Marta: The NWSL Championship is the biggest game of my career

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Orlando Pride forward Marta held her right index finger in the air inside the fancy club at CPKC Stadium to indicate No. 1. This is where the six-time world player of the year ranks Saturday’s NWSL championship among all the matches of her career, an illustrious one that includes a World Cup final and three Olympic gold medal matches.

“The way we (played) from the beginning of the season until now, it’s something very special that I’ve never had before in any other club that I’ve played for,” said Marta.

She said the same thing 24 hours earlier when she fondly recalled her days as a 14-year-old who spent three days on a bus to get to Rio de Janeiro to try out. Marta’s mother, Tereza Vieira de Sá, will be at CPKC Stadium on Saturday to watch her daughter play for the first time in Marta’s 11 seasons in the United States.

“Every single year I ask myself, ‘Why am I still here?'” Marta said Thursday. “Maybe this year gave me the answer that I was looking for. Maybe it was because I have to be here to play in the Championship in 2024 with this club, to enjoy this great season that we had.”

Marta, 38, said repeatedly this week that she believes she will play two more seasons, which would mean she will retire at the end of 2026. Brazil will host the 2027 World Cup, a tournament that could change the course of women’s football in the country and one that the host team would have a legitimate chance of winning for the first time.

But Marta also said several times this week that she has told Brazil national team manager Arthur Elias that she does not want to play in the 2027 World Cup. However, she will continue to make herself available for selection in the build-up to the tournament to help the team to prepare and guide young players.

A final declaration also takes some pressure off Marta, who has been a global superstar since bursting onto the scene as a 17-year-old at the 2003 World Cup.

“When I say I don’t want to play 2027, I don’t want this responsibility to play in the club to be in the national team,” said Marta. “I’ve done (it) for 20, 21 years of my life. I feel like it’s time to just enjoy a little bit more. Be at the club but not have this responsibility of being in the national team. But like I said, if they need me, I’m here.

“But I don’t go to the match thinking that I have to do well here to be in the national team. I don’t do that anymore. I play with a different mind in my head now. I play to do my best at the club and live day by day, I don’t want this pressure on my back anymore. That’s why it’s different for me.

Marta has turned back the clock this season, scoring nine goals (tied for fourth in the NWSL) in her best club season since arriving in Orlando in 2017.

Her winning goal in Sunday’s 3-2 semifinal victory over the Kansas City Current went viral globally, evoking memories of her iconic 2007 World Cup semifinal goal against the United States, when she juggled the ball over both her head and a defender before scoring.

Marta said this week that her rejuvenation has been both physical and mental this year. She has inspired herself at times, including for Sunday’s goal, when she said she channeled anger at an unnamed opponent.

“You have to feel good about your body to help yourself do good things on the field,” Marta said. “But it’s more here (points to head). Sometimes I just try to mentalize good things, mentalize something that I already did in my life as a football player and it happened.

“But I was a little bit mad before I scored the goal. I tried to be nice most of the time during the game and I tried to talk to someone else and she was a little bit of a diva. I said, OK, you got me crazy I go 1-v-1 with you It happened for a good reason and resulted in a great goal and a really important goal for the team.

Orlando is the narrow favorite in Saturday’s championship. The Pride are No. 1 after starting the season undefeated through 23 games, a league record.

But no. The No. 2 seed Washington Spirit also won a league-record 18 games this year and finished just four points behind Orlando.

Marta has experienced heartbreak before, losing every major tournament final she has played in with Brazil. However, she has won plenty of club trophies, including two championships in the NWSL’s predecessor league.

On Saturday, she will get her first shot at a championship in the NWSL.

“It’s just one game and I know how important it is,” she said. “We know if we win this, it will be like a perfect season. But we can’t forget everything we did this season.”