luck as the tournament goes on. And who knows, maybe they can cultivate their luck. But I'm proud. I feel like these guys are bringing this country together. And also, can we talk about Tyler Adams and how much he protects his players from getting into like a second. A second foul.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah. You know you're talking about. Yeah. Not positionally on the field, which he does already.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, he's amazing.

[Carli Lloyd]

But like, even in the situation, I forget who it was today.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

Was it Jedi? Robinson was getting.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, it was Robinson.

[Carli Lloyd]

Or I forget who it was. But like, Tyler stepped in, like, like

[Abby Wambach]

one of the guys is getting into a tussle with an Australian and Tyler just shows up. It feels like he comes out of nowhere and immediately places himself in between him, his player and the other player and, like, totally diffuses, defuses the conflict.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

And I love that so much because, you know, World cup energy, emotions are flying.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Egos are high and they don't want to be made fool of. And so Tyler is right there and he's just like. He, like. He, like, basically blows the fire out. He's like, yeah, not here, not now.

[Carli Lloyd]

I love, too, him sitting in that six because it gives the freedom for all those others to roam and have the freedom to get forward and be dynamic offensively. And he's going to protect those three that are sitting or sometimes two. We got aggressive today because Australia was only sitting with that one. To him staying and winning, every time they're counter, attacking or winning, every time they're coming at you, he's there to make that tackle and win. It is like he doesn't get enough credit for that. So let's go.

[Abby Wambach]

Tyler Adams, who's your player of the game

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

today?

[Abby Wambach]

Weston McKinney was mine today. I just love watching that guy play soccer because I feel like he has the freedom to go anywhere he wants. And I wish I had that freedom when I played. I know, like, not that I could cover the same amount of ground that he does, but I feel like I'm like, oh, you're up top. Oh, you're on the back line. Oh, what's happening? You're on your left wing.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

He just goes wherever he wants to go.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

And it's awesome.

[Carli Lloyd]

I was going to say Freeman because of his goal and the way he was defensively. I thought he was great. But I also like Tyler Adams in that six.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

Because I just. I don't think he. He gets enough recognition for the importance

[Julie Foudy]

of what he does.

[Abby Wambach]

Not many sixes do.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah. I know. We midfielders never get the love.

[Abby Wambach]

Boxy was our Tyler Adams.

[Carli Lloyd]

Oh, who was our. Who was your boxy? Yeah. I was trying to think who ours was.

[Abby Wambach]

She would just go ice. Because that was our code word for Abby. Chill. Yeah. That was our code word for chill out.

[Julie Foudy]

Ice.

[Abby Wambach]

I'd be, like, running around and veins popping out. My. They would call my. I would. I would see red and I would be like, ah, ice.

[Julie Foudy]

Ice.

[Abby Wambach]

But then I would find another way to get the girl.

[Julie Foudy]

You know, my favorite Abby stories is when you would come into the huddle

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

and you'd be like, yeah, yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

And I love Abby energy all the time.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

And she's like, we just gotta stop freaking out.

[Abby Wambach]

I did That a lot.

[Julie Foudy]

And we'd all look at her, and we'd start cracking up, and she'd be like, what are you laughing at? We're like, you're freaking out right now.

[Carli Lloyd]

Oh, I am.

[Julie Foudy]

I am.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Carter, stop freaking out.

[Abby Wambach]

At least I would wear it on my shoulder.

[Carli Lloyd]

Carla Overbeck used to be she did

[Julie Foudy]

it in a less physical way.

[Carli Lloyd]

She would just start cackling, laughing at me, laughing. And I could hear her cackling behind

[Julie Foudy]

me, and I turn and she have her head back, and she genuinely be,

[Carli Lloyd]

like, in the middle of, like, the most intense play, just laughing.

[Julie Foudy]

And I'm like, shut up.

[Carli Lloyd]

Okay, I get it.

