The USWNT lost Wednesday's match to Norway, ending a 44-match streak of unbeaten matches. However, the top-ranked world team can still reach the knockout round and compete for a medal match. The United States lost 2-0 to Norway at the 2008 Beijing Olympics before winning gold.
Rapinoe stated that the first defeat to Sweden was a loss.
"We will watch film and all that. But you lose points at the beginning of a tournament, and now you are in a do or die mode. You have to collect points or we'll be going home quickly, which you don't want.
Forward Christen Press said: "We've had a long string of wins, and I think we haven't had a lot of games where we had to come back.
"It was really great to have this match. We lost our first match in 2008 and won gold. This is why I believe we now see this as a learning experience. The message is already: "Heads up. Put it behind us, next games." In a tournament such as this, there's no need to dwell.
It was the first loss for the United States since January 2019, when the team fell to France 3-1 in a friendly. That summer, the U.S. won the World Cup.
The Americans are competing for their fifth overall medal in gold, more than any other country in a sport that was first featured in the 1996 Olympics. They want to become the first women's Olympic team to win an Olympic title after a World Cup.
After being defeated in the quarterfinals against Sweden, the United States was unable to win a medal at Rio de Janeiro Games. The Swedes also drew 1-1 in April with the Americans, this team's only loss.
The United States will now move on to Saitama where it will face New Zealand on Saturday, as part of the group stage.
Tierna Davidson, Defender, stated Thursday that veteran Kelley O'Hara was helping to rally the squad in advance of Saturday's match.
She was like, "We don't have any choice. "We have to win the next game, and we must be completely ruthless." Davidson stated. "So, I think that's all people have in their minds right now.
