Frenzy of attention adds to pressure for Americans

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FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — A week ago, there were so few people

following the U.S. women’s team they could hold their daily media

sessions around a small table in their hotel lobby.

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Now they need an entire ballroom.

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The frenzy of attention surrounding the Americans ahead of Sunday’s

final against Japan is something they’ve never experienced before,

and it has the potential to fire them up – or heap even more

pressure on what is already the biggest game of their careers. But

the Americans insist they won’t let this newfound stardom detract

from their initial goal: Winning the World Cup for a third

time.

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Abby Wambach says the teams wants these last few days to mean

something, and the only way that will happen is with a

victory.

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