[Abby Wambach]

Especially you, because you're usually pretty happy.

[Julie Foudy]

Go lucky.

[Abby Wambach]

But when you get. When you get hurt, you get irked.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

What else happened today?

[Carli Lloyd]

We're going. We're going to the game on Thursday.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

We don't know yet what's happening with our group because that's still to play with Paraguay and Turkey and then obviously the third game. But vibes are high. We had a good watch party. Thank you. Airbnb. That was amazing.

[Abby Wambach]

Foreign.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

So the FIFA World cup is basically going to be one of those rare moments where people, you know, from all over the world are suddenly sharing space together. Right? Different cultures, different languages, different themes.

That's what I love most about it.

Yep, exactly. All, like, colliding in the same cities in North America. And as we both can attest, those are kind of like the trips that change you the most in many ways. So, like my trip to France in 2019, I got to go to the FIFA World cup and watch the women play. And we. We booked on Airbnb, and it was so awesome. First of all, I got to go be a spectator and not a player, and it's just way less stressful.

[Abby Wambach]

It's way less stressful.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

It's so wonderful. I got to be in the city. You know, like, we. We booked an Airbnb in Paris, and it was just, like, so beautiful to be able to, like, move around the city, use that as, like, our hub to go to the games outside of. Outside of the city center. And just to be in a different culture is just, like, one of my favorite things. So that. By locals. And for me, this is actually such a go to thing that I always do whenever I'm in a foreign city, a place that is not my home city, I look up all of the Airbnb experiences that are nearby.

I just did that with San Luis Obispo because I was like, oh, okay.

[Carli Lloyd]

What are some of the experiences they're offering.

[Julie Foudy]

And.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Oh, this is amazing.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Exactly. Airbnb the world is meant to meet.

[Narrator or Producer]

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[Unidentified Guest or Host]

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[Unidentified Guest or Host]

One of the things we love about this partnership is what Levi's actually stands for. Celebrating people out in the world who are shifting the status quo, whether in a big way or a small way, and bringing together originals from every walk of life, every background, every expression, and giving them the space to take risks and write their own stories, which we love with Levi's right there with them. So, again, the most exciting part, Levi's is teaming up with some of those most iconic federations, of course, the United States, Mexico, England, and France. And because it's not just about the game, it's about identity. It's about how fans show up, how they express themselves, and how they tell their story on and off the field.

This is going to be the uniform of the fandom.

Show the back of your jacket real quick. Yeah, I don't have that on the red one.

[Abby Wambach]

Look at this.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

That's what I love about Levi's. It's not just about looking good. It's about being part of something bigger. Learn [e-mail].

[Abby Wambach]

I have a question.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah?

[Abby Wambach]

What is your favorite Women's World cup story that you participated in? Like, what is your favorite World cup memory?

[Carli Lloyd]

I was just thinking this the other day. That's funny you asked because we were talking about in our last episode how much this tournament has touched us and touched the country. It feels like in a really positive, hopeful way. And I was thinking of 99 and that feeling. And I'm like, these guys must. They must be feeling it, right? Like, the guys have to be feeling it.

[Abby Wambach]

They have to be.

[Carli Lloyd]

And in 99, we were definitely feeling it. And as the tournament went on to your point, the energy and the enthusiasm around it, it's like David Letterman wants the whole team on. You know, we're doing this with the Late Show. We're doing this.

[Abby Wambach]

This is before the final.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah. And we were doing, like, little sketches for them, but, like, in a really balanced. Tony was amazing. Like this. We were like. Because our whole shtick was like, we love to have fun. And then we lock in. And we're not gonna overdo it, coach. Trust us that we can have, like, a fun shtick and do it, but we're gonna lock in. So one night we were out. And this is before the final, maybe before the semifinal. And, you know, like, it's getting to be a big deal. Cause everyone's talking about it, but. But we're out in. It must have been before the final, because I think we were in Pasadena, and we all went out to watch a movie one night, because we had actually a week between games that week, just that final week. And so we pull up to this movie, and there's a group of young girls who are crying, like, sobbing because they saw you. Well, we didn't know that. We thought, oh, what is wrong? What's happening here? So we go over to, like, are you guys okay? Like, what's. Who has assaulted you? Like, what is happening?

