Marta will play in her sixth Olympic Games with France before handing over the captaincy to the next generation.
“Football has been a big part of my life. I left home when I was 14 and it's something I've lived for every day,” she added. “I feel like maybe it's time to step back from football for a bit and let the younger players shine.”
Winning the tournament would be the perfect way to cap an international career spanning more than two decades, and her teammates know that too.
“Every time I step on the field with Marta I feel a big responsibility. She is a great player and we have to play for her,” defender Raffaele said. “She was my biggest idol since I was a kid, so now it's like a dream for me to play with her.”
Marta Vieira da Silva, better known by her first name, has played 183 international matches for Brazil, scoring a record 118 goals, and has appeared in six Olympic Games as well as six Women's World Cups.
She is the all-time World Cup goalscorer with 17 goals, and has also scored 13 goals in the Olympics, one shy of matching fellow Brazilian Cristiane's record.
Marta grew up playing street soccer with boys in Dois Riachos, a town in eastern Brazil about 1,250 miles (2,011 kilometers) north of Rio de Janeiro, and was just 17 when she played in the 2003 World Cup in the United States.
Over the years, her role with Brazil has changed, and in recent years she has taken on the role of player-coach, mentoring the team's promising stars.
“Obviously, I bring all the experience I've had in my career, playing in big tournaments like the Olympics and the World Cup, playing against strong teams and strong players,” she said. “So I try to share the best of myself and the best of my football experience with the players, to make them feel comfortable and proud to be there. I mean, we expect the best from our players, that's why they're here, that's the goal, to do their best.”
Marta remains a valuable presence on the field and has proven herself this season with the Orlando Pride, a National Women's Soccer League affiliate. She has scored five goals in 12 appearances for the Pride, who are unbeaten this year and top of the league standings. Marta has played for Orlando since 2017.
“I can still read the game very well,” she said, “and I try to put myself in good situations to do my best for the team. So I'm not always going to be competing against players who are 10 or 11 years younger than me, but maybe I can work my brain a little faster and read the situation and do my best.”
Marta has won many accolades throughout her career but one thing remains elusive – a major international tournament trophy.
Brazil's best performance in the World Cup was a runner-up finish in 2007. Brazil won silver medals in both the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games but have remained elusive of a gold medal.
“Because this is her last Olympics, it puts even more responsibility on her and on us to finish it off on a good note, winning a title that neither the national team nor she has,” Brazil teammate Adriana said. “So it makes us even more motivated to help her and hopefully win.”
The Women's World Cup will be held in Brazil in 2027 and Marta will not stay on for another three years, but she has told the federation she will help in any way she can.
She gets wistful when she thinks about some of her best moments with the national team, particularly the 2004 Olympics, her first, when Brazil reached the final before losing 2-1 to the United States, and the 2007 World Cup, when Brazil beat the United States 4-1 in the semifinals. Marta scored two in that match and went on to win the tournament's Golden Boot with seven goals, even though Brazil lost the final to Germany.
“It's the passion,” she said of her love for soccer. “The passion you see when you're playing, the passion you see from the crowd celebrating a goal. We make people happy.”
“Football makes everyone happy, it gives people dreams. And it's not just about football, it's about believing. Believing in yourself. Believing in your potential. Football gives you a lot of those things. For me, that's the best part.”
AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
