Steven Goff | Washington Post Soccer Insider

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That's betterhelp.com slash positive. We're really excited to welcome Stephen Goff from Auckland, New Zealand. First guest ever on After Hours and probably the first guest in my career I've ever had from Down Under.

Stephen with the Washington Post covering the Women's World Cup. So what's it like to be there in New Zealand for this event, Stephen? Well, first of all, it's quite refreshing because it's winter here in the southern hemisphere.

So, for instance, the game last night, the New Zealand game, it was a 7pm local kickoff time. It was cold. I mean, it was probably low 50s, windy. I had a winter hat on by midway through the match. It's interesting that you say that because as we were watching New Zealand celebrate, we noticed that a bunch of people were wearing winter coats, even some of the reserves that were not on the field. But then in the stands, everybody was wearing winter knit hats.

So it kind of dawned on us, yeah, yeah, it's southern hemisphere, not what we're experiencing here. Were you at the match where New Zealand won that, beat Norway, won nothing? Yeah, I was there.

It was a great scene. The largest crowd by far in New Zealand's home history. It's one of the ways you can measure what their programs are and how they've grown. New Zealand's previous record crowd was 12,000 earlier this year when they played the US in a friendly. And last night they had 42,000. Obviously, this is a World Cup, so it's a little bit different. But still, I think people were excited. New Zealand never won a World Cup game in their history in 15 matches until last night. So yeah, it was a nice moment, especially after the shooting in Auckland.

Early today, it really brought some joy and some smiles to a place that's not accustomed to such violence. Not just that, but there were a lot of tears from the players, the coaches. I think there were tears of joy, but just the fact that they had finally been able to break through is pretty incredible because in the United States, as much as we do love our history, there's so many different sports we can follow. We're kind of used to success, even if it's not the type of World Cup success for the men that other countries experience. It was just really refreshing to see how emotional they were over getting this first win in their nation's history and with all the fans that were there too.

So that was pretty incredible. Yeah, and this is the rugby country. The All Blacks, the famous rugby team in New Zealand is the dominant sports figure here. Soccer on the men's side has gained ground over the years, but the women until now have really been in the shadows.

What type of spirit have you felt? What type of energy so far at the games that you've attended, the matches you've attended for? What's an incredible global event? There's only been one game here in Auckland so far. The second game obviously will be the U.S. Saturday here, Friday night in the United States. Like I said, this is a rugby country, so I don't think the public has caught up in it as much as it is in Australia. But the success of the New Zealand team last night certainly helps and they should have another big crowd when they play in Wellington next week. Have you run into a bunch of Americans? Oh yeah, there'll be thousands of them here. Typically, whether it's a men's World Cup or a women's World Cup, Americans travel like no other country. Part of it's economics, you can afford to go. The stadium tomorrow will have a huge U.S. fan presence, as it did four years ago in France, as it did eight years ago in Canada. Obviously, those places are much easier to reach than New Zealand, but it'll be a good scene. Stephen Goff is with us from Auckland, New Zealand, which is where Team USA will take on Vietnam coming up in its World Cup opener, as he says, Saturday, New Zealand time.

Friday night, for those of us here in the U.S., it's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. This seems a little different. One of the characteristics of Team USA is a bunch of newcomers. How have you seen them kind of blend in, all of these new women who are taking on the World Cup stage for the first time?

Yeah, that's one of the big questions surrounding this team. There's still an awful lot of experience here, when you're talking about Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Julie Ertz, Rose Lavelle. These are names we know from the past World Cup and through the years. But certainly, there's 14 newcomers to this team. When I say newcomers, I mean this is their first World Cup.

It's a very talented group, but if they're in a tight spot, pressure situation, that's when we'll see how they react. Sophia Smith, 22 years old, one of the best players in the world. Trinity Rodman, she's 21, an up-and-coming player. An 18-year-old, Alyssa Thompson, from Los Angeles, just graduated from high school, made the World Cup roster of the deepest national team in the world. So that shows what kind of talent she has.

So there's definitely a blend. A few veteran players were not available for this World Cup because of injury, including the captain, Becky Sauerbrunn. So yeah, we'll see how this plays out. Are we seeing a bit of a changing of the guard, thinking about Megan Rapinoe, who's going to retire? You mentioned Becky, she's older too. Is this kind of signaling the start of something new, a new era of women's soccer in the United States? I wouldn't say that.

I think there's a constant evolution of the program. Players age out, so to speak. We saw Carly Lloyd play in her last World Cup four years ago. Before that, Abby Wambach said goodbye. This time, it's Rapinoe's final turn. Becky Sauerbrunn, we will not see her again at a major tournament, given her age. Alex Morgan's getting a little older, but still very effective, and she's younger than Rapinoe. Some players will phase out, others will rise. It's a deep player pool too, so it's hard to predict how it'll look at major tournaments in the coming years. It was a little jarring to see Carly sitting at a desk when I saw that last night for the first time.

Like, oh my gosh, yes, it's happening. I know it's good because she can provide such incredible analysis and perspective of having been there and been a star. But yeah, it was a little weird because I'm used to seeing her in a uniform. Yeah, it's the progression of all athletes, including players on national teams. Major tournaments come and they go, and along the way, players of great stature move on. They are pushed by up-and-coming players, and in this program, there's always someone on your heels.

