The United States is the defending Women’s World Cup champion and the No. 1-ranked team in the world. But it is not guaranteed a place in next year’s Cup, and though the scenario is unlikely, it could theoretically be eliminated from the tournament months before it begins if things go badly in a regional qualifying tournament over the next two weeks.
Three spots in the 2019 World Cup in France will be on the line when the Concacaf championship tournament begins Thursday in North Carolina and Texas, and the United States — the region’s best team for more than a generation — is almost certain to claim one of them.