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Sweden and the Netherlands Advance to the Semifinals

Eddy Lemaistre/EPA, via Shutterstock

Stina Blackstenius scored the go-ahead goal just minutes into the second half, and Sweden surprised Germany with a 2-1 quarterfinal victory in Rennes, France, on Saturday at the Women’s World Cup.

The second-ranked Germans, who won back-to-back World Cup titles in 2003 and 2007, were the presumptive favorites on their side of the bracket. Instead, they will head home.

Ninth-ranked Sweden goes on to face the Netherlands in a semifinal match on Wednesday in Lyon. The Dutch defeated Italy, 2-0, earlier Saturday. The United States plays England in the other semifinal on Tuesday.