A 2nd Women's World Cup Title Would Cement Japan's Place Among Elite

Japan have a chance to defend their FIFA Women's World Cup title against the United States on Sunday. It's a rematch of the 2011 final as well as the Olympic gold-medal match they played a year later, and it's an invitation for the Japanese to join the elite of the women's game once and for all.

They were never a traditional powerhouse.

Before winning the World Cup in 2011, Japan had never overcome the quarter-final stage. Much of their progress goes down to coach Norio Sasaki, who took over in 2008.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

To beat much more physical teams, Sasaki put emphasis on ball control, football smarts and concise passing, which produced a kind of tiki-taka effect. Japan were never the tallest, so they strove to be the smartest.

Japan now face another team with a height advantage in the United States. The Americans are on average two inches taller than the Japanese, per Mashable's Justin Wise, and the two play vastly different games. The U.S. are direct, in your face and brutal in the penalty area. Japan tread softly and kill opponents quietly.

Japan do not simply hoof up the ball and hope for a chance. Every pass is methodical. They are the most resourceful team in this competition.

And yet the Japanese have not been so convincing. They have dominated possession but not the scoreboard. They have won all six matches so far at this World Cup, but only by a single goal.

CFCnet's Tom Minton indicates that Japan even strung together 23 straight passes in one match, but a goal did not come at the end of it:

"

23 passes and a lack of end product? Are they talking about Japan or Arsenal here? #eng #lionesses

— Tom Minton (@tom_minton1) July 2, 2015"

"I believe we can do a lot better, and we are all working hard on it," Japan defender Azusa Iwashimizu told FIFA.com.

Many of the players from the World Cup-winning team in 2011 still remain. Only one of the 14 players who appeared in that final in Germany is not there with Japan in Canada. Coach Sasaki has kept his core together, and this squad could join the axis of power in the women's game—with perennial favourites Germany—if they can take down the U.S. again.

"The final against the U.S., it's going to be a tough game, but we'd like to have good pass work," defender Saori Ariyoshi told the Associated Press (h/t the Guardian). "I would want to win, so we'd like to stick to our plan of passing."

This is the third consecutive major final between these two nations, so neither side will surprise the other.

But Japan were built to beat sides like the U.S. This is ultimately a test of durability and whether Sasaki's tactics are truly revolutionary in women's football.