ESPN Olympic Sports

DALLAS -- Win an Olympic gold medal and lose once in 59 games, and no one pays attention. Lose a World Cup in the middle of a slow sports summer, and marketers and media knock down the doors.

That's been the upended world of the U.S. women's soccer team in the past four years. The sports world hardly noted the squad that stormed back from an opening-game loss to top the podium in Beijing. "In 2008, we won a gold medal, and there was really no talk about us," midfielder Carli Lloyd said. "It was crazy."

Nor did people pay much attention as Pia Sundhage's team continued an unbeaten streak that lasted until a shocking World Cup qualifier loss to Mexico in November 2010.

Now, though, the U.S. team is in high demand; and thanks to the male under-23 side's failure to qualify for London, it will have the American Olympic soccer stage to itself. Keeper Hope Solo famously competed on "Dancing with the Stars," newcomer Alex Morgan famously donned body paint in Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue, and Abby Wambach belatedly garnered the media recognition that her Hall of Fame career merits.

It all stems from one moment in the World Cup quarterfinal against Brazil last July in Germany, when Wambach's dying-moment goal sent the match to penalty kicks, enabling the U.S. to advance.

"What sold everything was the Brazil game; that was the endorsement game," Lloyd said Tuesday at the Olympic media summit. "That did it for everybody. To have such a dramatic game like that drew so many fans, fans who don't even watch soccer. It's been great."

The thriller commenced a summer soap opera in which the Americans slipped past France in a tight semifinal game and lost a heartbreaker on penalty kicks against Japan in the final, a drama that kept fans glued to the tube and Twitter.

The long-ignored squad was full of overnight celebrities, and they've had staying power.

"We have superstars now," midfielder Lauren Cheney said. "Hope's a superstar. Alex is a superstar. Abby's a superstar. The outside stuff, Vogue magazine, 'Dancing with the Stars,' all of that is awesome."

A year and a half ago, Morgan was a college kid in a dorm room at Cal. Now, she's a marketing machine and an Internet phenomenon. "I have gotten overwhelmed at times," she said. "I've tried to stay level-headed, I've tried to still look to my family and my friends for support. I've really tried to balance my schedule right."

She seems to be handling it. The youngest member of the team has become a regular starter at forward for Sundhage, and her goals have come even more frequently than her endorsement opportunities. (She has 11 goals in eight games.)

"Leading up to the Olympics, I want soccer to be a priority," she said. "I just need to take a step back when I get overwhelmed."

The players say the added attention hasn't created any rifts in the locker room. Quite the contrary.

"Everyone's down-to-earth on our team. No one's got a huge head from what they've done, and it's perfect," Lloyd said. "When we're together, half the time we're not even talking about that stuff. It's been great for our team, great for women and great for women's soccer."

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Despite a gloomy prognosis that her recovery from a torn right ACL and MCL could take six to eight months, U.S. defender Ali Krieger said Sunday she hasn't given up on the 2012 London Olympics.

"I'm not going to give up, not going to lose hope," Krieger said after watching her teammates beat Guatemala 13-0 on Sunday at the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament. "People who have had this say everyone is different. Some people are back in four months, some people have gotten back in nine months, a year. But I'm going to stay hopeful and stay positive, and I'm pretty strong. I'm a fighter and I've been there before.

"I think I'm going to come back stronger than ever."

Krieger injured the knee in Friday's game against the Dominican Republic when an opponent collided with her plant leg. She said she knew it was bad, but didn't know it was that bad until the MRI came back Saturday.

"I didn't know it was my ACL," she said. "It didn't feel that bad, but I knew something obviously was wrong with that much pain."

Krieger said she will fly home to the D.C. area Monday and have surgery on the knee as soon as possible. "I'm going to get it done this week because I want to start that process started and try to get back. I'm still hopeful for the Olympics."

"I'm really sad for her," U.S. coach Pia Sundhage said. "She helped the team and she had a very good World Cup. That's tough for her, but at the end of the day, we can't do anything about it. The next step is to move on and find someone who can replace her. ... We need to look at it and find players to compete for that spot. But we have time, so I have no doubt in my mind. Maybe [the replacement] is already in squad, maybe she will be someone else coming in and fighting for the spot."

