Zambian striker Barbra Banda achieved a remarkable feat on Monday evening by scoring her third hat-trick at the Olympics. The match against Australia was a thrilling 11-goal encounter that ended with a 6-5 victory for the Australians at the Paris 2024 Olympics. USWNT head coach Emma Hayes was spot on when she called Banda ‘the most in-form striker in world football.’
At the Tokyo 2020 Games, Banda made history as the first player to score back-to-back hat-tricks in the tournament. Although Zambia drew with China and lost to the Netherlands, leading to their exit in the group stage, Banda’s achievement left a lasting mark.
This recent performance against Australia cements her status as the first player to score three hat-tricks in women’s Olympic football. During the Olympic qualifiers, Banda also became the first Zambian player, male or female, to score 50 international goals.
Banda is Africa’s all-time leading scorer, with 53 goals in just 60 matches. This year, she secured a significant $2.1 million deal, moving from the Chinese Women’s Super League to the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the USA. She joined the Orlando Pride in April on a four-year contract and has already scored 12 goals in 12 games. In an interview with CBS’ Attacking Third, Banda said, “Actually, I’m unpredictable. I feel when I’m given a chance, I have to utilise my chances very well. So when I get a spot, I think I have a chance to score. I just have to put it [in the back] of the net.”
Zambia is set to face Germany in their final group-stage game on Wednesday, July 31.
