Competing in front of a record crowd of 77,390 fans at Wembley Stadium, Sam Kerr propelled Chelsea to the 2023 Women’s FA Cup title, scoring the eventual game winner in the 68th minute.
Kerr then propelled herself into the air, celebrating with a high-flying backflip (video below).
IT HAD TO BE HER! THE BACKFLIP 😱@samkerr1 loves a BIG goal at @wembleystadium! 💥#WomensFACup pic.twitter.com/y6Fr4cs3NC
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) May 14, 2023
Chelsea defeated Manchester United, 1-0, to win its third straight FA Cup final title.
The 29-year-old Kerr said multiple people have been asking when she was going to whip out the backflip again, including Chelsea teammate Millie Bright, who is currently sidelined with a knee injury.
“I texted (Millie) and said, ‘backflip incoming,’ so I knew it was coming today,'” Kerr said in her postgame interview.
Kerr has scored the game winner in each of Chelsea’s three straight FA Cup Final wins.
In 2021, Kerr scored the first two goals in Chelsea’s 3-0 win over Arsenal. During the 2022 Women’s FA Cup Final vs. Manchester City, Kerr opened the scoring and then notched the game winner in extra time, leading Chelsea to a 3-2 win. (Video of all five of Kerr’s FA Cup final goals are embedded below.)
Sam Kerr’s goals in the 2021 Women’s FA Cup Final
🔵 @samkerr1 scores at Wembley!@ChelseaFCW #WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/JiijaFaaxs
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) December 5, 2021
That’s outrageous! 🤯@samkerr1 with an incredible chip over Zinsberger 🍟@ChelseaFCW #WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/uFEDQlSVbG
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) December 5, 2021
Sam Kerr’s goals in the 2022 Women’s FA Cup Final
Big. Game. Player. 🔥@samkerr1 at the double in the #WomensFACupFinal 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/YmB7IZH57g
— Barclays Women's Super League (@BarclaysWSL) May 15, 2022
Chelsea have the advantage! 👀@samkerr1’s deflected shot fires past Roebuck in the City net!#WomensFACupFinal @ChelseaFCW pic.twitter.com/GfKq0N4w8e
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) May 15, 2022
Sam Kerr’s game winner in the 2023 Women’s FA Cup Final
IT HAD TO BE HER! THE BACKFLIP 😱@samkerr1 loves a BIG goal at @wembleystadium! 💥#WomensFACup pic.twitter.com/y6Fr4cs3NC
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) May 14, 2023
Sam Kerr scored the game-winner in Chelsea’s FA Cup final, but instead of celebrating her late-game goal, she felt an overwhelming feeling of relief. The star striker notched two goals to lead the Blues to a 3-2 win over Manchester City and the club’s third straight FA Cup title in May.
“At the FA Cup Final, everyone’s like, ‘You scored two goals,’ and I am like, ‘I had the worst game,'” Kerr tells co-hosts Sam Mewis and Lynn Williams on the latest episode of the Snacks podcast.
As Chelsea’s season was winding down, Kerr remembers the stress beginning to mount and losing sleep ahead of the FA Cup.
“I was like having crazy nightmares just because it meant so much,” she says. “So after that game in the FA Cup Final, it was just the biggest relief.”
Despite notching a brace to seal the victory, Kerr didn’t feel like it was her best performance.
“I know when I am bad more than when I am doing good. I can feel when I am really impacting a game,” Kerr says.
“There’s this photo of me after the goal I scored in extra time, and it looks like I am like, ‘I am a baller. I did that.’ But I said to Kriste (Mewis), I was like, ‘Thank god,’ and then I ran to the side and everyone was like, ‘You didn’t celebrate,’ because I was like, ‘Oh god, thank god that is over.'” Kerr says. “I just got everyone in and was like, ‘We just need to defend.'”
At that point in the game, the 28-year-old was running through all the possible scenarios of how the match could play out, telling Williams and Mewis that all she could think was “get me off the pitch.”
