Brazil star Marta to retire from international soccer
By Sammy Mncwabe and Duarte Mendonça, CNN
(CNN) — Brazil and Orlando Pride star Marta will retire from international soccer this year, she told CNN Brasil in an interview which will air on Sunday, April 28.
The 38-year-old is Brazil’s all-time record goalscorer, male or female, with 115 goals and has appeared in six World Cup tournaments.
If selected for the Brazilian squad at the Paris 2024 Olympics, Marta could make her sixth appearance at the Games.
“If I go to the Olympics, I’ll enjoy every moment because, regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team. There is no longer Marta in the national team as an athlete from 2025 onwards,” Marta told CNN Brasil.
The legendary forward says she is at peace with the decision and optimistic about the future of Brazil and the young athletes in the national women’s soccer team.
“This is my last year, and I can already confirm it here. There is a moment when we have to understand that the time has come. I am very calm about this because I see with great optimism this development that we are having in relation to young athletes,” she added.
Marta has won the FIFA Player of the Year award an unprecedented six times – no other women’s player has won it more than three times – including five years in a row from 2006 to 2010.
She has also lifted the Women’s Champions League, the Copa Libertadores Femenina and was awarded the Golden Boot and Golden Ball for top scorer and best player at the 2007 Women’s World Cup.
In 2019, Marta became the first male or female player in history to score at five World Cups and her 17 World Cup goals are an all-time record in men’s and women’s soccer.
She has won the Copa América Femenina three times, but the only achievements missing from a glittering CV are the major global titles with her beloved national team. Three times Marta has come agonizingly close to glory with Brazil, losing the 2007 Women’s World Cup final to Germany and twice suffering defeat in the Olympic gold medal match.
The Olympic Games take place in Paris from July 26 until August 11.
The-CNN-Wire
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