Marta displays on her place in ladies’s soccer forward of what could possibly be her final World Cup match

MELBOURNE, Australia — Before what could possibly be her final Women’s World Cup match, Marta mirrored on her final 20 years enjoying for Brazil and the combat to advance ladies’s soccer worldwide.

“We are aware of everything we have been building in our careers,” Marta stated. “I try to focus on the whole picture.”

After pondering extra concerning the development of girls’s soccer, Marta teared up.

“When I started playing, I didn’t have an idol – a female idol,” she informed a information convention, responding to questions forward of Wednesday’s must-win recreation for Brazil. “You guys didn’t show any female games. How was I supposed to see other players?”

With retirement on the horizon, Marta can see that the sport is in a greater place than when her profession started.

“In 2003, nobody knew Marta,” she stated. “Twenty years later, we have become the reference for many women all over the world. We opened doors for equality.”

PHOTOS: Marta displays on her place in ladies’s soccer forward of what could possibly be her final World Cup match

More than 1.6 million tickets have been bought for the largest Women’s World Cup ever staged. The match is being co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand and 32 nationwide groups have performed within the group stage, together with eight on debut.

Brazil started the match on an emotional excessive after beating Panama 4-0. Then adopted a heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to France, a workforce that Brazil has but to beat in 12 makes an attempt. Now, Brazil faces the strain of a make-or-break towards Jamaica to advance out of the group stage.

“The day after the game against France, I think all of us went through a couple emotional roller coasters,” coach Pia Sundhage stated.

The final time Brazil exited the match earlier than the knockout stage was in 1995. Its finest end up to now was third place in 1999. Marta made her match debut in 2003, and now holds the document for many targets scored by any participant within the males’s or ladies’s match with 17. She has been a member of each World Cup roster since her first look in ‘03 and has led Brazil to the knockout stage in every match.

Marta introduced earlier than the match that this may be her final World Cup. Even although her position has modified over time, she is aware of she nonetheless has a task to play in Wednesday’s recreation.

“We need to play together,” Marta stated. “Many times it is the communication in difficult moments that makes the difference. I think this is somehow what my role is going to be on and off the pitch,” Marta stated.

Despite the passage of time, one factor that has not modified over six World Cups is Marta’s drive to win.