--- title: U.S. Soccer Player Abby Wambach's World Cup Kiss Will Warm Your Heart description: Among the many happy images to come out of the Women's World Cup Final is that of Abby Wambach running to the sidelines to kiss her wife canonical: https://time.com/3946226/abby-wambach-womens-soccer-world-cup-wife-kiss-lgbt-gay-marriage/ author: Alissa Greenberg article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-06T07:03:15.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:49:34.981Z article:section: Sports og:title: Abby Wambach's World Cup Kiss Will Warm Your Heart og:description: She and her wife have been married since 2013. og:url: https://time.com/3946226/abby-wambach-womens-soccer-world-cup-wife-kiss-lgbt-gay-marriage/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt37b02801c9f6eb47/698859a3cd684892b90a0abc/479605726.jpg?branch=production&width=828&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: 479605726 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Abby Wambach's World Cup Kiss Will Warm Your Heart twitter:description: She and her wife have been married since 2013. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt37b02801c9f6eb47/698859a3cd684892b90a0abc/479605726.jpg?branch=production&width=828&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Abby Wambach Kissing Her Wife After Winning the World Cup Will Warm Your Heart by [Alissa Greenberg](https://time.com/author/alissa-greenberg/) ## Alissa Greenberg Jul 6, 2015 7:03 AM UTC  U.S. soccer player Abby Wambach embraces her wife Sarah Huffman at FIFA Women's World Cup final at BC Place Stadium, Vancouver, on July 5, 2015 U.S. soccer player Abby Wambach embraces her wife Sarah Huffman at FIFA Women's World Cup final at BC Place Stadium, Vancouver, on July 5, 2015Kevin C. Cox—Getty Images by [Alissa Greenberg](https://time.com/author/alissa-greenberg/) ## Alissa Greenberg Jul 6, 2015 7:03 AM UTC Among the many happy images to come out of the July 5 USA [win over Japan](http://time.com/3946085/womens-world-cup-results/) in the women’s soccer World Cup final is that of Abby Wambach running to the sidelines to kiss her wife Sarah Huffman in celebration. Wambach was playing in her fourth (and probably last) World Cup. The two have been married since 2013, but that bond was not legally recognized in all 50 states until the Supreme Court ruling that legalized gay marriage on June 26. It was an especially powerful moment for Wambach, 35, who holds the record for international goals but who many speculate will retire after a long, successful career. She has been open about how devastating it would be to have to retire without a World Cup win and took emotional and physical risks to make the championship a reality. “It’s like love,” she [told](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/06/sports/soccer/usa-world-cup-teams-soul-abby-wambach-soars-despite-a-lesser-role.html?%5Fr=0) the New York _Times_ on July 5. Twitter, at least, saw the moment as a dual victory, and all the sweeter for it, with many fans expressing their approval and realization of the moment’s symbolic importance. > [](https://twitter.com/ColeLedford11/status/617860540841377792) > [](https://twitter.com/ellievhall/status/617860183100948481) > [](https://twitter.com/yanks02/status/617859193576517632) ### See the Best Moments From U.S. Soccer’s Victory in the World Cup Final  Lauren Holiday and Carli Lloyd celebrate with teammates after Lloyd scores her second goal against Japan in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Rich Lam—Getty Images  Carli Lloyd of the United States celebrates her second goal against Japan, in the first half the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Bob Frid—EPA  Lauren Holiday celebrates her goal against Japan during the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Carmen Jaspersen—EPA  Japan's goalkeeper Kaihori Ayumi fails to hold the ball during the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Carmen Jaspersen—EPA  Tobin Heath celebrates with midfielder Morgan Brian after scoring against Japan during the second half of the final of the FIFA 2015 Women's World Cup at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, on July 5, 2015. Erich Schlegel—USA Today Sports  Heather O'Reilly hugs Megan Rapinoe after the U.S.A. beat Japan 5-2 in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Elaine Thompson—AP  Fans cheer in the second half of the match between the U.S. and Japan, in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Ronald Martinez—Getty Images  Tobin Heath celebrates her goal against Japan in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Franck Fife—AFP/Getty Images  Carli Lloyd reacts after defeating Japan in the final of the FIFA 2015 Women's World Cup at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Erich Schlegel—USA Today Sports  Abby Wambach celebrates the 5-2 victory against Japan in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Dennis Grombkowski—Getty Images  Alex Morgan celebrates the 5-2 victory against Japan in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Kevin C. Cox—Getty Images  The U.S.A. Women's National Team celebrates with the trophy after they beat Japan 5-2 in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Elaine Thompson—AP  Abby Wambach celebrates the 5-2 victory against Japan in the final match of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup at the BC Place Stadium in Vancouver on July 5, 2015. Dennis Grombkowski—Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3946226/abby-wambach-womens-soccer-world-cup-wife-kiss-lgbt-gay-marriage/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3946226/abby-wambach-womens-soccer-world-cup-wife-kiss-lgbt-gay-marriage/"},"headline":"Abby Wambach Kissing Her Wife After Winning the World Cup Will Warm Your Heart","datePublished":"2015-07-06T07:03:15.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:49:34.981Z","description":"She and her wife Sarah Huffman have been married since 2013","url":"https://time.com/3946226/abby-wambach-womens-soccer-world-cup-wife-kiss-lgbt-gay-marriage/","keywords":["Soccer","Gay Marriage","Abby Wambach","Sports"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt37b02801c9f6eb47/698859a3cd684892b90a0abc/479605726.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alissa Greenberg","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alissa-greenberg/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt37b02801c9f6eb47/698859a3cd684892b90a0abc/479605726.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"479605726","caption":"in the FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 Final at BC Place Stadium on July 5, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada.","creditText":"Kevin C. 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