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Going into her sixth World Cup, Brazil superstar Marta will call time on her international career after this year’s tournament in Australia and New Zealand.
In echoes of Argentina’s Lionel Messi in the men’s competition, 37-year-old Marta is widely considered one of the best players in the history of women’s football but has yet to lift the World Cup trophy in five previous attempts.
“It will be my last World Cup,” Marta told journalists in Brasilia on Monday, shortly before the squad boarded a plane to Australia for the tournament.
“We have to understand that a time comes for us to prioritise other things.”
Coach Pia Sundhage said last month that Marta, who has been the world player of the year six times, may not initially be in Brazil’s starting lineup as she continues to recover from a left-knee injury.
Marta played for a few minutes on Sunday as Brazil beat Chile 4-0 in their last friendly before the trip.
“I can only be thankful to have lived all those years in the national team,” Marta, Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 117 goals, said.
“Having the chance of going to another World Cup, my sixth, is surreal to me.”
Marta had surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament last year, leading to an 11-month absence from the national team.
Sundhage, who led the United States to two Olympic gold medals, called up Marta for friendlies against England and Germany in April but the forward remained in Florida to recover from a muscle injury in her left leg.
Brazil, one of three South American teams in the tournament, is in Group F along with France – the team that eliminated the Brazilians four years ago in the round of 16 – Jamaica and Panama.
Their first game at the World Cup is against Panama on July 24 in Adelaide.
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