Despite leading three times during the main match and also in the tiebreaker, Colombia ultimately couldn’t hold on as Brazil secured their ninth title in the tournament’s 10 editions.
This is what you call a final of finals! Breath-taking tension and soaring excitement unfolded at every turn. The main match and extra time were full of drama, but the story didn’t end there. The tiebreaker brought even more thrilling moments. In the end, the expected outcome prevailed: Brazil crowned champions once again.
In the Women’s Copa América final, Brazil painted their success by defeating Colombia.
The match, held Saturday in Quito, Ecuador, ended 3-3 in regulation time. After extra time, the score was 4-4. Even after each team took five shots in the tiebreaker, no winner emerged. Finally, in sudden death, Colombia’s hopes were dashed as Brazil claimed victory.
In this tournament, Brazil not winning would be a major upset. Colombia did spark some hope, but despite leading three times in the main game and once in the shootout, they couldn’t make history. Brazil’s never-say-die spirit kept them fighting to the very end.
With this victory, Brazil has now won nine out of the ten Women’s Copa América tournaments. After winning the first four editions consecutively, they lost the 2006 final to Argentina. This latest triumph marks their fifth consecutive championship.
Brazil’s hero of the final was the legendary Marta, who came out of retirement before the tournament. In the 90 minutes plus six added minutes, she scored to rescue her team from Colombia’s grasp and take the match into extra time. She also netted a goal in extra time, giving Brazil the lead for the first time in the match.
However, the 39-year-old star failed to score in the tiebreaker. Still, she did not have to pay for that miss, as she remains one of the greatest in women’s football history.
Brazil controlled possession for 60% of the match, but Colombia took the lead multiple times. Linda Caicedo put Colombia ahead for the first time in the 25th minute. In the ninth minute of stoppage time in the first half, Angelina scored a penalty to level the score for Brazil.
The first 25 minutes of the second half lacked excitement, but the latter part of the game heated up dramatically. Colombia went ahead again in the 69th minute, only for Amanda Gutierrez to equalize for Brazil in the 80th. Amanda, who scored twice in the semifinals, is one of the tournament’s top scorers with six goals, sharing the lead with a fellow 24-year-old forward.
Colombia’s Mayra Ramirez gave them hope of a title with her goal in the 88th minute. At one point, they seemed on the verge of lifting the trophy. But substitute Marta changed the course again by scoring in the sixth minute of added time.
Her second goal in the 105th minute reignited Brazil’s chances, but this match’s drama was far from over. In the 115th minute, Leicy Santos’s goal for Colombia pushed the match to a tiebreaker.
In the shootout, Angelina missed for Brazil, giving Colombia the lead. But Manuel Pavi was unable to score, and Brazil’s goalkeeper Lorena saved Santos’s penalty. Marta then had the chance to seal the title, but the Colombian goalkeeper denied her shot.
In the end, sudden death favored Brazil, who celebrated their title in joy while Colombia sank into disappointment.
