Name: Under Pressure: The U.S. Women's World Cup Team
Genre: Documentary
Released: 2023-12-12T00:00:00+00:00
Cast: Alex Morgan, Lindsey Horan, Alyssa Thompson, Savannah DeMelo, Lynn Williams

The final whistle blows in a stadium packed with silent, stunned fans. The camera lingers on the faces of the U.S. women’s national soccer team as they process their loss—the first time since 2015 that they’ve failed to advance past the round of 16 in the World Cup. This is how Under Pressure: The U.S. Women’s World Cup Team (2023) ends, and it’s a gut punch that lingers long after the credits roll.

Created by Rebecca Gitlitz, this docuseries isn’t just about soccer; it’s a raw, unflinching look at the immense pressure, both personal and professional, that comes with being part of one of the most successful women’s sports teams in history. The series follows key players like Alex Morgan, Lindsey Horan, and veterans Abby Wambach and Carli Lloyd as they navigate the grueling 2023 FIFA World Cup campaign.

What works best about Under Pressure is its access. Gitlitz’s cameras are there for everything—intense training sessions, tense team meetings, and candid moments in the locker room. The series excels when it lets the players speak for themselves, like Horan’s quiet vulnerability or Morgan’s leadership under fire. The documentary also smartly contextualizes the broader issues facing women’s soccer, from pay disparities to the relentless scrutiny these athletes face.

But where the docuseries stumbles is in its pacing. At times, it feels overly reliant on the dramatic arc of the tournament itself, leading to stretches that drag when the action on the field isn’t compelling enough. Some sequences of gameplay or repetitive training montages could have been tightened without losing narrative impact.

The performances—if we can call them that—are authentic and unfiltered. The players’ emotions feel real because they are. When Lloyd breaks down after a loss, it’s raw and unscripted, making it all the more powerful. Morgan’s resilience shines through in moments of crisis, while Horan’s quiet leadership is a revelation.

The series doesn’t shy away from controversy, either. It tackles the team’s public feuds with U.S. Soccer, the media’s treatment of female athletes, and the internal struggles within the squad itself. This willingness to confront hard truths elevates Under Pressure beyond a typical sports documentary.

Yet, for all its strengths, the series sometimes feels too tied to the tournament’s outcome. While the loss is undeniably dramatic, the storytelling occasionally sacrifices depth for spectacle. A few more moments of introspection or historical context might have enriched the narrative further.

In the end, Under Pressure is a compelling, if flawed, look at one of women’s soccer’s most turbulent years.