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WUSA Signs 8 Foreign Players

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The Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) has signed eight more international players. The announcement came on Friday, October 27, only a few days before the league's international draft, which is to be held on Monday, October 30.

The international players are paired with players they are familiar with in order to make their first year in the WUSA a more comfortable one.

The list of the latest foreign players reads like a who's who of international soccer. The pairs are as follows. Brazilian forwards Roseli and Pretinha, and midfielder Sissi and forward Katia of Brazil. German midfielder Bettina Wiegmann is paired with teammate forward Marin Mienert. Canadian forward and W-League standout Charmaine Hooper is paired with Japanese midfielder Homare Sawa. English forward Kelly Smith is teamed with German defender Doris Fitschen and Norwegian teammates forward Ann Kristin Aarones and defender Gro Espeseth are paired up. Two more Norwegians will start their WUSA careers together: midfielder Hege Riise and goalkeeper Bente Norby. Finally, Swedish defender Kristin Bergtsson and goalkeeper Ulrika Karlssen are paired.

The teaming of Brazilian and Norwegian players with the U.S. players will certainly make for interesting practice sessions considering the rivalry among the three teams. The rivalry is most heated between Norway and the U.S. and this dates back to the 1995 World Cup. It also got more heated during the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

The addition of the international players will definitely increase the level of play in the WUSA, which is shaping up to be the premier women's pro soccer league in the world.

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