You're seeing that with this group. Certainly the experience and leadership of players like Alex Morgan and Lindsay Horan and others remains in place, but you also see some exciting young players on the big stage for the first time. Who provides the main competition or main impediment to Team USA winning a third straight World Cup, Stephen? Yeah, I'd say USA is the favorite because they've won the past two. They're ranked number one. I'd say England. England is the defending European champion.

There's a sense that their time has come. It's been a program that's obviously been far, far behind the men in England. It's grown, it's matured, and it has the mentality that it can win big tournaments now. It showed that at the European Championships last year, and they'll go into this tournament with very high hopes. I'd say England. Then you have perennial teams like France, Germany, Sweden, Brazil. Canada is the defending Olympic gold medalist. Netherlands, which finished second to the U.S. four years ago. There's some good competition. There's probably four or five teams that could win it.

I expect the U.S. is the favorite until someone proves it otherwise. How have you seen the sport of women's soccer grow on the global stage? A lot of people would point to Team USA and say, well, the competition's not nearly as steep as it is on the men's side. Maybe that's true, but it's definitely getting to be a deeper pool. Yeah, I think the biggest change you are seeing is finally, after dragging their feet for decades, soccer federations in major European soccer playing countries are investing in their women. They're putting the money into it. It's still not perfect. It's still far behind, but they recognize the importance of the women's game.

It doesn't take that much effort. The result of that is you're seeing countries like Spain, Portugal, Netherlands has proven that they're an elite team now. You're starting to see the results from investment and believing in the women's game.

There are certainly some areas of the world where it's still far behind, notably South America and in Africa, but the European countries are getting their act together. Stephen Goff of the Washington Post is with us from Auckland, New Zealand. I need to keep saying that. So cool sight of the women's World Cup games coming up Friday night, our time, but Saturday for New Zealand and Team USA will take on Vietnam.

It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. I had a chance to talk to Becky Sauerbrunn right after the US women won their fight for equal pay. And I just remember how emotional she was, even as I was speaking with her and she was out of country. I can't remember where they were, but I know she was not on US soil. She was with the team somewhere where they were playing and that news broke.

And I just remember she was so emotional about it and was so, there was relief. There was happiness and joy, of course, but also this man, this just this overwhelming exhale as they had finally won a protracted fight. This is their first World Cup in which this is a factor which it comes into play. What did they have to say about finally getting to that point where they've won this fight? Yeah, I mean, compared to four years ago, there just isn't that distraction going into this World Cup. Four years ago, that labor dispute overshadowed, in a way, their World Cup preparations and the World Cup itself. They still weren't distracted enough not to win the championship, but it was a big part of the narrative and the storyline. And you just don't have that going into this.

And so it's one big element that is not discussed here. They won. They have a collective bargaining agreement. They have their bonus pay in place. Things are settled. And what it has done, too, it's inspired other countries and players from other teams to fight for their own rights and their own share of what they believe they should be receiving from the Federation.

Awesome. It's an incredible inspiration, not just, I think, for women in the United States and for young women who would seek to play soccer themselves, as this program always does inspire young women here, but to know that it's making waves and ripple effects around the world is pretty amazing, too. Steven, if you don't mind, before I let you go, I know you've covered MLS in your past, too, and so you're someone that I was really interested to get your opinion about Messi now being part of MLS.

What does that mean for the sport here in the United States? Yeah, it's a massive signing. I mean, you're talking about arguably the greatest player in the history of the sport and still playing at a very high level.

This is not a guy who's broken down and just here for the paycheck and the marketing opportunities. He just won a World Cup and he was sensational at the World Cup. He could have stayed in Europe and played at a high level there. He chose to come to MLS. It will certainly bring enormous attention everywhere he goes, particularly in Miami, where he's going to be based. In the global soccer landscape, this is huge.

Everyone's going to know, enter Miami now and certainly bring more attention to MLS, just as Beckham brought it to the Galaxy and to MLS 15 years ago. So I see on your Twitter that you've covered 14 World Cups. Is this your first time down under or have you been there before? No, this is my first time. I've never been here. This is my last inhabited continent on assignment, so I don't count Antarctica unless FIFA decides to put a World Cup in Antarctica, which is not out of the realm of possibility if there's money to be made there. Of course, of course. It's cool to be here. The U.S. will be based in New Zealand for the most part.

They will play as many as two games in Australia, starting with around a 16 game, but New Zealand is their home for most of the next three or four weeks. Wow, that's pretty incredible. And I know you need your winter coat and your winter hat, but small price to pay.

No complaints getting out of the U.S. heat. For sure. All right, you can find Stephen on Twitter at Soccer Insider, covers the beautiful game for the Washington Post, adding another World Cup to his resume, another continent to his resume. Always enjoy following and always enjoy your insights. Have fun. Thank you so much for a couple of minutes, Stephen. My pleasure, Amy.

Anytime. Being a baseball play by play broadcaster demands a blend of learned mechanics, intense preparation and a calm sense of entertainment. How hard is it to do this job? Let's talk to the ones who do it. This is Matt Spiegel. My new podcast, The PBP Voices of Baseball, will bring those conversations to you as the best working and former broadcasters tell you why and how they do it. New episodes come every Thursday all summer long. Follow The PBP Voices of Baseball on the Odyssey app or wherever you find your podcasts.