In front of an estimated crowd of over 85,000 people, the US Women's National Team and Japan Women's National Team have kicked-off the Olympic gold medal match.
This is a rematch of last summer's World Cup final that saw Japan defeat the USA on penalties. Eight of the US players started in that game and you can bet winning today would help remove some of the sour taste that defeat left in their mouths. The only lineup change for the USA from their semifinal victory over Canada is Shannon Boxx, making her first appearance since the Olympic opener, who replaces Lauren Cheney.
Japan is in their red jerseys, with white shorts while the USA is in their blue and white change kit. The match officials on the field are all from Germany, while the fourth official is from Argentina.
Good early back-and-forth play from both teams, but neither side has looked too dangerous as yet. You get the feeling that both teams respect what the other is capable of and is wary of making an early mistake. The US did have a penalty shout turned down by the referee in the 6th minute after Alex Morgan appeared to have been impeded by the Japanese defense.
Follow along with our live coverage of the final in our USA Vs. Japan, London 2012 Olympics StoryStream.
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