— U.S. defender Ali Krieger is fluent in German, a language she learned during her six years under contract to the Frankfurt club in Germany's Bundesliga system. And although that will allow her to understand much of what the Germans are saying during Tuesday's Women's World Cup semifinal, she's not sure it will be of much help.
"I don't know how quickly I'll be able to tell my teammates," she said.
But Krieger does have some other knowledge that figures to be useful. Because 19 of the 23 players on the German roster play in the Bundesliga — five are currently with Frankfurt — Krieger knows many of them intimately, both as teammates and opponents.