The Laval Rouge et Or women soccer team’s chase for FISU World Cup glory ended at the final hurdle, as they fell 3-1 to the host Shanghai University of Sport before a crowd of 21,556 at the Suoywan Stadium in Dalian.
Laval got off to a dream start, taking an early lead two minues into the game. A corner by Geneviève Girard into the box was headed towards the net by Elsa Lessard and found Emilie Grondines on the doorstep. She made no mistake and put the visitors ahead, marking the first goal conceded by SUS in the entire tournament.
However, the lead was short-lived. Less than a minute after the Laval goal, Fangxin Sun took a shot towards the Laval goal that was deflected into the net by Florence Thibault and the own goal equalized the game at 1-1.
Shanghai continued to press and was rewarded in the 21st minute. Striker Lihong Yin latched onto a through ball from Siqian Wang following a Laval turnover, slotting it home to give SUS a 2-1 lead, which they held until halftime.
The second half was dominated by Shanghai’s offensive pressure, which resulted in 14 shots. Laval was given an extra life in the 53rd minute when Shanghai’s Xinyue Chen fired a penalty kick off the post – one of five SUS attempts to hit the woodwork on the day.
However, the insurance goal finally came in the 73rd minute, once again from the Yin, who finished an assist from Yayu FU to seal the 3-1 victory.
Despite the loss, Laval captain Mathilde Rousseau was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player in recognition of her outstanding performances throughout the competition.
The championship-winning Shanghai team was buoyed by two individual award winners. Goalkeeper Chen LIU, who made three crucial saves in the final, was named the tournament’s Best Goalkeeper. Teammate Sun was officially crowned the Top Scorer. The University of Sydney won the tournament fair play award.
With the loss, Laval finishes the tournament with a 3-1-1 record, while SUS went a perfect 4-0-0. The silver for Laval marks Canada’s second medal in as many appearances at the FISU World Cup, following Ottawa’s gold in 2019.
The Rouge et Or return to domestic duties on Friday, Oct. 3, when they host Bishop’s at the Stade Telus-Université Laval in Quebec City.
SHANGHAI UNIVERSITY OF SPORT 3 LAVAL 1
LAVAL: Pouliot, Thibeault, Collin, Rousseau, Bujold-Samson (Beaudy 57), Grondines (Poirier 66), St-Pierre, Lessard, Lavigueur (Mallais 57, Hillion 80), Dupont, Girard.
Subs not used: Pelletier, Dumas, Stabile.
Goals: Grondines (2)
SUS: Chen Liu, Jiayu Zheng, Jiayi Zheng (Xuan Liu), Yu (Fu 45), Xinyue Chen (Zhong 66), Sun (Xin Liu 88), Wang, Yeting Chen, Li, Jiang, Yin (Fu 81).
Subs not used: Zhang, Zhai
Goals: Own Goal (Thibault 3), Yin 2 (21, 73).
Booked: Chen (90).
Attendance: 21,556
Referee: Train Thi Thanh (VIE)
2025 FISU UNIVERSITY WORLD CUP
RESULTS
FINAL GROUP STANDINGS
| Group A | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Dif | Pts | ||||||
| Shanghai Univ. of Sport (CHN) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | +8 | 6 | ||||||
| Extreme South of Santa Catarina (BRA) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 3 | ||||||
| Valencia (ESP) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | -9 | 0 | ||||||
| Group B | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | +/- | Pts | |
| Laval (CAN) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 1 | +12 | 7 | |
| Beijing Normal (CHN) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 5 | |
| Sydney (AUS) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 | -3 | 4 | |
| UPHF (FRA) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13 | -11 | 0 | |
Group Stage results:
Sept. 17: Sydney 3 UPHF 2, Shanghai University of Sport 4 Valencia 0.
Sept. 18: Laval 1 Beijing Normal 1.
Sept. 19: Beijing Normal 2 UPHF 0, Laval 4 Sydney 0, Shanghai University of Sport 4 Extreme South of Santa Catarina 0.
Sept. 21: Beijing Normal 1 Sydney 1, Laval 8 UPHF 0, Extreme South of Santa Catarina 5 Valencia 0.
Knockout Round
Wednesday
Fifth-place game
Valencia 1 Sydney 1 (Sydney wins 3-2 on penalties)
Thursday
Semifinals
Shanghai University of Sport 2 Beijing Normal 0
Laval 2 vs. Extreme South of Santa Catarina 0
Friday
Bronze Medal Game
Beijing Normal 1 Extreme South of Santa Catarina 0
Saturday
World Cup Final
Shanghai University of Sport 3 Laval 1
TOURNAMENT AWARD WINNERS:
- Fair Play Award: University of Sydney
- Top Goalkeeper: Chen Liu, Shanghai University of Sport (CHN)
- Top Scorer: Fangxin Sun, Shanghai University of Sport (CHN)
- Top Player: Mathilde Rousseau, Laval
FINAL PLACINGS:
- Shanghai University of Sport (CHN)
- Laval University (CAN)
- Beijing Normal University (CHN)
- University of the Extreme South of Santa Catarina (BRA)
- Valencia (ESP)
- Sydney (AUS)
- Université Polytechnique des Hauts-de-France (FRA)
CANADA AT THE FISU UNIVERSITY WORLD CUP:
- 2019 (Jinjiang, CHN): Ottawa, gold medal
- 2021 (Postponed due to COVID-19)
- 2023 (Jinjiang, CHN): Did not participate
- 2025 (Dalian, CHN): Laval, silver medal