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Donovan or Wambach: Whose U.S. World Cup goal was more dramatic?

AbbyWambach (ISIEisenhuth)  

Abby Wambach's thrilling last-second extra time equalizer in Sunday's World Cup quarterfinal victory by the U.S. Women's national team against Brazil came a year after Landon Donovan's own dramatic game-winning goal for the U.S. men against Algeria in the 2010 World Cup.

Two amazing goals, two unforgettable moments.

Wambach's goal helped keep the United States alive in the 2011 Women's World Cup, while Donovan's late goal vs. Algeria helped the USA win its World Cup group and advance to the 2010 World Cup Round of 16. Both goals came in the dying seconds of games that looked like lost causes and both goals caused emotional reactions from Americans everywhere.

The goals have already begun drawing plenty of comparisons, which leads us to ask SBI readers which goal they felt was more dramatic. Both goals were amazing, and picking one over the other will surely be difficult, but we're sure each goal will mean different things to different readers so we've decided to ask the question.

Cast your vote here:

Which goal did you pick? Did you have trouble choosing between the two? What made you pick the goal you voted for?

Share your thoughts below.

Landon Donovan Practice (ISIPhotos.com)

Comments

  1. Donovan is from my hometown, plays for my home team, plays for my home country, and in my opinion is a world-class player who hits the pitch with heart every game and gives everything he has. I’m just a Donovan fan, so his goal brought tears to my eyes. I almost tear up just thinking about it. I still freak out every time he scores even for the Galaxy, because it reminds me why I wear his number to games.

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  2. Really not a good question.

    Both goals brought the team back from the brink of what surely would have been deemed failure. Yet neither assured success later in the tournament.

    Chastain’s goal in the 1999 WC final will be remembered longer. Wambach scored in the 112th minute vs Brazil in the 2000 Olympic final for the win (yet so few remember that one). I am a fan of the mens’ team, but both those goals were more dramatic and both resulted in winning the championship, rather than merely advancing.

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  3. If USWNT win the World Cup than that goal will go down as most dramatic goal in US Soccer History. again Donovans goal was important and dramatic but they were playing a team they should have beaten. Are we asking if it was personally dramatic for each viewer or the player who scored. Cuz if and i think we are talking about drama on the pitch then Wambach wins it hands down.

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  4. not to be sexist, but? well that’s “how to spot sexism 101”.

    it’s ridiculous that so many purported soccer fans are calling the LD’s goal more dramatic merely because it was a men playing the game and the world just generally cares more about men’s sports for some reason (which apparently isn’t at all sexist).

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  5. i’ve been watching the USMNT since I was 10 years old. 20 years now. Wambach’s late equalizer gave me tears of joy and utter pride. The USMNT has never ever came close to evoking pride from me – mostly the USMNT just causes me to be not too embarrassed by our international performance sometimes.

    The contexts of the goals are similar but the quality of the goal is so much higher on Wambach’s side. First of all, Landon’s goal was a garbage goal: following up the play hoping for a rebound. Wambach put her head on a 40 yard cross with the goalkeeper and the opposing defender challenging it. It’s a no brainer.

    I think some sexism is going into this vote.

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  6. I did say “To me”. It’s all very subjective, isn’t it? If you’re a golf fan, you might think Leonard’s ’99 Ryder Cup putt was the best moment, or someone might choose the ’84 men’s volleyball upset over Brazil. I’m gonna stick with mine. I did like the swim meet, though. Very exciting stuff.

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  7. Hey, man, all the ladies on that team are foxy babes (although, true, some might be foxier than others:-). As for Abby, at the moment she knocked in the header, she was without a doubt the most beautiful girl on the planet, and you can forgive her for siding with the fool coach Greg Ryan who kicked Hope Solo off the team in WC2007 and made her fly home alone from China on her own dime for the crime of simply speaking the truth and telling the world what a fool he is. I wish a few of the USMNT players had a tenth of Solo’s courage.

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  8. This is an easy question to answer. I sat on the same couch and watched both goals on the same TV.

    For Wambach’s goal, I screamed a couple of times and was in shock.

    But for Donovan’s goal, I was yelling at the top of my lungs. I ripped my shirt off and there was a dog pile on my living room floor. We then proceeded to drive around the neighborhood shouting “We’re through. We won the group” on our way to get breakfast at 9 a.m.

    It’s great to see the support for the Women, but the whole world watches when the men go at it.

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