[Julie Foudy]

Who is assaulted?

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Like, I literally was like, what is happening here?

[Julie Foudy]

Why are these women?

[Carli Lloyd]

They're teenagers. They're breaking down. And they. They couldn't talk because they were, like, crying, Crying. And then we realized it was because they had been following us and they recognized us and, like, to that level of affecting a fan. Like, we had seen it at practices and games a little bit, but, like, when you're that close to it and you see it, like, the impact you're having in the moment, we were like, holy shit. Okay, we're getting through. We're breaking through. And that's really, like, for us, like, winning. And, yes, we want to be winning, but. And we wanting to be changing culture. We wanted to be setting a standard. We wanted to show the world what was possible with women's sporting events. And that's when we were like, it's happening.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes, it's happening. Okay, what's yours? Well, favorite, I have two. I don't know if we have time for two, so I'll. Okay.

[Carli Lloyd]

It's a podcast. We got time.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay, so I'll do the goal. The goal.

[Carli Lloyd]

Oh, Brazil.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

Like, you were telling the Screw today. Yeah, this was good. Today you're gonna get a little behind the scenes here, pull the curtain back.

[Abby Wambach]

Okay, so you have to understand that we've been playing Dynaman for 60 Minutes.

[Carli Lloyd]

I know.

[Abby Wambach]

Rachel Bueller gets a red card.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah, I forgot that.

[Abby Wambach]

So Shannon, that had been that long. Yeah, for six. That's a long six, zero minutes. Shannon box is basically playing. Shannon and Christy Pierce Rampone are playing two position, three positions between the two of them. And the time is ticking, right? And the Brazilian team is wasting time. Wasting time in a way, like they're faking injury. They're bringing the stretcher on the stretcher. She, she gets on the stretcher and she's like, ah, you know, crying, whatever. And they like stretcher her off the field. As soon as they cross over to the sideline, she jumps off the stretcher, runs to the midfield stripe to come on the field. So the referee sees that this is happening and the reference, you know, we're in, we're in extra time, we're in overtime. Cuz we. The game ended in a tie.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yep.

[Abby Wambach]

Mar just scored in the first overtime. And so now we're in the second overtime period and the referee adds extra time to this extra time.

[Carli Lloyd]

Okay, do you know. Okay, keep going.

[Julie Foudy]

I won't interrupt chat, but this is

[Carli Lloyd]

so good because what Brazil had been doing, they added so much extra time

[Julie Foudy]

it allowed for your goal.

[Abby Wambach]

I know that's.

[Carli Lloyd]

And Ian Dark goes, isn't that poetic justice? Because we had been commenting like, God, come on, Brazil.

[Julie Foudy]

But then because they did that, you, they gave you enough time. Ah, see, it always comes back to biting you.

[Abby Wambach]

Poetic justice just happens to, to show up on our door and she looks like Christy Rampone getting the ball on her own goal line. I think she fouled the Brazilian to get the ball.

[Carli Lloyd]

I have to look at that again. I don't.

[Abby Wambach]

She passes it out to Ali Krieger, who takes a few touches forward, gets it to Carli Lloyd, whom in my mind at the time, I was very upset that she was taking so many touches across the middle of the field before she played a Topino.

