United States' World Cup dynasty ends along with myth of supremacy

MELBOURNE: The United States came to the Women's World Cup bullish about their chances of winning an unprecedented third consecutive title but their round-of-16 exit at the hands of Sweden showed their campaign was built more on hope than substance.

After back-to-back World Cup triumphs under Jill Ellis in 2015-19, Vlatko Andonovski's efforts to regenerate the four-times champions will be judged a failure in the wake of their 5-4 loss on penalties in Melbourne on Sunday (Aug 6).

The US suffered their earliest elimination at the World Cup by far, having never failed to reach the semi-finals in all eight previous tournaments.

Megan Rapinoe's brilliant international career ends on a sour note and the Sweden loss will sting for other team mates of a golden generation unlikely to hang on for the next World Cup in another four years.

The 2019 World Cup in France will now be seen as the high-water mark for a once peerless team that seemed bigger than the game itself for much of the decade.

The game has changed irrevocably since the US beat the Netherlands 2-0 in the Lyon final in France, with increased investment in women's soccer paying dividends in Europe.

The US-based National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is no longer the most attractive destination for the world's top talent.

Many players now aspire to lucrative contracts with storied European clubs and the dream of a Champions League trophy in front of enormous crowds.

Loyal US women have been left in a weakening domestic field and further dilution can be expected with plans for new teams in coming years.

Those concerns were buried under a hyperbolic narrative about the supremacy of American women's football, a myth that endured right up to the tournament in Australia and New