After 'heartbreaking' week, USWNT and England put on a record-breaking show at Wembley

At the end of a "heartbreaking" week that began with an exposé of abuse and a re-triggering of trauma, and on a night that began with statements against sexual violence and racism, then a moment of silence for a tragedy, it would have been easy, perhaps even appropriate, to forget that there is joy in sport.

It would have been easy to see and hear Becky Sauerbrunn speak, and to read about the "horrifying" things that powerful men have done to wonderfully talented women, and feel despondence.

But then, at 8 p.m. in London on Friday, with 76,893 fans watching in person and millions more on TV, the U.S. and England women's national teams played a soccer game, and all was momentarily forgotten — or, rather, remembered.

"I do want to remind everyone," Lindsey Horan had said earlier in the week, after a round of questioning about the Yates report, "that this game is so incredibly cool."

A couple days later, she and two dozen others explained — with their feet and their brains and their skill — why.

The game ended 2-1 to England, and snapped a 21-game American unbeaten streak. Without video review, it would have been 2-1 to the U.S. But the result did not really matter. "This is not actually an important game," U.S. head coach Vlatko Andonovski said Thursday. "But ... it's a good show," he said, and a "statement in women's sports."

And what a show it was. England was slick and progressive, and very much proved that it will challenge the U.S. for global supremacy next summer. The USWNT, even without half of its first-choice starters, was consistently dangerous and, although second-best, very much up for the battle.

The Lionesses scored first. U.S. center back Alana Cook made a mistake. And Beth Mead made her pay, as world-class teams tend to do.

But Sophia Smith, playing as a No. 9 in the absence of Alex Morgan, Mallory Pugh and Catarina Macario, answered.

Smith, who at 22 years old is both the future and the present of the USWNT, was excellent all evening, even in an unnatural position. England couldn't cope with her speed and her sharpness.

But the hosts more than coped with the occasion. They handled a strong American midfield, and controlled some early stages of the game, and bossed possession.

They went ahead again later in the first half on a penalty, awarded after a slight tap of a high boot to Lucy Bronze's face.

The U.S. equalized soon thereafter, only to have an exquisite break — spearheaded by Smith, made by Megan Rapinoe and finished off by Trinity Rodman — nullified by an unseeable offside call.

The first half was end-to-end. It was brilliant entertainment. The second half was slightly more subdued, but nonetheless full of quality.

It was all a wonderful advertisement for the sport, and well worth the price of admission for the record-breaking crowd — by far the most for a friendly played by either team, and the third-most for a USWNT match ever — that paid it in less than 24 hours.

"The level of football right now is just insane," Rapinoe said Thursday of the women's game worldwide. Friday's match proved her point.

And it wasn't reason to worry about the USWNT's chances at a World Cup three-peat in 2023. It was reason to celebrate.

Oh, and it was a refresher. "Obviously, it was an extremely difficult week for everybody," Andonovski said. "I’m proud of the players to even be on the field to play this game. ... I applaud their bravery, and their fearless mentality, and relentlessness. Once again, they showed that nothing can stop them from playing the game that they love."