[Julie Foudy]

Give me the ball.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, I was up top like Carly play it. Luckily she didn't listen to me because she played it to Megan out wide and Megan gets the ball and like something in me, something in me switches. She, she takes the touch and I see her look up and I was just like, oh no, she's coming. Yeah, she's playing that this is about to happen. I know she's getting the Ball to me. I don't know if it's gonna go in. I just know she's getting the ball to me. Now it's all up to me. Ball goes in the air, and instantly I have a. I have a bead on it. I'm like, I know exactly where this ball is going. And the whole game, this Brazilian defender had my number. She just. She marked me out of every free kick, out of everything. And so I. I baited her into a front. I, like, I kind of. I went like this and show. She took a step towards the ball, and then I drifted off because I knew it was going to go free. Goalkeeper comes out.

[Carli Lloyd]

You didn't even see her?

[Julie Foudy]

God, no.

[Abby Wambach]

No, I didn't see this. I didn't see the goalkeeper. I'm looking at the ball this way, and all I see is goalkeeper's hands.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Missed the ball. And I was like, holy. In my mind, I know that the goal is wide open. I have a wide open header to tie this game.

[Carli Lloyd]

But, like, she almost trucked you, yo.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

And you didn't even see her.

[Abby Wambach]

No, I had no idea. I was just eyes on. I was just. Ball, laser, laser focus on the ball. And then boom. And then instantly, ironically, Jules, I thought I missed. My stomach dropped because I was like. For whatever reason where I was, I thought the ball went to the right side of the post instead of the left side.

[Julie Foudy]

You thought it was side netting.

[Abby Wambach]

But then the whole crowd went wild, and I was like, well, I'm gonna go with what they think. And I start celebrating. And I remember kind of. I think I don't ever do. You know, I've never seen the ball hit the back of the net.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, what?

[Abby Wambach]

Something happens to my brain.

[Carli Lloyd]

Like, any goal you've ever scored, I

[Abby Wambach]

cannot remember a ball hitting the back of the net. Like, I have, like, a moment of sheer exuberance that, like, there's something that's, like. My brain just shuts down.

[Julie Foudy]

No way.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah. So I was having that blackout moment.

[Julie Foudy]

Yet when you warm up, you want the goalies to let it hit the back. One of your superstitions.

[Abby Wambach]

I know. Isn't this poetic?

[Julie Foudy]

That's weird.

[Carli Lloyd]

Poetic justice.

[Abby Wambach]

So the celebration part, you know, I say I black out after. Yeah, after I'm scoring that goal. And 11. Well, I literally can't. I can't see anything. I don't know what's happening. But all of a sudden, I come to consciousness, and I'm sliding on my knees, which I've never done before. Who said that? That Was going to be okay. What part of my brain was like, now it's time for a knee slide.

[Julie Foudy]

Thinking about it right now.

[Abby Wambach]

And as I'm coming into consciousness, the field at Dresden. In Dresden, there was a foot of grass beyond the sideline that I was. My knee sliding was towards. And after that foot of grass was concrete.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, God.

[Abby Wambach]

And so all I saw was this concrete that I was headed towards. And I was like, oh, my gosh. And if you don't know, you should just go rewatch the goal. But then watch this celebration after I knee slide, pop up, slip. Very uncooly. I was like. And then the bench gets to me, and we celebrate. And maybe like 30 seconds later, because Megan was so freaking far away on her path, she's finally getting to the huddle.

[Carli Lloyd]

She's, like, across the field to come over.

[Abby Wambach]

She's finally getting to the celebration. And this person decides to jump very

[Julie Foudy]

high,

[Abby Wambach]

and her area is, like, right at my face. And all I could do was go like this. You know what I mean?

[Julie Foudy]

She had some hops, that pinot, and

[Abby Wambach]

she hit me so hard, like, with her area, my neck. And I was like, ow. It hurt me so bad. And then we had to keep going because, Julie, this wasn't to win. This was to tie. So then we had another minute.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, my gosh. You still had pk.

[Abby Wambach]

And then we had to go into penalty kicks.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah. And then you won. And it was poetic justice.

[Abby Wambach]

Fun fact.

[Julie Foudy]

Shouldn't have faked all the.

