{"id":432096,"date":"2025-12-08T00:20:14","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T00:20:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/432096\/"},"modified":"2025-12-08T00:20:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T00:20:14","slug":"san-diego-wave-swag-surf-their-way-to-2-million-prize-at-world-sevens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/432096\/","title":{"rendered":"San Diego Wave swag surf their way to $2 million prize at World Sevens"},"content":{"rendered":"

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. \u2014 The San Diego Wave of the National Women\u2019s Soccer League swag surfed their way to a World Sevens Football championship and $2 million with a 3-0 win over Tigres of Liga MX Femenil on Sunday night at Beyond Bancard Stadium.<\/p>\n

The high-octane championship featured goals from Wave forward Mackenzy Robbe in the first half and a brace by striker and Canadian international Adriana Leon in the second, plus a hefty dose of sauce as both teams balanced physicality with finesse in the seven-aside competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was so fun, and honestly, I would love to be back again,\u201d said Wave goalkeeper Didi Haracic, who won the tournament\u2019s Golden Glove award. \u201cAnd we got the bag. I got some debt to pay off, but we got the bag, honey. I\u2019m about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Wave opened their scoring account in the 10th minute of the final with Robbe\u2019s curling finish from inside the penalty box. The 31-year-old found the back of the net four times throughout the Wave\u2019s campaign and was their top goal scorer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think in sevens it\u2019s a lot more emphasis on the individual, and so I think players who maybe don\u2019t play (in NWSL matches) or get hidden a little bit, get to show their creative side, and yeah, it was definitely an element to this, which was really fun,\u201d Robbe said.<\/p>\n

Leon\u2019s two goals occurred in the first two minutes of the second half.\u00a0 Tigres\u2019 attack was powered by winger Maria Sanchez, the Golden Boot winner with six goals to her name on the road to the final, and striker Stephany Mayor, who scored twice in the semifinal.\u00a0 But Sanchez, a former San Diego Wave player, and her team were unable to produce a goal for the first time in their campaign on Sunday.<\/p>\n

San Diego joined Bayern Munich, champions of the inaugural tournament<\/a> in Portugal last May, as the top two teams of the burgeoning competition.<\/p>\n

One of the core features of World Sevens is its departure from a traditional tournament structure. Music was central to maintaining the event\u2019s energy this weekend, with players encouraged to walk out onto the pitch to soundtracks of their choice. The Wave selected \u201cSwag Surfin\u2019\u201d by F.L.Y. (Fast Life Youngtaz) \u2014 a nod to the vibes evoked by their crest.<\/p>\n

The Southern California team took every opportunity to stunt in team photos and pregame theatrics, from emulating the opening scene of \u201cThe Lion King\u201d with goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan\u2019s newborn baby, Skyler<\/a>, to reenacting the intricate handshake from \u201cThe Parent Trap.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The tournament format consisted of 30-minute games split into two 15-minute halves, with each team playing seven at a time. Eight teams representing six countries were divided into two groups of four for a round-robin group stage on Friday and Saturday. Sunday saw the top four teams, which included Brazil\u2019s Flamengo and Mexico\u2019s Club America, in the semifinals before the final.<\/p>\n

From the start of the tournament on Saturday, the Wave and Tigres quickly established themselves as powerhouses. The Wave went undefeated in the group stage, scoring a total of six goals and conceding two.<\/p>\n

Tigres scored eight times in their opening three games and conceded four goals, two of which were to the Kansas City Current, who handed them their only loss of the group stage in a match that ended in penalties.<\/p>\n