2008 Algarve Cup
 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Portugal |
| Dates | 5–12 March 2008 |
| Teams | 12 (from 3 confederations) |
| Venue(s) | 9 (in 9 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  United States (6th title) |
| Runners-up |  Denmark |
| Third place |  Norway |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 24 |
| Goals scored | 68 (2.83 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Margrét Lára Viðarsdóttir (6 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Cathrine Paaske Sørensen |
← 2007 2009 → | |
The 2008 Algarve Cup was the fifteenth edition of the Algarve Cup, an invitational women's football tournament held annually in Portugal. It took place between 5 and 12 March 2008 with the reigning champions the United States winning the event for a record sixth time, after defeating Denmark, 2–1, in the final game[1] in a repeat of the previous year's final.
Format
The twelve invited teams were split into three groups that played a round-robin tournament. The entrants were almost identical to the previous year, but Italy moved up into Group B from their previous ranking in 2007, replacing France who did not feature this time. Poland appeared in the competition for the first time.
Groups A and B, containing the strongest ranked teams, were the only ones in contention to win the title. The group winners from A and B contested the final, with the runners-up playing for third place and those that finished third in these two groups playing for fifth place.
The teams in Group C were playing for places 7–12, with the winner of Group C playing the team that finished fourth in Group A or B with the better record for seventh place and the Group C runner-up playing the team which came last in Group A or B with the worse record for ninth place. The third and fourth-placed teams in Group C played for eleventh place.
Points awarded in the group stage follow the standard formula of three points for a win, one point for a draw and zero points for a loss. In the case of two teams being tied on the same number of points in a group, their head-to-head result determined the higher placed.
Teams
The twelve invited teams were:
| Team | FIFA Rankings (December 2007) |
|---|---|
 Germany | 1 |
| United States | 2 |
 Sweden | 3 |
| Norway | 5 |
| Denmark | 8 |
 China | 13 |
 Italy | 14 |
 Finland | 16 |
| Iceland | 21 |
 Poland | 27 |
 Republic of Ireland | 31 |
.svg.png){kind=small} Portugal (hosts) | 47 |
Group stage
All times local (WET/UTC+0)
Group A
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denmark | 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 |
| Germany | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | +4 |
| Sweden | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | −1 |
| Finland | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 7 | −6 |
| Finland | 1–3 | Sweden |
|---|---|---|
Talonen  64' | SvFF Report (in Swedish) | Ljungberg 25' Fischer 29'Lundin 87' |
| Denmark | 1–0 | Sweden |
|---|---|---|
| Sørensen 6' | SvFF Report (in Swedish) |
| Sweden | 0–2 | Germany |
|---|---|---|
| SvFF Report (in Swedish) | Smisek 25' Prinz 86' (pen) |
Group B
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | +10 |
| Norway | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 |
| Italy | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 |
| China | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 | −8 |
| Norway | 4–2 | Italy |
|---|---|---|
| Thorsnes 9' Storløkken 47'Stangeland Horpestad 63' (pen)Kaurin 74' | Panico 34' Gabbiadini 86' |
Group C
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iceland | 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 |
| Portugal | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 |
| Republic of Ireland | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | −4 |
| Poland | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 6 | −5 |
| Iceland | 2–0 | Poland |
|---|---|---|
| Stefánsdóttir 58' Viðarsdóttir 81' |
| Portugal | 2–0 | Republic of Ireland |
|---|---|---|
| Fernandes 86' Vieira 90+2' |
| Republic of Ireland | 1–4 | Iceland |
|---|---|---|
| Grant 23' | Arnardóttir 7' Viðarsdóttir 12', 40'Gunnarsdóttir 19' |
| Portugal | 0–3 | Iceland |
|---|---|---|
| Viðarsdóttir 15', 17' Jónsdóttir 69' |
| Poland | 0–1 | Republic of Ireland |
|---|---|---|
| Grant 35' |
Placement play-offs
All times local (WET/UTC+0)
11th place
| Republic of Ireland | 2–2 (5–6 PSO) | Poland |
|---|---|---|
| O'Brien O'Gorman | Stobba 23' Winczo 48' |
9th place
| China | 1–1 (5–4 PSO) | Portugal |
|---|---|---|
| Bi Yan 1' | Fernandes 34' | |
| Penalties | ||
Li Jie  Xu Yuan Wang Kun  Ying Bi Yan Song Xiaoli | 5 – 4 | Matias Vieira Fernandes Brandão Couto Valinho |
7th place
| Finland | 0–3 | Iceland |
|---|---|---|
| Viðarsdóttir 12' Hönnudóttir 41'Gunnarsdóttir 90' |
5th place
| Sweden | 3–0 | Italy |
|---|---|---|
| Öqvist 56' Svensson 61', 80' | SvFF Report (in Swedish) |
3rd place
| Germany | 0–2 | Norway |
|---|---|---|
| Wiik 41' Knutsen 50' |
Final
| Denmark | 1–2 | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Sørensen 31' | Report | Kai 14' Wambach 50' |
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References
- ^ "US women win soccer's Algarve Cup". Toronto Star. 12 March 2008. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
| 2008 Algarve Cup |
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United States Sixth title |
International women's association football | ||
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