Rose Bowl statue unveiled to honor Brandi Chastain’s ‘99 World Cup win

The Associated Press

5 years ago

A statue capturing Brandi Chastain’s iconic reaction to scoring the U.S. team’s winning goal in the 1999 Women’s World Cup, is shown after being unveiled outside the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., Wednesday, July 10, 2019. The 20th anniversary of the historic win coincided with celebrations in New York for this year’s World Cup soccer championship team. (AP Photo/John Antczak)

PASADENA, Calif. — A statue capturing Brandi Chastain’s iconic reaction to scoring the U.S. team’s winning goal in the 1999 Women’s World Cup has been unveiled outside the Rose Bowl.

Chastain was on hand for the unveiling Wednesday, the 20th anniversary of the historic win which coincided with celebrations in New York for this year’s World Cup champion team.

This year’s the team sealed its second consecutive tournament win by beating the Netherlands 2-0 on Sunday.

The statue shows Chastain at the moment she dropped to her knees in exultation, clutching the jersey she pulled off after cinching the win over China on a penalty kick in the game played at the Rose Bowl.

The moment has been credited as a watershed for invigorating women’s sports.