The Americans are invading.

At least, the American Outlaws are sending hundreds of soccer fans to support team USA at the FIFA 2015 Women’s World Cup games in Canada.

“We are passionately positive about our men’s and women’s national teams,” said Daniel Wiersema, American Outlaws women’s national team event co-ordinator. “We travel to every single game that they feature in.”

Started in 2007 by three dedicated United States soccer fans in Lincoln, Nebraska – who chose the name American Outlaws in part, Wiersema said, because soccer fans often feel like “outliers” among American sports fans, where baseball and football are more popular – the American Outlaws now have over 30,000 members spread out in 174 chapters across the United States.

Whenever a national soccer team from the United States is playing, whether the players are men or women, the American Outlaws ensure there are hundreds of fans in the stands to cheer them on.

“We don’t see them as any different, whether you play on the men’s or women’s team you deserve equality of support,” said Wiersema.

The American Outlaws, taking after similar style fan groups in the United Kingdom, have their own sophisticated chants and all wear either the American Outlaws membership American flag bandanas, or don more creative patriotic costumes ranging from past presidents to popular action heroes.

And the support from these dedicated fans has not gone unnoticed by the players themselves.

“The love and support that we give them, they really respect that,” Wiersema said, adding that at one of the Winnipeg games players jokingly asked the American Outlaws to keep it down, because they couldn’t hear each other on the field over their wild cheering.

“We have got a lot of supporters following the women’s national team wherever they go,” said Wiersema, who said if previous showings of support in Winnipeg and Vancouver are any indication, Edmonton can expect to see over 500 American Outlaw soccer fans in Commonwealth Stadium on Monday, when team USA takes on Colombia.

There are four matches still to come to Commonwealth Stadium before the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 final on July 5 at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver.

For more information, including where to buy tickets, go to hwww.fifa.com/womensworldcup

@ClaireTheobald

claire.theobald@sunmedia.ca