There are a lot of American soccer fans that will remember the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup Final.  This game was played in front of 90,000 passionate fans at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The United States' Women's National Team took on China in the final.  If the United States won, they would have been the first team to win a world title on their home field. Both teams played to a 0-0 tie-in regulation. Neither team was able to score during the golden goal period.  

Thus, the game had to be decided via penalty shootout.  The shootout was tied 4-4 and Brandi Chastain of the USA had a chance to win the World Cup title for the U.S with a single goal.   

Chastain scored the game-winner to give the U.S a 5-4 shootout victory.  She would celebrate by taking off her jersey and revealing a black sports bra as she fell to her knees exuberantly. That sports bra moment went viral.

What Happened to the Famous Sports Bra?

Brandi Chastain 1999 Women's World Cup Victory Statue | Image Credit: People.com

Many people may not know the story of what happened with the famous sports bra that Brandi Chastain revealed during her celebration. Originally, Chastain was offered thousands of dollars for the black sports bra that she revealed that day.  However, Chastain did not give it up. She continued to have the sports bra as part of her overall wardrobe. At one point, Chastain gave the bra to a museum.  However, the museum went out of business.  As a result, she ended up getting her sports bra back.

Finally, she decided to have her iconic sports bra framed so that she could hang it on a wall in her house.  It remains there to this very day. Brandi Chastain's historic undergarment and the moment surrounding it took on a life of its own in the national media. Chastain immediate celebration was so memorable that The New York Times considered it one of the best pictures taken of a female athlete.  Other headlines dubbed the moment the "bra heard around the world". Photos of Brandi Chastain's celebration in her sports bra were featured in publications such as Sports Illustrated and Time Magazine.  She ended up receiving numerous endorsement deals in the immediate aftermath of the occasion.

In recent years, Brandi Chastain had told the NY Times that the celebration was spontaneous.   However, she has come to appreciate what the moment has meant to women's soccer. Her teammate Kristine Lilly expressed that the moment was more than just the celebration and the introduction of the most famous sports bra in history.  It was about her expression of triumph over clinching a historic victory for her home nation. Ultimately, Brandi Chastain's iconic sports bra moment was a symbol of female empowerment.  that sparked the evolution of women's soccer in the U.S.

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