Marta Vieira da Silva, simply known as Marta , (born in Dois Riachos, Brazil, on February 19, 1986) is considered the greatest female football (soccer) player of all time. Marta helped the Brazilian national team win three Olympic silver medals (2004, 2008, and 2024). She debuted on the international stage in 2002 as part of Brazil’s under-20 Women’s World Cup team. In 2019, she scored her 17th World Cup goal, holding the record for all-time World Cup goals in both men’s and women’s competitions. At age 14, she was scouted while playing for a local boys’ junior team and joined Vasco da Gama. She played for women’s teams, including Vasco, Santa Cruz, Umeå IK (Sweden), Los Angeles Sol, FC Gold Pride, Western New York Flash, Santos FC, Tyresö FF, FC Rosengård, and Orlando Pride. She is a six-time winner of the FIFA World Player of the Year award (2006–10 and 2018).

What sport does Marta play?

Marta plays football (soccer). Widely regarded as the greatest female football player of all time, she has won the FIFA World Player of the Year award six times (2006–10 and 2018). Marta began playing on local boys’ junior team and then women’s teams. She played with Vasco, Santa Cruz, Umeå IK (Sweden), Los Angeles Sol, FC Gold Pride (Santa Clara, California), Western New York Flash, Santos FC, Tyresö FF, FC Rosengård, and Orlando Pride. As a member of the Brazilian women’s national team, Marta made her international debut in 2002. In 2019, she became the all-time World Cup goal scorer in both men’s and women’s competitions.

Which country does Marta represent in international football?

Marta , widely regarded as one of the greatest female football players, represents Brazil in international football. She debuted with Brazil's under-20 team in 2002 and joined the senior national squad in 2003. Throughout her career, Marta has achieved remarkable success with the Brazilian national team, including winning three Olympic silver medals (2004, 2008, and 2024). She holds the record for the most goals scored in the FIFA Women's World Cup, with 17 goals as of 2019, surpassing both men's and women's records. Marta has also scored in five consecutive Olympic Games, a feat unmatched by any other football player. In April 2024, she announced her retirement from international play after the Olympic Games in Paris.

What are some of Marta's major achievements in her football career?

Marta is widely regarded as the greatest female football player of all time. She has won the FIFA World Player of the Year award six times. Key achievements: * Led Umeå IK to the 2004 UEFA Women’s Cup title * Helped Umeå capture four consecutive Damallsvenskan championships between 2005 and 2008 * Won the Golden Boot at the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup * Set a new record for Women’s World Cup scoring in 2015 * Became the all-time World Cup goal scorer in both men’s and women’s competitions at the 2019 Women’s World Cup * Captured Olympic silver medals in 2004, 2008, and 2024 * First football player to score a goal in five consecutive Olympics in 2020

How has Marta influenced women's football around the world?

Marta is widely regarded as the greatest female football player of all time. Blocked from playing with male peers because of her gender, she honed her skills as a young girl and eventually joined a local boys’ junior team. At 14, she was discovered by a scout from Vasco da Gama, a men’s football club in Rio de Janeiro that was looking to begin a women’s team. She gained widespread notice playing with Umeå IK, leading them to the 2004 UEFA Women’s Cup. Marta also led Umeå to four consecutive Damallsvenskan championships between 2005 and 2008, as well as a Swedish Cup title in 2007.

Marta

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Marta Vieira da Silva of Brazil, wearing number 10, takes a penalty kick during a match against Italy at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France, with players watching behind her.

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Byname of:: Marta Vieira da Silva

Born:: February 19, 1986, Dois Riachos, Brazil (age 40)

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Marta

Brazilian football (soccer) player

Also known as: Marta Vieira da Silva

Written by

Adam Augustyn

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Britannica Editors

History

Early life and club play

Prevented from playing football with her male peers because of her gender, Marta began honing her skills as a young girl by kicking abandoned deflated footballs and improvised balls made up of wadded grocery bags through the streets of her small town. She eventually joined a local boys’ junior team, for which she was playing when she was discovered at age 14 by a scout from Vasco da Gama, a renowned men’s football club in Rio de Janeiro that was looking to begin a women’s team. Thereafter she played on women’s teams, beginning with Vasco, until it folded a few years later, and then with Santa Cruz in Brazil before joining Sweden’s Umeå IK in 2004.

Marta first gained widespread notice during her time with Umeå, which she led to the 2004 Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Women’s Cup (now known as the Women’s Champions League) title and helped to reach the finals in that competition in 2007 and 2008. Marta also helped Umeå capture four consecutive Damallsvenskan (Sweden’s highest level of women’s domestic football) championships between 2005 and 2008, as well as a Swedish Cup title in 2007. Marta scored a remarkable 111 goals in 103 league games during her five seasons with Umeå as she led the league in goals over three seasons (2004, 2005, and 2008).

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Serena Williams poses with the Daphne Akhurst Trophy after winning the Women's Singles final against Venus Williams of the United States on day 13 of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 28, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia. (tennis, sports)

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Marta left Europe in 2009 to sign with the Los Angeles Sol of Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS). Marta was named WPS Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2009, but the struggling Los Angeles franchise folded, and she moved within the WPS to join the FC Gold Pride of Santa Clara, California. She led the Gold Pride to a WPS title (taking home a second league MVP award) in 2010, and she won a second WPS championship in 2011 as a member of the Western New York Flash. During the WPS offseasons in 2009 and 2010, Marta played with Santos FC in her home country. When the WPS suspended operations in 2012, Marta returned to Sweden as a member of Tyresö FF. She moved to FC Rosengård in 2014. Three years later she joined the Orlando Pride of the United States’ National Women’s Soccer League.

International career

Marta established herself as the greatest female footballer of her generation primarily through her feats as a member of the Brazilian women’s national team. She made her international football debut in 2002 as a member of Brazil’s under-20 Women’s World Cup team. The following year she joined the senior national squad and scored three goals at the 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup, where Brazil was eliminated in the quarterfinals. At the 2007 Women’s World Cup, she won the Golden Boot by scoring seven goals during the tournament and led Brazil to a second-place finish.

In 2011 Marta increased her career Cup goal tally to 14, which tied Germany’s Birgit Prinz for most Women’s World Cup goals of all time, but the Brazilian national team was again eliminated in the Cup quarterfinals. She scored her 15th Cup goal in 2015 on a penalty kick against South Korea—the same scoring situation and opponent as for her first World Cup goal—to set a new record for Women’s World Cup scoring. At the 2019 Women’s World Cup, she scored her 17th World Cup goal, making her the all-time World Cup goal scorer in both men’s and women’s competitions (a record formerly held by Germany’s Miroslav Klose), but Brazil was eliminated in that event’s round of 16.

In addition, Marta helped Brazil capture silver medals at the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. At the 2020 Tokyo Games—which were held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic—she became the first football player to score a goal in five consecutive Olympics; Brazil, however, lost in the quarterfinals. In April 2024 Marta announced that she would retire from international play following that year’s Games in Paris. There she helped her country advance to the championship match, but Brazil was defeated by the United States, 1–0. Marta claimed her third Olympic silver medal.

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