Alex Morgan and Mallory Swanson scored, and the United States defeated Brazil 2-1 on Wednesday night to win the SheBelieves Cup for the fourth straight year.
Japan, which defeated Canada 3-0 in the earlier match at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, was runner-up in the four-team, round-robin tournament. All four SheBelieves Cup teams will play in the Women’s World Cup this summer in Australia and New Zealand.
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Morgan’s curling goal sailed out of reach of Brazilian goalkeeper Lorena. Morgan now has five career goals in SheBelieves matches.
It was Morgan’s 14th goal since the birth of her daughter in 2020, giving her the national team record for most goals as a mom.
Swanson scored in the 63rd minute, her fourth goal of the tournament and seventh overall this year, matching her total for all of last year.
Swanson, formerly Mallory Pugh, married Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson in December.
Ludmila scored in stoppage time for Brazil to avoid the shutout. It was the first goal allowed this year by the United States, which is undefeated in five matches in 2023.
Midfielder Rose Lavelle started for the United States after missing the first two matches of the tournament with a minor injury.
Japan snapped a four-game losing streak with its win over Canada. Japan had not scored in four straight matches, including two SheBelieves games, until Kiko Seike put her team in front with a goal in the 26th minute.
The Canadian players, in the midst of a labor dispute with their federation, again donned purple T-shirts reading “Enough is Enough” for the anthems, and they wore purple wristbands during the match.
Players for the United States also sported purple wristbands in solidarity with Canada.
The U.S. entered needing at worst a one-goal loss to clinch the championship, its sixth in the eight years of the tournament. The Americans also won in 2016 and 2018 before going on its current run of titles beginning in 2020.
A victory by Brazil of two or more goals would have tied it atop the standings with the U.S. at six points and given the Brazilians the championship based on the head-to-head win.