Women power rankings for the World cup in Israel
Women
Group A
USA
We think we all know what will happen in group A. The USA women's team will be too much for the rest of the girls. Jo Overstreet and Nadia Bibbs will be hard to guard, and the QB's better not throw the balls in their direction because they are beasts in the air. We can almost bet that Jo Overstreet will be pick6 leader at the end of the Tournament and probably MVP. Vanita Krouch will be slinging the deep balls, and she will be the best QB in the Tournament. Head coach Chris Lankford will have enough players into his rotation, so he will try to get the girls to the finals fresh and motivated.
Spain
Team Spain has an excellent women team combined with the players from the top tier of Spanish flag football teams. San Juan Dolphins always have outstanding athletes with a winning mentality. They won this year's Sportmonda. Violeta Alexandra Wiksten Oliver and Alicia Galiana Ortega will be nightmares for the opponents. Head coach Danel Castanon Sanchez has a lot of potential in his team, and we believe girls from Spain will reach the World games.
France
We know little about the France team, but they can ball. Their best player is Elisa De Santis, and she can do it all. She can throw, she can catch, she can run. We can expect a lot from Naissa Charani, which will wear the burden of number 1. We cannot miss Valentine LeBlond, which can slice the defensive players of the opponents and move those hips, so the defenders miss the flags. Sebastien Fatet will have to find the best lineup to compete with the USA and Spain for their ticket to Alabama. The quality is there, and in flag football, every team can beat everyone with just a little bit of luck and good playcalling,
Finland
We all know girls from Finland can play. The question is if Finland is sending their best flag football team. From what we know, they left some girls home, and they are travelling only with 12 players, which will rotate in the lineups of Lars Abrahamsen. The coach will have to trust Essi Söderholm in the QB position to find in the open space duo Nirhamo/Partnanen. On the defence side, Finland will have one of the fastest blitzes in the Tournament, Essi Saastomoinen, which also has a tremendous vision for stopping the run game. If Finland can maintain pace and conditioning, they can also be a dark horse of this group. Tough group for them, that's for sure. If they would land somewhere else, they could punch the ticket to Alabama.
Team Neutral
Team Neutral women have their player in Daniella Jlany. She is fast; she is strong like a Swiss army knife. She can do it all. But she alone cannot beat the entire other teams in this group. We must mention Aleksandra Scherbakova, the shifty receiver who can play against male cornerbacks and still win them with such ease. Alla Gruzdeva knows the field knows how to pick QBs and score TDs. We could go on and on with the players from Russia, but we gave them the last spot in this death group. Kirill Zavialov will have to have some aces in his pocket, and Maksim Stoliarov will have to find how to stop offences from the other teams. They can win second place, or they can finish last.
Group B
Panama
Girls from Panama are our secret dark horse to win the Tournament. If they have some luck, and let's say Vanita Krouch gets injured (we don't that, of course), team Panama can go all the way. Arlen Hernandez, Claudia Gonzalez, Vanessa Castillo, are ballers. A big one too. Panama is like Mexico; they breathe flag football. And they are here to play and win the medal. Jack Reed head coach is stacked with talent. And Panama should easily win the group.
Czech republic
We will be bold (because we can), placing the Czech Republic in second place. Why? Because Martin Šindler, Bohuslav Rom and Pavel Mraz give their soul into this team. Alzbeta Nečasová will toss the ball in the air and try to beat the defenders with Kamila Valouchova and Markéta Gotchálková. Their defence will be good too. Duo Nguyenová/Stiborová will be a hard nut to crack. They have the talent and the experience. So we know they can do a lot.
Italy
After winning the European throne, Italy wants to show its dominance with the tackle version. Parma Panthers are a powerhouse in tackle version, and women flag. Their male team is full of big names, and the women team is not far. Ambra Marcucci will be the general on the floor on both sides of the ball. Monica Pastori, Casertano Sara, and Beatrice De Sanctis are just a few names that can ball and be a challenging time for the opponents. They can beat every team in the group, but something is missing to be big shots and secure the place to Alabama. We hope we are wrong because this group will be lovely to watch.
