Women’s World Cup 2011: Germany Vs. Canada, Nigeria Vs. France, Group A

The 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup kicks off Sunday in Germany, and the tournament organizers got lucky with their opening games. Group A, the group of the hosts Germany, ended up as an arguable group of death. The hosts will almost certainly advance, but the other spot is up for grabs. France and Canada are both semifinal-quality sides, while Nigeria has qualified for every single Women’s World Cup. Les Bleues feature 10 members of the 2011 UEFA Women’s Champions League winners Lyon, and will get a chance to flex their muscles in the early game. The real show is the night cap, though, when the hosts will play in front of a sold out Olympic Stadium in Berlin.

Nigeria Vs. France

Rhein-Neckar-Arena, Sinsheim

9 am ET, 2 pm local

Nearly half of France’s squad for the Women’s World Cup features players who won the European club championship this season. Lyon’s triumph has solidified France’s status as bona fide contenders, and Nigeria has a very tough task ahead of them. The Super Eagles haven’t advanced out of the group stages of the last two world cups, and after being drawn into this group, the trend will probably continue. Look for Lyon teammates Camille Abily and Louisa Necib to control the game from the center of midfield.

Germany Vs. Canada

Olympic Stadium, Berlin

12 pm ET, 5 pm local

The unstoppable force meets the immovable object? Germany hasn’t conceded a goal in international play for well over 500 minutes, while Christine Sinclair has been in absolutely stunning form in WPS and for Canada over the last year and a half. The superstar striker looks like she can score against absolutely anyone right now, but scoring requires getting possession. That might be tough for Canada to do against a Germany team that is much like the German men’s team: Impeccably organized and technically sound.

This will almost certainly be the last world cup for Birgit Prinz, a worldwide icon in women’s football. Her incredible resume includes two World Cup victories, five European championships, three European club championships, eight Frauen-Bundesliga titles, four Frauen-Bundesliga golden boots, eight German Player of the Year awards, three World Player of the Year awards, and a World Cup Golden Ball. She will be assisted in the German attack by Alexandra Popp, Inka Grings, and Fatmire Bajramaj, among others.

While Sinclair has every opportunity to break Germany’s long shutout streak, don’t expect her or her teammates to score more than once, and don’t expect a big upset. Germany are just too deep and too good to fall in front of over 70,000 fans, even if Canada’s top end talent can give them problems.