In looking back at the defining moments of the 25-year history of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™, we turn the spotlight on a record-breaking feat of goalscoring bookended by penalty kicks against Korea Republic, taken by the same player 12 years apart.
Our story starts with the first of those two spot kicks, converted in Washington on 23 September 2003 by a slight and, at that time, unknown 17-year-old Brazil forward wearing the No10 shirt and making her women’s world finals debut. It was her opening goal of the tournament and it set her side on the way to a 3-0 win.
The second of those penalties came on 9 June 2015, in another opening game for A Canarinha against the same opposition. Stepping up to take it was the very same player, 12 years older, stronger, wiser and vastly more experienced, and wearing the captain’s armband.
In the intervening period she had been named FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year five times. As deadly as she had always been, she planted the ball in the back of the net with her cultured left foot, sealing a win for her side and taking world finals goal tally to 15 in her fourth appearance in the competition.
That strike came at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal, the city where Romania’s Nadia Comaneci had scored the first ten in Olympic gymnastics history 39 years earlier. Still wearing the No10 on her back, the penalty taker in question achieved a similarly memorable feat in converting once again from the spot against the South Koreans, moving past Germany’s Birgit Prinz to become the highest goalscorer in the history of the Women’s World Cup.
Marta’s top three The name of that record-breaking Brazilian is Marta, and the 15 world finals goals she has scored to date – five of them penalties – have come in only 15 matches. She opened her account with three goals at USA 2003 and went on to score seven at China 2007 – collecting the adidas Golden Boot in the process – four at Germany 2011 and just the one at Canada 2015.
“It’s difficult to choose one because I’ve scored so many,” Marta told FIFA.com before bursting out laughing. “I think I’d choose the two goals I got against USA in the semi-finals in China. For the first I got past the defender outside the box and shot low and hard. The keeper dived and got a hand on it, but couldn’t keep it out.
“Then I got the fourth. I was quite a way out, with my back to goal and a defender right behind me. I flicked the ball to one side and I ran round the other to collect it. Then I went past two more defenders and shot home with my right foot,” she added, a hint of surprise in her voice at the fact she had found the back of the net with her weaker foot.
Recalling another world finals goal against the Americans, the Brazilian star said, with an air of resignation: “I also scored against USA in 2011. It was a bouncing ball that I hooked into the goal to make it 2-1, though we went on to lose on penalties.”
Lining up against Marta in both those games was Carli Lloyd, the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year, a fellow star who has nothing but praise for the Brazilian, as she told FIFA.com in an exclusive interview: “I’ve always admired her. She’s a phenomenal player, and the best in the world in terms of skill, control and presence. I’m very happy for her, and there’s no question she’s played her part in the development of the sport.”
Voicing similar admiration for Marta some time ago, Prinz, who retired from the game in 2011, said: “She’s a great player, as she’s shown on so many occasions. It’s amazing what she can do with the ball. Nobody can do what she does at that speed.”
Marta and the German striker enjoyed a long rivalry, with the Brazilian not only relieving her of the women’s world finals scoring record but also succeeding her as the FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year in 2006, ending her three-year domination of the award. That said, Marta would no doubt swap her five individual accolades for the two world titles Prinz won with Germany.
It may have been a different story had Marta scored the one goal that got away: a penalty against the Germans in the Final at China 2007. Will revenge come her way at France 2019?
Have your say! What do you think is Marta’s best FIFA Women’s World Cup goal?