In mid-January, days after announcing details of the first women’s tournament since the coronavirus pandemic paralyzed American sports, U.S. Soccer Federation executive Tom King received a foreboding message from Tokyo.
The Japanese team, one of three guests for the sixth annual SheBelieves Cup in Orlando, might have to withdraw because of an uptick in infections at home.
The competition was less than five weeks away. Contracts had been signed and national TV slots secured. Health and safety were paramount, but King and the USSF needed to know soon whether the Nadeshiko, as the renowned Japanese team is called, would make it.