Never Done Rising

What would it feel like to step onto the pitch of football’s biggest stage? To feel the swell of pride as your team worked together to win it all? To score the winning goal? And to bring home a world title for your country?

This is what the 1999 US Women’s National Team—the legendary ‘99ers—accomplished. The dramatic, incredible, guts-and-glory-filled victory instantly became a top moment in US sports history in terms of impact. While the victory was years—decades, really—in the making, the ‘99ers minted a whole new generation of female soccer players across the world.

Leading up to the USWNT’s historic victory in 1999, there were limited opportunities for female football players to go pro. It wasn’t until 1950 that the first organized women’s football league was formed in the United States with a grand total of four teams. In 1972, with the passing of Title IX, women's soccer blossomed in the US, becoming an increasingly popular sport and recreation. But it wasn’t until 1985 that U.S. Soccer officially formed the USWNT.

By 1999, the team had come into its own, with a bright young star from Selma, Alabama—Mia Hamm, who became Nike’s first female soccer athlete in 1994. With the spotlight on and a battle-tested team in place, the USWNT was ready to shine on football’s biggest stage. On July 10, 1999, one team would make history, in an event that came to symbolize so much more than a game.

The game itself was an absolute back-and-forth grind; after regulation and overtime, the score was still 0-0, which meant the game would go to penalty kicks. The final sequence, where the USWNT emerged victorious 5-4 after Brandi Chastain's historic final strike, became one of the most triumphant announcements in the history of U.S. sport.

Despite being an American team, the USWNT's influence extends across the globe. More young women are on the pitch, and more athletes fight for equity. The 99ers represented a movement that began in 1972, with Title IX. Now, they're part of something much larger, as the next generation takes the reigns on defining the next era of their legacy.