The Brazilian soccer legend's sixth career World Cup ended with a surprise exit.
Brazil's surprise group stage exit from the Women's World Cup officially marked the end of Marta's storied career at the tournament.
Marta played 81 minutes in her World Cup swan song, a 0-0 draw against Jamaica, and came off the bench in the team's previous group stage matches Down Under. The 37-year-old did not score any goals at her sixth and final World Cup, but first made her mark on the international stage with three goals at the 2003 tournament. She and Brazil were finalists in 2007, and have been a contender throughout Marta's career.
In addition to her World Cup tally, Marta is a three-time Copa America winner with Brazil and holds the record for FIFA's women's player of the year award at six. Her impressive on-pitch accolades are matched by her advocacy for the women's game during her career. She played an expected smaller role in 2023 while Brazil fosters the next generation of attacking talent, but embraced her role as a veteran in her post-match comments to a Brazilian broadcaster.
"Marta ends up here," she said, per ESPN. "I am grateful for the opportunity I had, and very happy with everything that has been happening with women's football in Brazil and the world. For me, it's the end of the line now, for them it's just the beginning.
"It is hard to talk. It wasn't in my worst nightmares the World Cup I dreamed of. It's just the beginning. Brazilian people asked for renewal, it is being renewed, the only old woman is me and maybe Tamires next to me. Most of the team is made up of talented girls with a huge road ahead of them. I end here, but they continue."
Marta continued to celebrate her legacy in the post-match press conference.
"We now have players to look up to [in women's football], and that would not have happened if we had stayed still at the first hurdle we faced," she said. "It's about being persistent, and it didn't just start with me but with other players back then and I'm very proud and we ask the new generation to continue where we left off, continue to inspire even more girls and boys no matter what age they are."
Her comments feel like a natural continuation from her passionate speech from the 2019 World Cup following Brazil's Round of 16 exit against France. She encouraged people to value women's soccer more, and that "the women's game depends on you to survive." The women's game, both in Brazil and outside of it, has only grown since her 2019 comments and her legacy was on full display following the result against Jamaica. Marta shared words with Bunny Shaw, who looked up to Marta as a child.
"She said that she's watched our journey ever since we qualified and she credits us because every time we get knocked down we still get up and keep pushing and that fact that we're here, we're here for a reason, and we just have to keep going," Shaw said about Marta. "She said that she's now supporting us moving forward."
Marta's national career is not necessarily over, but she was naturally reflective about the strides the sport has made over the two decades, which provided a natural silver lining despite Wednesday's result.
"I'm happy to see that sort of thing because 20 years ago, in 2003, you all met Marta," she said. "Twenty years later, I'm a player that inspired many women [to play football], and not just football but journalism as well. I see many female journalists here today that we just didn't see back then, so we opened doors to equality."
This story was originally published to CBS Sports on Wednesday, Aug. 2, at 1:00 p.m. ET.
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