Chastain, who won two World Cups with USA, inducted into the Bay Area Hall of Fame – but a tribute to her achievements has … provoked debate

The sculptural humiliation of football’s finest players continues apace. Few thought the bar could be lowered after one artist’s interpretation of Cristiano Ronaldo last year prompted much amusement on social media – but a strong contender has emerged in California.

On Monday one of America’s finest ever footballers, Brandi Chastain, was inducted into the Bay Area Hall of Fame. The plaque in her honor has … provoked debate.

Chastain, who won two World Cups with the US, diplomatically said the plaque was “nice” but admitted: “It’s not the most flattering.” The plaque captures Chastain with the pained expression of someone looking at a really bad plaque of Brandi Chastain.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Ronaldo statue at Madeira airport was mocked globally Photograph: Octavio Passos/Getty Images

Ann Killion, the journalist who wrote the dedication on the plaque, was less diplomatic that Chastain. “Brandi Chastain is one of the most beautiful athletes I’ve ever covered,” Killion wrote on Twitter. “How this became her plaque is a freaking embarrassment.”

After reaching a high point 2,500 years ago in ancient Greece, sporting sculpture has suffered of late. The bust of Ronaldo was subject to ridicule, and a statue of Michael Jackson – not known for his support of west London football – caused widespread bemusement when it was unveiled outside Fulham’s Craven Cottage in 2011.

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It is not just sculptors who have struggled to capture athletes’ likenesses. In 2015, a court artist managed to make famously handsome NFL star Tom Brady look like Gollum during his appearance in a Manhattan court.

“He’s a very handsome guy,” the artist Jane Rosenberg said at the time. “It’s very hard in a very short time to get somebody so good-looking to look as good as they look [in person]. There’s no characteristic that really stands out. He doesn’t have a big nose, he doesn’t have bushy eyebrows or a beard. He’s just all perfect – perfect angles, nice blue eyes.”

HuffPost Sports (@HuffPostSports) Tom Brady's courtroom sketch perfectly captures the, um, well... pic.twitter.com/04KyTfdCxD

The Bay Area Hall of Fame is reportedly considering making a new version of Chastain’s plaque.