Krieger said her feelings have come in waves since the injury.

"It's been pretty emotional, pretty draining the past few days," she said. "This is the first time injuring my knee and it's pretty bad. Obviously, I want to be playing -- who doesn't? -- but I'm taking it pretty well. I'm staying positive and looking forward. I'm just taking one day at a time."

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Despite the record-setting score, the U.S. women's soccer team's 14-0 rout over the Dominican Republican might have come at a price. Defender Ali Krieger left the game in the first half with an injured right knee and her status for the rest of the Olympic qualifying tournament is unknown.

U.S. coach Pia Sundhage said the team won't know the full extent of Krieger's injury until it receives the MRI results Saturday.

"It's probably a serious injury, but by tomorrow we'll find out what it is," she said. "We as a team will move forward with or without her -- we just have to figure out what the deal is with her knee. We're obviously all thinking of her and wishing her nothing but success."

Krieger, who was not available for comment after the game, injured the knee when she fell awkwardly.

"She shoots and I think comes down funny on it," teammate Abby Wambach said. "With this kind of [turf] surface [at BC Place], you never know exactly what the prognosis is going to be until you get the results back from the MRI."

Wambach fell several times on her left knee and said she was happy to get a breather when Sundhage substituted Alex Morgan for her in the second half.

"We want her to last as long as we can in this tournament, which is one reason we took her out at halftime," Sundhage said. "The other reason is we have some good players on the bench."

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- The U.S. women's soccer team had an abrupt greeting when it arrived here this week for the start of the Olympic qualifying tournament. The first was snow and significantly colder than normal weather for Vancouver (it is much colder here now than it ever was during the 2010 Winter Olympics). The second was a fatal shooting in the restaurant of its hotel.

The players said they were all upstairs in their rooms when the shooting occurred Tuesday evening around 8:45 p.m. in the hotel restaurant.

"All of us were a bit scared," goalkeeper Hope Solo said Wednesday afternoon. "We all travel all around the world; big cities, small cities. It's a normal thing that crime happens. We were aware of the situation. It was scary for us, but it was handled incredibly well by the hotel staff and the police officers."

"It was a little scary at first," forward Alex Morgan said. "I've never been so close to a shooting even though we were upstairs. Everyone was taken care of really well by our general manager. We were calling down and guest services were very nice to us and telling us not to come down. The situation was handled really well.

"I don't think this affects us at all. Even though it was in our hotel, we didn't witness it, so I don't think that's going to be a problem. We were definitely a little shaken up the first moments when we heard about it."

Asked about whether the incident affected her, Solo replied: "Every experience in life affects you personally. You start to question what life is all about. You start to think about your loved ones. That's pretty normal. We know we're in a very safe place, both in Canada and up in Vancouver, and keep in mind, I live in Seattle, which is just a couple hours down south. I feel safe. The team has no second thoughts about being here or performing well in the tournament."

The eight-team tournament begins Thursday at BC Place Stadium, with the top two teams advancing to the Olympics. The United States plays its first game Friday night against the Dominican Republic.

With snow on the ground and temperatures in the 20s, midfielder Megan Rapinoe said she hopes the new retractable roof remains closed.

The Olympics are still six months and three weeks away, so there's still a little time to order a copy of Michael Phelps' "London on 10,000 Calories a Day" guidebook. The U.S. Olympic trials season, however, is just about to heat up.

Mark the following events and dates on your 2012 Mayan calendar if you want a head start on crushing all opponents in your Olympics Fantasy League.

(Disclaimer: This isn't all of the trials since some sports don't have them, but this list is a lot to put on your plate without also explaining the selection process for the modern pentathlon team.)

Jan. 14: Marathon

Begin the long, grueling season of Olympic athlete trials and qualifications with -- what else? -- the marathon in Houston. The U.S. women may have their deepest field ever, including Desiree Davila, Kara Goucher, Shalane Flanagan and 38-year-old Deena Kastor. On the men's side, Ryan Hall is the favorite, but don't rule out 36-year-old 2004 silver medalist Meb Keflezighi, who set a personal record in the recent ING New York City Marathon. By the way, top marathoners average just under five-minute miles. For 26.2 miles. You'd be lucky to average that in Houston at rush hour in a car.

