June 21, 2011

Mia Hamm Joins espnW as Analyst for 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup

espnW to Provide Comprehensive Coverage from Germany

 Mia Hamm will bring her years of international soccer playing expertise to espnW  during the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup.  Throughout the three-week tournament, Hamm will provide blog postings, insights and interviews for espnw.com along with select appearances on ESPN telecasts as a special contributor for espnW which is ESPN’s first dedicated content and digital business designed to serve, inform and inspire female athletes and fans.   

One of the best female soccer players to ever play the game and one of the most capped players in history, Hamm led the 1999 US Women’s National Team to victory in the FIFA Women’s World Cup that year.  Hamm joins fellow US Women’s National team teammates Julie Foudy, Brandi Chastain and Brianna Scurry as well as former head coach Tony DiCicco, providing analysis during ESPN’s multiplatform coverage of the tournament.

“Mia Hamm is the one of the most decorated female soccer players in history, and we couldn’t think of a better analyst to join espnW for the 2011 FIFA World Cup.,” said Laura Gentile, vice president, espnW.  “Mia brings a wealth of knowledge about international soccer play as well as what it takes to win at any level.  Her expertise will be invaluable for our fans as they watch the tournament proceed.”

espnW Coverage Plans:

Throughout the 2011 FIFA World Cup, espnW will provide comprehensive coverage from Germany, including:

• Focused international coverage featuring stories by Joanne Gerstner, Michelle Smith, Beau Dure and Jacqueline Purdy
• Daily player blogs from the United States’ Heather Mitts, Canada’s captain Christine Sinclair, New Zealand’s Ali Riley and Sweden’s Caroline Seger
• espnW embeds with Team England to chronicle their tournament run
• Feature stories on Equatorial Guinea’s run to its first World Cup, the history of women’s soccer in Germany, and the Top 10 Women’s World Cup Moments
• The espnW HERoics documentary film series will also be available on the site in its entirety

 Mia Hamm

Hamm is widely recognized as the world’s best all-around women’s soccer player of all-time.  She was the youngest player ever to play for the US Women’s National Team  at age 15 and went on to play for 17 years, retiring in 2004.  She won two FIFA World Cup titles as part of the national team (1991 and 1999) as well as two Olympic gold medals (1996 and 2004). She is the first-ever three-time US Soccer athlete of the year (1994-1996) and was named the women’s FIFA World Player of the Year the first two times that award was given (in 2001 and 2002).  She is also listed as one of FIFA’s 125 best living players. 

Hamm played collegiately at the University of North Carolina where she led her team to four consecutive NCAA championships.  She was an All-American and Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year for her last three years.  She graduated with a degree in political science.

Currently, Hamm devotes her time to the Mia Hamm Foundation which focuses on providing support for raising funds and awareness for families needing marrow or cord blood transplants and continuing the growth in opportunities for young women in sports. 

ESPN & the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup

The FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011 (June 26 – July 17) will be ESPN’s fifth straight, having televised the quadrennial event since 1995.  ESPN and ESPN2 will air all 32 matches live and in high definition.  ESPN3.com, ESPN’s signature broadband network in 70 million homes, will offer simulcasts of all matches, and ESPN’s mobile platforms will also provide coverage of 26 matches.  All programming on ESPN and ESPN2 will also be available online through ESPNnetworks.com  which is accessible to fans who receive their video service from an affiliated provider.

For the first time, ESPN will present all of its’ FIFA Women’s World Cup studio programming from host nation Germany.  The comprehensive news, highlights and information coverage of the quadrennial tournament featuring the top-16 women’s national teams in the world will include, for the first time, pre-match, halftime and post-match shows, as well as World Cup-branded segments on SportsCenter, First Take and ESPNEWS. 

About espnW:

espnW’s mission is to serve, inspire and inform today’s female athlete and fan. The site provides an engaging

environment where women are an integral part of the sports conversation, share their perspective on men’s and women’s sports and find the motivation and support for their athletic goals and interests. Founded in July 2009, espnW, [espnw.com], is an emerging business that consists primarily of a digital product suite including pc web, mobile web and social media.  The espnW blog launched in Dec. 2010 with an enhanced web site debuting on April 26, 2011.  Founding partners Nike, Gatorade and P& G provide content to espnW.com  The Women’s Sports Foundation is espnW’s official charity of choice.

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