Fri May 9 16:15:46 2008

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U.S. women to play Norway, Sweden in Europe

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Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - The United States womens national team, ranked No. 1 in the world by FIFA, will travel to Europe for exhibition games against Norway and Sweden this summer.

The U.S., which is 12-0-1 this year, plays Norway on July 2 and Sweden on July 5. Norway is ranked fifth in the world and Sweden third.

The match in Sweden will mark the return of new U.S. coach Pia Sundhage to her native country and will be the first time she has faced Sweden as U.S. coach.

"Of course, it will be an interesting trip for me personally before and after the Sweden game, but during the match my focus is entirely on the U.S. team and how we can keep improving," said Sundhage, who played 146 times for Sweden, including two FIFA Womens World Cups and one Olympic Games.

The U.S. plays Canada on Saturday in Washington, D.C. The United States will be without goalkeeper Nicole Barnhart, who underwent an arthroscopic surgery Tuesday in Washington, D.C. on her right knee.