Bayern Munich came from behind to secure a 2-1 victory over Manchester United and claim the inaugural women’s World Sevens Football (W7F) title in Estoril, Portugal on Friday.
Matches in the $5 million prize-pool tournament consisted of two 15-minute halves on half-sized pitches, with golden goals in extra time for tiebreakers.
Simi Awujo gave United the lead in the 14th minute with a brilliant shot into the top corner, her third goal of the tournament.
Bayern equalised in the second half when Momoko Tanikawa scored with a left-foot strike, and Sarah Zadrazil clinched the victory four minutes from time with a powerful shot.
“It was such an important goal. So I just ran to the teammates that couldn’t play because we are all one big family and it was also for them that we are champions now,” Zadrazil said.
The tournament, featuring elite European clubs including Manchester City, Paris St Germain, AS Roma, Sweden’s FC Rosengard, Ajax Amsterdam and Benfica, culminated in a final-day showcase including two semi-finals, with PSG beating City 3-1 to take third place.
The event launched two social initiatives – ‘Community Champions’, awarding $10,000 grants to three local non-profit organisations, and ‘Rising 7’s’, aimed at countering the trend of girls dropping out of sports during adolescence.