Jan. 19-29: Women's soccer qualifying tournament

Sadly, Hope Solo's "Dancing with the Stars" season finished shy of the coveted mirror ball. If she wants a shot at adding another Olympic gold medal to her collection, she and the rest of the U.S. women must first secure a spot. A field of eight countries from the Americas will compete in Vancouver, British Columbia, for two slots in London. The United States is in Group B with Mexico, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic, but another interesting story should be Group A in which Haiti will face Canada, Cuba and Costa Rica. Let's just hope Vancouverites don't burn down the city if Canada doesn't qualify.

Feb. 13-19: Women's boxing

Qualifying for the Olympics is a two-step process for the U.S. women. Boxers must win the trials in Spokane, Wash., in February. Then those boxers must finish among the top eight in the three weight classes at the world championships in China in May. This will be the first time women's boxing will be on the Olympic calendar.

March 22-April 2: Men's soccer qualifying tournament

Because of the age restrictions, men's Olympic soccer isn't viewed as big a deal as it is for the women. But can Freddy Adu and his teammates grab the spotlight away from the women with a medal? Well, the Americans will first have to get there. The qualifying rounds will be played in Nashville, Tenn., and Carson City, Calif., before the semifinals and final March 31 and April 2 in Kansas City, Kan. Don't drip your scarves in the barbecue.

April 21-22: Wrestling

In addition to the usual hopefuls, there are two possible wrestlers who could make this event very interesting. Both 2000 gold medalist/"Biggest Loser" competitor Rulon Gardner and 1996 gold medalist/pro wrestler Kurt Angle have said they will attempt to make the team. A slimmed-down Gardner is working at the Olympic training center, while Angle is training on his own. No chairs, please, Kurt.

Late spring, basketball roster selections

The Olympic spots are set, it's just a matter of hearing the final rosters. The men are coming off gold in 2008, while the women are 33-0 in the Olympics dating back to 1992. BTW: If men's coach Mike Krzyzewski needs a vowel, he can buy it from women's coach Geno Auriemma.

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While all the controversy surrounding the Great Britain soccer team revolved around who might not be playing, one exceptionally familiar and aging footballer bucked the trend by offering to sign up for duty -- David Beckham.

The former Manchester United and Real Madrid star turned-L.A. Galaxy midfielder aided the successful London Olympics bid. He has now articulated a desire to participate as a member of the soccer team.

The Olympic tournament has idiosyncratic selection rules: 18 players form a squad but only three can be over the age of 23. The structure is designed to prevent it from encroaching on the World Cup's territory.

Beckham, who will be 37 when the 2012 Olympics roll round, has played many roles in his career: hero, villain, savior of the American game, touchline ambassador for the 2010 England World Cup team, unsuccessful lobbyist for the England 2018 World Cup bid. Despite amassing a net worth estimated at $219 million in the process, Beckham evidently still feels a draw to pull on a Great Britain Olympic shirt.

While pundits debate potential Great Britain dream teams involving the likes of Arsenal tandem Aaron Ramsey (Wales) and Jack Wilshere (England) and Manchester United's defensive duo of Chris Smalling (England) and Jonny Evans (Northern Ireland), few etched Beckham's name into the squad. A popular poll on national website Faces of Britain found no room for him on the team, a widespread sentiment which led Olympic organizers to float the notion that he could be considered as a coach.

Don't bet against David. Born and bred around London's East End, he considers himself a local boy. He has undeniably been a remarkable servant to the English national team, racking up a 115 caps, a record for an outfield player. But above all, for a media-hungry creature like Beckham, the Olympics are the ultimate catnip.

The competition ticks all of his boxes: global broadcast exposure, soccer balls and the chance to drape yourself in a Union Jack flag. Mark our words, he will be there. And with 12 months still to go, he could still yet mount a charm campaign to ensure he is granted the honor of lighting the Olympic torch, by popular acclaim.

Roger Bennett is the co-host of Off The Ball and appears on Futbol Frenzy on "Morning Joe" every Monday. He can be reached via Twitter: @rogbennett