[Abby Wambach]

On the penalty kicks, we're wearing heart rate monitors. Dawn Scott, she does, like. She does presentations around, having been our strength and conditioning coach on the national team for years. And she shows this one stat all the time for me, talking about how mentality affects physiology. While I was standing on the ball for my penalty in that World cup game against Brazil, my heart rate was in the 90th percentile. And I'm just. And she's. And she's like. She, like, zooms in on my face. Look at how calm this person is. And my heart is just like. And I just bury. And I just bury it, and I go like this.

[Carli Lloyd]

You did the Carla.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah, exactly.

[Carli Lloyd]

Oh, my gosh. Okay. So you didn't even think you scored.

[Abby Wambach]

No, I didn't.

[Carli Lloyd]

Okay. So the story I told today to the crowd was that in that extra time.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

In my ear, the producer had. Oh.

[Abby Wambach]

Because, folks, you may not know this. Julie was commentating.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah, sorry.

[Abby Wambach]

This game. I should have said that Gillian and Dark were commentating this game.

[Carli Lloyd]

I just got glitter all over me.

[Julie Foudy]

That's the best for my face paint.

[Carli Lloyd]

And I'm. I can hear them because it's now, like, the 120th minute.

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Carli Lloyd]

We're almost. When it's about 120 in, and we've never lost in a quarterfinal before the United States. And I can hear. They had a. They had me. They call it all call. They had me on all call accidentally. So I can hear the truck talking about, like, the fact that they're gonna. Who they're gonna send home. What's gonna happen. They're planning for the United States to lose. And I remember going on talkback, and

[Julie Foudy]

I said, yo, I hear you, and stop it. Yes. Come on.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Oh, it's not done yet.

[Abby Wambach]

We got two minutes.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Yo.

[Abby Wambach]

Dare them.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

How dare you?

[Abby Wambach]

Yes.

[Julie Foudy]

And. And Ian Dark kept looking at me like he was starting to sweat. He was like, what is happening? I'm like, we're good.

[Carli Lloyd]

We're good.

[Julie Foudy]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

God. Crazy. That's a good World Cup.

[Abby Wambach]

I remember they pulled me after the game. Hivetz pulled me. He's like, they want you up in the truck. So I came up.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

Because Mia was with you.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

On that commentating tour.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

And I remember your faces. I'll never forget your faces. And I'll never forget Mia's face, because I didn't know the gravity of it.

[Carli Lloyd]

Oh, my God.

[Abby Wambach]

I knew it was a big deal in the stadium, but I didn't know that. The gravity of it back home. The gravity of it from the rest of. I didn't have an idea. But Mia knew.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

In her bones.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

And she was just like this. She goes,

[Julie Foudy]

that's so Mia. I love her.

[Abby Wambach]

No words, just wow.

[Julie Foudy]

And with that, like, little smile like

[Abby Wambach]

that, too, I was like, that's the best compliment I've ever gotten from Mia. This is great. Honestly, that was actually one of the most thrilling things. And interestingly enough, after that game, our coach, Pia Sundaga, she brought us all together as a team. And I think this is the most fascinating thing that a coach has ever done. She. Because that night, our team went viral before viral was even a word.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah, I remember that.

[Abby Wambach]

Like, it exploded. Exploded back in the U.S. yeah. And the next morning, we had a meeting, and she went around. We sat in a big circle, and she said, okay, I want everybody to tell the story from their perspective and what they heard and what their family said and what they've seen. And so we went and we talked, and it was just like this. We just. Something big just happened. And then at the End of that meeting, she said, okay, now that's done, we move on to France.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Interesting.

[Abby Wambach]

And so I had chills.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Thanks.

[Abby Wambach]

You're giving me chills.

[Julie Foudy]

I thought you were gonna say she

[Carli Lloyd]

sat with her guitar, sang a song.

[Abby Wambach]

No, no. But then. Which people do. And here's the last part of the story.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

We end up getting the final and losing.

