PARIS — In the feel-good final scene of the 2002 British film “Bend It Like Beckham,” best friends and teammates Jess and Jules bid farewell to their parents at London’s Heathrow Airport, one having convinced her parents that playing soccer isn’t morally corrosive for girls, and fly off to America, where full college scholarships at Santa Clara await.
Fast-forward to today, and the movie’s happy plot-twist has become a trend, with the ranks of international players competing in NCAA Division I women’s soccer steadily growing.
The upshot is on dramatic display in the 2019 Women’s World Cup, where NCAA-schooled internationals are anchoring the squads of Canada, Chile, Jamaica and New Zealand and playing integral roles for Nigeria, Scotland, Spain, Thailand and others.