Belarus
Belarus is a dark horse in this group, and it's hard to know what they will bring and show at the World Championship. They have a good and strong team that can offer excellent flag football skills, but the experience cannot be in their favour. Nadzeya Khatsianovich, Alena Fiadosenka, Varvara Kulikova will try to hold the fort on the field, while Darya Popova will try to find the end zone as much as possible. Maybe their names are not significant and famous such as Marcucci or Castillo, but they have few players who can make a difference on the field. Hopefully, the international debut of Mikita Shutau, the head coach, will be in their favour and show the team's potential he is bringing with him.
Chile
Again, we do not know a lot of Chile, many names in which we cannot know who is who and about the positions. So we have to put them in the last spot. We only know for sure that they will rock the New Balance gear, which is the first flag football team to do so.
Group C
Mexico
What can we say about Mexico? They are a flag football country, and everything comes with it. They are fierce players, and each girl can throw and catch the ball. Their playstyle is unique and hard to guard. They are stacked with names such as Diana Flores, Nadia Perez, Gisell Diaz Del Campo, and of course, one of the best flag football players in the world, Silvia Contreras. Fernando Alfaro can have a smile on his face every day because this team is championship bound.
Austria
Saskia Stribrny is a generational talent. And every head coach would like to work with that kind of talent in the flag football world. With that kind of talent, everything is more accessible. Stribrny and company won the champions bowl with Stefani Schönecker as an MVP, but she is not playing for the national team at the world cup. So the others will have to step into Steffi's shoes. Jasmin Straka, Sophie Spitzer will have to fill the void and bring the team to second place and the route to Alabama at the World games.
Germany
Germany, Austria, and Switzerland will go head to head. And the coaches will have to communicate with their players in some other language not to show the playbook they got. On paper, Austria is a better team than Germany but, Germany can make their way to the World Games. Saskia Macharia, a teammate of Saskia Stribrny, will try to put pressure on the offence and defence. Anne Streil, Ellen Riess, are the names to carry their national team to the podium. But we think Mexico and Austria will be a burden for Germany.
Switzerland
A dark horse of this group. Our heart breaks every time we put someone in the last place. And writing about this one is tricky. Because we all know Swiss players are ballers in male and female teams. The biggest question is which player will reign in the QB position. Will that be Calame-Rosset, Zähbler or John. And who will get more snaps, Sommer or Schmid and the centre position? One thing is for sure, that blitz duo Casanova-Predervand will be a pain in the ass to every QB that will face them. Everything will depend on Sabrina Tomaschett being the more experienced player in the backfield at the DB position. The Swiss team will put a good fight, but the other groups are too big an obstacle right now.
Group D
Denmark
Denmark is Denmark. They have flag football skills in their blood. It is what it is, right? Lars Carlsen is bringing the most prominent talent to Israel. Sisters Sommer, Maja, and Kamille will be front runners to impact the team. And there is Danish Dynamite Luna Schytz. Denmark has talent, and they should be winning the group without any "sweat". Sidsel Andersen will be the floor general controlling the time clock and the endzone.
Brazil
Brazil is coming to win as much as games possible. Alessandra Rodrigues is eager to show the flag football world she is the QB in the making and deserves all the praises. One of the players to watch is, of course, Ester Alencar. She and Rodrigues will be a double threat QB's, and the defences will have to watch some trick plays. Pamella Pereira will be a defensive player to watch with her quick feet and verticality. Brazil can bring the game to its higher level, and due to a good group, they should make an immediate impact.
Israel
Emma Lieberman will rally the troops and take advantage of the home field. We believe that Israel will finish second, but we would like to see the effect of the underdogs from Brazil. Israel has some big names such as Tova Farkas, Ya'ara Gilan and MacEllen McDonough, and Aliza Shore. Head coach Elissa Sagoskin will have a tough job. There will be no room for mistakes in Israel offence, especially with the home turf. Maybe they can even win the group, that would be quite an exciting development. But the element of surprise can happen.
Japan
Last but not least, Japan. Shoji Kaneyasu is bringing the best talent from the Land of the Rising Sun. Yuki Sato, Yuri Nakahata, Kazuko Sato will try to win as many games as possible. A formidable group for Japan, but the girls will try to prove everybody wrong.
Just a couple of days till the beginning of one of the most exciting World cups in Flag Football history.
https://flagworld21.com/schedule-scores/
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Who is your favourite? Please write to us.
