2008 Algarve Cup
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.
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| 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 | |
| Runners-up | |
| Third place | |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 24 | 
| Goals scored | 68 (2.83 per match) | 
| Top scorer(s) | |
| Best player(s) | |
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)  | 
|---|---|
1  | |
2  | |
3  | |
5  | |
8  | |
13  | |
14  | |
16  | |
21  | |
27  | |
31  | |
47  | 
Group stage
    
All times local (WET/UTC+0)
Group A
    
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | |
| 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | +4 | |
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | −1 | |
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 7 | −6 | 
| Finland  | 1–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Talonen  | 
SvFF Report (in Swedish) | Ljungberg  Fischer Lundin  | 
| Denmark  | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Sørensen  | 
SvFF Report (in Swedish) | 
| Sweden  | 0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| SvFF Report (in Swedish) | Smisek  Prinz  | 
Group B
    
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | +10 | |
| 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | |
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | |
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 | −8 | 
| China PR  | 0–4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Tarpley  Heath Wambach Lloyd  | 
| Norway  | 4–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Thorsnes  Storløkken Stangeland Horpestad Kaurin  | 
Panico  Gabbiadini  | 
| Norway  | 3–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| unknown  Storløkken Wiik  | 
Guo Yue  | 
Group C
    
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 | |
| 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | |
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | −4 | |
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 6 | −5 | 
| Iceland  | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Stefánsdóttir  Viðarsdóttir  | 
| Portugal  | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Fernandes  Vieira  | 
| Republic of Ireland  | 1–4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant  | 
Arnardóttir  Viðarsdóttir Gunnarsdóttir  | 
| Portugal  | 0–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Viðarsdóttir  Jónsdóttir  | 
| Poland  | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant  | 
Placement play-offs
    
All times local (WET/UTC+0)
11th place
    
9th place
    
7th place
    
| Finland  | 0–3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Viðarsdóttir  Hönnudóttir Gunnarsdóttir  | 
5th place
    
| Sweden  | 3–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Öqvist  Svensson  | 
SvFF Report (in Swedish) | 
3rd place
    
| Germany  | 0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Wiik  Knutsen  | 
Final
    
| Denmark  | 1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Sørensen  | 
Report | Kai  Wambach  | 
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References
    
- "US women win soccer's Algarve Cup". Toronto Star. 12 March 2008. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
 
| 2008 Algarve Cup | 
|---|
United States Sixth title  | 