“That’s why I scored because there is no way I was going to take a penalty,” she adds.
Listen to the full episode of Snacks for more from Kerr on her Chelsea season, Australian national team career and potential NWSL return.
Chelsea retained their FA Cup title in thrilling fashion on Sunday, defeating Manchester City 3-2 behind Sam Kerr’s game-winning goal in extra time. A Women’s FA Cup-record 49,094 fans were in attendance for the game at Wembley Stadium.
Kerr got Chelsea on the board first in the 33rd minute, nodding in a well-struck Mille Bright cross for the go-ahead goal.
A player for the big occasions. @samkerr1 puts the Blues in front at @wembleystadium! 🔵#WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/VJBDHLcapW
— Barclays FA Women's Super League (@BarclaysFAWSL) May 15, 2022
Lauren Hemp responded for Manchester City just before half, curling in a stunning shot for the equalizer. Hemp’s finish came against the run of play as Manchester City struggled to maintain possession in the face of Chelsea’s relentless press.
That's some way to score at @wembleystadium! 😱
— Barclays FA Women's Super League (@BarclaysFAWSL) May 15, 2022
What a strike from @lauren__hemp in the #WomensFACupFinal! pic.twitter.com/iZMvDiPdiG
Chelsea regained the lead in the 63rd minute on an Erin Cuthbert banger from the top of the box.
WHAT. A. STRIKE. 🔥@erincuthbert_ with a worldie in the #WomensFACupFinal!#WomensFACup @ChelseaFCW pic.twitter.com/ikdgWBnJ0A
— Barclays FA Women's Super League (@BarclaysFAWSL) May 15, 2022
Chelsea looked to have the game locked up after Cuthbert’s worldie, but Hayley Raso brought Manchester City even again in the 89th minute.
The Australian star chested down a lofted cross and expertly beat her defender before sending her shot past Chelsea keeper Ann-Katrin Berger.
At the death! 😱@HayleyRaso equalises for @ManCityWomen in the 89th minute of the #WomensFACupFinal! pic.twitter.com/wmCWRC8RZE
— Barclays FA Women's Super League (@BarclaysFAWSL) May 15, 2022
Chelsea jumped on Manchester City early in extra time, applying a wave of pressure in the opening minutes. Kerr charged at Manchester City’s backline and buried a deflected shot for the game-sealing goal in the 99th minute.
Big. Game. Player. 🔥@samkerr1 at the double in the #WomensFACupFinal 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/YmB7IZH57g
— Barclays FA Women's Super League (@BarclaysFAWSL) May 15, 2022
Chelsea held onto the 3-2 lead until the final whistle to secure the fourth FA Cup trophy in club history. The win also comes on the heels of the Blues’ 4-2 win over Manchester United last weekend for their third consecutive FA Women’s Super League title.
The Women’s FA Cup semifinals begin Saturday with a contest between West Ham and Manchester City, with a rematch of the 2021 final between Chelsea and Arsenal awaiting fans on Sunday.
Saturday’s matchup will begin at 7:15 a.m. ET on ESPN+. The last meeting between the two teams on April 2 resulted in a 2-0 win for Manchester City. West Ham are headed into the game having lost back-to-back Women’s Super League games, while City is on an eight-game winning streak and looking for a fourth FA Cup.
To reach Sunday’s rematch, Arsenal won its FA Cup quarterfinal 4-0 against Coventry United, while Chelsea defeated Birmingham City 5-0 in its quarterfinal.
The two sides last met in February, and that match ended in a 0-0 draw. In the 2021 FA Cup final in December, though, Chelsea defeated Arsenal 3-0, helped by two second-half goals from Sam Kerr.
Arsenal has won the most FA Cup titles overall with 14, but its most recent FA Cup title came in 2016.
The two teams will face off Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET on ESPN+.