[Carli Lloyd]

This is in 2011, so heart wrenching

[Abby Wambach]

to Japan and penalties.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah. At least it was a good story. Great story.

[Abby Wambach]

Great story.

[Carli Lloyd]

Tsunami.

[Narrator or Producer]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

However, when we return back to the country. Oh, I remember we fly to New York City because we're still gonna do a couple of things in New York City. Press wise, if you win, you go straight to New York City and you're booked for the week because we lost. We go straight to New York City, and we were booked for a couple days. And we are in the team bus and we're headed to the air to our hotel in New York City. And there's just, like, so much traffic. We're like a minute away from the hotel on the bus, but we can't get to the actual hotel. I'm like, what the hell is going on? Like, what is happening here? And as we, you know, 15, 20, 30 minutes, we're like sitting on the bus. I'm like, should we just get out, grab our bags, walk? We're so close. Yeah. Well, the entirety of the block that our hotel was on was completely covered with people because people found out where our hotel was.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, shut up.

[Abby Wambach]

We had just lost the day before.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

Wow.

[Abby Wambach]

We had just lost the World Cup. And so they were having, like, a little party outside of people in American red, white, and blue jerseys just welcoming us home as actual champions, you know, because, remember, the Japanese team won and their country had gone through a horrific tsunami, losing tons of their country folk. And I just remember being on the bus feeling sad that we lost, but so proud to be an American and fighting for this team that still gets celebrated even under the worst of circumstances where you lose in penalties.

[Julie Foudy]

Right.

[Abby Wambach]

So that's. Those are two crazy. Yeah. And I remember just all of us were, like, looking like, what's going on?

[Carli Lloyd]

Oh, wait, they're here for us.

[Abby Wambach]

They're here for us.

[Carli Lloyd]

That was like our 99 traffic story

[Julie Foudy]

for the opening game.

[Carli Lloyd]

Yeah.

[Julie Foudy]

Wait, what?

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

They're here for us?

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Yeah.

[Abby Wambach]

You guys were late to your first

[Carli Lloyd]

game where the traffic.

[Abby Wambach]

They were. They were late to their first game. Metro, where was it?

[Carli Lloyd]

MetLife.

[Abby Wambach]

MetLife.

[Julie Foudy]

Oh, that's good.

[Abby Wambach]

Good times.

[Carli Lloyd]

Story times. All right, so see, Thursday.

[Abby Wambach]

Yeah.

[Carli Lloyd]

At the game.

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

For the men.

[Carli Lloyd]

For the boys.

[Julie Foudy]

Let's go. USA USA.

[Carli Lloyd]

All right, party people.

[Abby Wambach]

Wait, it's. It's not. Let's hear it for the boys. Let's hear it for the girls.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Let's hear it for the boys.

[Abby Wambach]

What is it?

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Let's hear it for the boys.

[Abby Wambach]

I might. You know, it's hard for me because I switch up girls and boys a lot because, like, most of the time, it's like boys and I have to switch it to girls.

[Carli Lloyd]

Okay, USA it out for them. This is for them. We had the entire group do the

[Julie Foudy]

oosa cheer before the game, and it worked.

[Abby Wambach]

It was so fun. My voice is hoarse.

[Carli Lloyd]

I know. Me too.

[Abby Wambach]

All right, Jules. USA on three. One, two, three.

[Unidentified Fan or Host]

Boom.

[Julie Foudy]

We finally did it perfectly.

[Narrator or Producer]

Welcome to the Party is an independent production brought to you by Treat Media. Treat Media makes art for humans who

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

want to stay human.

[Narrator or Producer]

Initial Digital is our production partner, and you can also watch our full conversations on the welcome to the party YouTube

[Unidentified Guest or Host]

channel and follow us at welcome to

[Narrator or Producer]

the Party show on Instagram and TikTok.

[Abby Wambach]

Thanks for listening.