Breaking Down the 2015 Women's World Cup Golden Shoe Contenders
On Saturday evening, the 2015 Women’s World Cup kicks off in Edmonton as hosts Canada take on China. It is set to be the biggest tournament in the history of the women’s game. Four years ago, Japan’s Homare Sawa picked up the Golden Shoe—scoring five goals in six games—as the Nadeshiko shocked everyone to lift the trophy.
Only Brazil’s Marta, with four goals, reached the podium without her team reaching the semi-finals. This time round any likely contenders will play for a team favourite to reach the latter stages.
Let’s break down the candidates from the World Cup’s power nations.
Germany are favourites to go all the way and it is hard to look past them at least reach the semi-finals. Even without Nadine Kessler and Fatmire Alushi, Die Nationalelf are brimming with attacking talent. Dzsenifer Marozsan will provide the ammunition and they have three strikers who are clinical in front of goal.
The trio of Anja Mittag, Celia Sasic and Alexandra Popp go into the tournament with a combined 117 goals in 275 caps and coach Silvia Neid will have to find a way to give all three minutes.
As Frankfurt lifted the UEFA Women’s Champions League last month, Celia Sasic scored 14 times—including the opening goal in the final against Paris Saint-Germain. The 26-year-old scored nine times during qualifying and will be keen to continue that in Canada.
Abby Wambach of the United States is the all-time leading scorer in women’s football. The FIFA World Cup remains one trophy she still hasn’t lifted, but she also has another record in her sights.
The 35-year-old has scored 13 goals at the World Cup, only one behind retired German Birgit Prinz and Marta.
Wambach is still a force of nature in the women’s game. She may not play every minute of USA’s matches this summer, but she will still have the opportunity to add to that tally. It would take a brave person to bet against her scoring enough goals to challenge for both scoring titles.
Marta is her main challenger. The five time FIFA Ballon d’Or winner found the net four times in 2011 and will once again be Brazil’s great hope for the chance to lift their first-ever World Cup. Brazil is Marta, and Marta is Brazil.
For As Canarinhas to be successful, they need Marta at her best, at 29 years old, she needs to play at her peak to have a chance at the scoring title.
Elsewhere, Homare Sawa, at 36, will be an unlikely repeat winner—playing at her sixth World Cup, she may need to hand the baton over to Wolfsburg striker Yuki Ogimi. After moving from Chelsea in January, the 27-year-old scored four goals in five starts and will be Japan’s hope for goals this summer.
France’s Gaetane Thiney scored 14 of her countries 54 goals as Les Bleues won all 10 games in qualification for the tournament. She along with Eugenie Le Sommer and Camille Abily will spearhead their attack.
Thiney is one of only four French players who don’t play for either Paris Saint-Germain or Olympique Lyonnais. She is only two goals behind Marie-Laure Delie on 55 as the top scorer in this squad. You can bank on her adding a few goals as France try and live up to their tag as favourites.
Outside those teams, don't rule out Christine Sinclair for Canada, with 153 goals for the Canucks. Lotta Schelin of Sweden and the superb Ada Hegerberg of Norway as perhaps surprise winners. However, their countries would need to make the latter stages to have a chance.
This summer, teams will have to play an extra game to lift the World Cup. Expanding to 24 teams means we have a round of 16 for the first time. To win the Golden Shoe, players will likely have to score more than the five Sawa managed in 2011.
Any of the aforementioned players could easily surpass that total, perhaps even challenging Michelle Akers' 10-goal record which has stood since the first-ever World Cup in 1991.
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