After besting North American rivals Canada 3-1 in a penalty kick shootout in the semifinals, the U.S. Women’s National Team will now face Brazil in the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup Final and will be looking to win this inaugural edition of the tournament. The teams will square off on Sunday, March 10 at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego with kickoff at 8:15 p.m. ET / 5:15 p.m. PT. Broadcast coverage will be available in English on Paramount+ and in Spanish on ESPN Deportes and ESPN+.
Get ready for the W Gold Cup Final with Five Things to Know about USA vs. Brazil.
FINAL FOES
Sunday’s championship game will be the fourth time meeting all-time between the USWNT and Brazil in a final, with the USA winning each of the previous three by a one goal margin.
The teams met in the 2000 Concacaf Women’s Gold Cup Final, an eight-team tournament that was an early precursor to later Concacaf competitions and featured Canada, the USA, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago along with guest competitors Brazil and China PR. The USA beat Brazil 1-0 in the championship game, which was played at Foxboro Stadium in Massachusetts behind a 44th-minute goal from forward Tiffeny Milbrett.
The USA and Brazil squared off four years later in the Gold Medal Match of the 2004 Athens Olympics, which the USA won 2-1 in extra time. Lindsay Tarpley gave the Americans the lead in the 39th minute but Brazil’s Pretinha equalized in the 73rd to send the match to extra time. In the 122nd minute, Kristine Lilly served in a corner kick and Abby Wambach’s powerful header broke the stalemate and lifted the USA to a 2-1 victory and the program’s second gold medal.
Four years later, the sides met again in the 2008 Olympic Final in Beijing. The Americans again prevailed in extra time, with Carli Lloyd scoring the gold medal-winning goal in the 96th minute to break a 0-0 stalemate.
INSIDE THE SERIES: USA vs. BRAZIL
The USA and Brazil have played 39 times total with the U.S. leading the overall series 31W-5D-3L. The USA has won each of its last six games against Brazil, though eight of the last nine games between the teams have been decided by two goals or fewer.
The sides last squared off on Feb. 22, 2023, on the final match day of the SheBelieves Cup. The USA took the lead heading into the locker room after a curling strike by Alex Morgan from the top of the penalty area in first half stoppage time. Mallory Swanson doubled the lead for the Americans in the 63rd as she scored her fourth goal of the tournament and went on to win tournament MVP honors. Brazil pulled one back in the 90th minute off a header from Ludmila, but the Americans saw out the game to prevail 2-1 and hoist the SheBelieves Cup for a fourth consecutive year.
The W Gold Cup final will be the 11th meeting between the USA and Brazil since their epic quarterfinal clash at the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup. In one of the most memorable and dramatic matches in USWNT history, the Americas prevailed 5-3 on penalty kicks after Abby Wambach’s header in the 122nd minute leveled the game at 2-2.
ROAD TO THE FINAL
Brazil secured its place in Sunday’s final with a convincing 3-0 win over Mexico on Wednesday afternoon. Brazil took the lead in the 21st minute with a goal from midfielder Adriana and saw the tide turn even further in its favor in the 29th, when Mexico defender Nicki Hernandez was shown a red card for a DOGSO foul, leaving Mexico with just 10 players for the remainder of the match. Brazil quickly capitalized and doubled its lead in the 32nd minute with a goal from defender Antonia and made it 3-0 just after halftime when fellow defender Yasmim scored off a nifty backheel in the 48th minute.
Brazil was well in control of the match, dominating possession and outshooting Mexico 23-8 on the evening with a 6-2 edge in shots on target.
One of four guest teams from South American invited to participate in the inaugural W Gold Cup, Brazil won all three of its Group B matches, opening the tournament with 1-0 wins over Puerto Rico and Colombia and closing out the group stage with a 5-0 victory over Panama.
With nine points from three wins and a plus-seven goal differential, Brazil advanced to the knockout rounds as second overall seed and disposed of South American rivals Argentina 5-1 in the quarterfinal round.
INSIDE THE ROSTER: BRAZIL
Twenty-two of the 23 players on Brazil’s roster for the Concacaf W Gold Cup have seen action so far this tournament with eleven different players finding the back of the net. Yasmim and forwards Geyse, Gabi Nunes and Bia Zaneratto lead Brazil with two goals each.
Zaneratto is also tied for the team lead with two assists this tournament and is one of seven players on this Brazil roster who will compete in the NWSL this upcoming season. Zaneratto signed with the Kansas City Current in January where she will be teaming up with Brazilian standout and two-time NWSL Champion Debinha as well as 21-year-old defender Lauren, who signed with KC last summer. The Orlando Pride have two players on this roster in defender Rafaelle and midfielder Adriana while midfielders Julia Bianchi and Ary Borges will be entering their second seasons with the Chicago Red Stars and Racing Louisville FC, respectively. Borges led Brazil in scoring at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, netting a hattrick in Brazil’s lone win of the tournament, a 4-0 victory over Panama.
BRAZIL WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM ROSTER BY POSITION (CLUB)
GOALKEEPERS (3): 1-Luciana (Ferroviaria SAF), 12-Barbieri (Sport Club Internacional), 22-Amanda (Fluminense FC)
DEFENDERS (5): 2-Antonia (Levante UD, ESP), 3-Tarciane (Corinthians), 4-Rafaelle (Orlando Pride, USA), 6-Yasmim (Corinthians), 14-Lauren (Kansas City Current, USA)
MIDFIELDERS (7): 8-Ary Borges (Racing Louisville FC, USA), 11-Adriana (Orlando Pride, USA), 13-Bia Menezes (Sao Paulo), 15-Julia Bianchi (Chicago Red Stars, USA), 16-Yaya (Corinthians), 20-Duda Sampaio (Corinthians), 21-Duda Santos (Ferroviaria SAF)
FORWARDS (8): 5-Thais Da Silva (UD Tenerife, ESP), 7-Debinha (Kansas City Current, USA), 9-Gabi Nunes (Levante UD, ESP), 10-Bia Zaneratto (Kansas City Current, USA), 17-Aline Milene (Sao Paulo), 18-Gabi Portilho (Corinthians), 19-Geyse (Manchester United, ENG), 23-Aline Gomes (Ferroviaria SAF)
ATLANTA UP NEXT
Following the conclusion of the Concacaf W Gold Cup, Brazil will return to action stateside on April 6, taking on Canada in the second of two semifinal matches in Atlanta, Ga. at the 2024 SheBelieves Cup presented by Visa (3:30 p.m. ET; Universo, Max & Peacock). This will be Brazil’s second consecutive year participating in the SheBelieves Cup and fourth time overall. After finishing fourth in its debut in 2019, Brazil finished second in 2021 and took third last year.
Due to the change in FIFA competition windows and the staging of the Concacaf W Gold Cup in February and March, the format of the SheBelieves Cup has changed for 2024 and will be comprised of four total matches instead of the usual six. The USA and Japan (12:30 p.m. ET) and Brazil and Canada (3:30 p.m. ET) will face off in Semifinals on April 6 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium with the Third-Place Match and Championship being held on April 9 at Lower.com Field in Columbus, Ohio. The format will return to three doubleheaders in 2025.
Tickets are available for purchase now at ussoccer.com/tickets.
With Brazil, the USA, Canada and Japan all competing in this year’s tournament, the ninth edition of the SheBelieves Cup is comprised of one-third of the field for the Paris Olympics. Brazil punched its ticket to the Olympics by winning the 2022 Copa America Femenina and will be making its eighth appearance all-time at the Olympics, the only nation other than the U.S. to appear in every Olympics for women’s soccer.