The American soccer icon can finally claim a World Cup crown as the U.S. faces Japan in Sunday's final.

VANCOUVER — Abby Wambach can't tell you the date that she debuted for the U.S. national team. The forward wouldn't be able to remember when she became international soccer's all-time leading scorer, either. She doesn't recall the day that she won her first Olympic gold medal, or her second.

But Wambach has no problem rattling "July 17, 2011," off the top of her head. The date burrowed itself deep within her mind.

That, of course, was the day the U.S. fell to Japan in the Women's World Cup final.

"It has kind of been that thing within that fuels our fire," Wambach said. "It's always there, and that's what happens in heartbreak. Heartbreak never goes away."

At this point, the narrative is well established: Wambach is perhaps the greatest player in international soccer history, but the World Cup remains the glaring gap on her resume. For a player with 247 caps and 183 goals, she merely wants a "1" next to the column labeled "World Cup titles."

Four years ago, Wambach scored the go-ahead goal in extra time before Japan equalized in the 117th minute, then won on penalty kicks. Now the 35-year-old has another shot — her last shot — when the U.S. faces Japan on Sunday for the second straight World Cup final.

"She's been a true leader of this team," U.S. midfielder Carli Lloyd said. "We wouldn't be where we're at without her. She's been tremendous over the years, and I'd like nothing more than to help her legacy and win the World Cup. Obviously I want to win it for myself as well and for the team. But for her, this being her last one, I will do whatever it takes to get the job done."

After logging 120 minutes in the last World Cup final, Wambach figures to play a lot less than that Sunday at BC Place. After starting three of the Americans' first four matches — and scoring against Nigeria — the veteran has been reduced to a bench role the past two games. She ended up playing four minutes in the quarterfinal win over China and 10 minutes in the semifinal victory against Germany.

It's a role she's grown familiar with. In this year's buildup to the World Cup, Wambach started five matches and made five appearances off the bench. But that doesn't mean she's grown comfortable watching from the sidelines.

"All I care about is winning this World Cup," Wambach said. "It's really nerve-wracking. It's brutal. I'm not going to say it's brutal sitting on the bench because I'm not playing — it's brutal sitting on the bench because I really think it's taking years off my life.

"I now understand what my parents have been going through. I get what our friends and fans talk about because you don't have control of the outcome of what's going on unless you're on the pitch."

Yet Wambach also has embraced the role. She's the first one off the bench to greet substituted teammates. The striker still riles up the troops with impassioned halftime speeches. She joked that she was so vocal during the quarterfinal that one fellow substitute had to shift to a different part of the bench.

"She's committed to do whatever it takes," said Jill Ellis, who took over as coach in April 2014. "She let that be known up front to me. We had several meetings early on and she said, 'Whatever role is needed, I'll deliver.'"

Added Wambach: "It's something that as a competitor and as somebody that has an ego, of course I want to play, I want to start, I want to help my team. But guess what? I know that I'm a little bit older. I know that my teammates are as good as, if not better than, me in certain aspects of the game."

While there is a widespread desire to end the U.S. team's 16-year title drought, the prospect of finally getting Wambach that elusive crown makes victory particularly enticing for this generation of players. They've seen Wambach be the face of the U.S. team for a decade. They've seen her put the squad on her broad shoulders countless times. They've seen her fight for gender equality in the sport.

Now they want to see her lift the World Cup trophy.

"It's cool to see that we still have players in the game that have been a part of it when it wasn't this big," midfielder Megan Rapinoe said. "Abby obviously is a legend of the game — more goals than anyone — and she deserves that. She deserves to be called a legend of the game. To send her off on a big unicorn would be great."

Although Wambach hasn't announced whether she will continue with the U.S. through next summer's Olympics, she has made it clear this will be her final World Cup.

As Wambach spoke to reporters Friday at a Vancouver hotel, she started punctuating her words by pounding the table in front of her. It became more clear than ever that her fiery rhetoric wasn't posturing. The vigor in her voice couldn't be denied.

Wambach will happily ride the pine — whatever it takes to erase July 17, 2011, from her brain.

"I just have this belief system," Wambach said. "It takes a whole team. It's not about one person. It will never be about one person in a team sport. If you truly honor and believe that, whether you're starting or you're not, it shouldn't matter because I want this team to win."

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