While Chelsea dominated Arsenal 3-0 on the field in Sunday’s FA Cup title in front of a record 40,942-person crowd, the match reached a peak audience of 1.3 million viewers on BBC TV.
Insane viewing numbers from the Women’s FA Cup final yesterday 🤩 pic.twitter.com/Uk1z7NxfFB
— MISS KICK (@MissKick) December 6, 2021
There were also 160,000 live-stream requests for the match on BBC iPlayer. BT Sport has yet to report their numbers.
The record audience for a women’s club game still sits at 2.2 million viewers for Manchester City’s win over West Ham in the 2019 FA Cup final.
The win was Chelsea’s third in the FA Cup final. All three have come under head coach Emma Hayes.
Sam Kerr put on a dominant performance in her first FA Cup final, leading Chelsea to a 3-0 win over Arsenal on Sunday.
After a quiet opening 45 minutes, the Australian forward notched back-to-back goals in the second half to help clinch the Blues’ third FA Cup title.
Kerr’s second goal of the evening energized the record crowd in Wembley Stadium, with the Chelsea striker chipping the Arsenal goalkeeper in a picture-perfect finish.
Sam Kerr with an outrageous chip to seal the FA Cup for Chelsea 🥶
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) December 5, 2021
(via @VitalityWFACup)pic.twitter.com/Nmrpbjsn0n
Chelsea manager Emma Hayes reacted to Kerr’s cheeky chip after the match, saying she was “simply purring” when the third goal went in.
Breaking: @emmahayes1 reacts to @samkerr1's second goal 🤣#WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/Tl52BVLWOC
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) December 5, 2021
Playing in front a record 40,942 fans, Kerr told the BBC her stellar game was inspired by one in particular: Kristie Mewis.
“My girlfriend’s here, that’s why I put on a show,” Kerr said. “Let’s go!”
The USWNT midfielder posted pictures from Wembley Stadium to her Instagram story, including a photo of girlfriend Kerr, captioning the story “average.”
Chelsea’s FA Cup win secures the team the domestic treble for the 2020-2021 season.
Chelsea dominated Arsenal 3-0 to capture the FA Cup title in front of a record 40,942- person Wembley crowd on Sunday.
The Blues got out on the front foot early, scoring after just three minutes on the pitch. Fran Kirby notched the opener for the Blues, beating a disorganized Arsenal backline to put her side up 1-0.
Who else but @frankirby?! 💥
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) December 5, 2021
Rapid start from @ChelseaFCW 🔵#WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/c8Li8saKkT
Chelsea continued to put Arsenal under pressure, creating a series of chances in the final third. The Blues, however, went into the break with a 1-0 scoreline after a string of missed opportunities.
Sam Kerr turned things around in the second half, putting her name on the scoresheet in the 56th minute. The Australian striker outpaced her defender to beat the Arsenal keeper at the near post to double Chelsea’s lead.
🔵 @samkerr1 scores at Wembley!@ChelseaFCW #WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/JiijaFaaxs
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) December 5, 2021
Kerr added another goal to her tally in the 77th minute, chipping the Arsenal goalie in a must-see finish.
That’s outrageous! 🤯@samkerr1 with an incredible chip over Zinsberger 🍟@ChelseaFCW #WomensFACupFinal pic.twitter.com/uFEDQlSVbG
— Vitality Women's FA Cup (@VitalityWFACup) December 5, 2021
Despite Arsenal holding the majority of possession, the match was a one-sided affair. The Gunners failed to fire a shot on target, with Vivianne Miedema uncharacteristically quiet in front of goal.
Sunday’s victory marks Chelsea’s third FA Cup final victory, with all of their titles coming under coach Emma Hayes.
Chelsea is through to the FA Cup Final after downing Manchester City 3-0 in Sunday’s lopsided semifinal.
The Blues started on the front foot, going up 1-0 in the 23rd minute off a close-range strike from Emma Cuthbert.
A lovely opening goal from Chelsea’s @erincuthbert_ in the FA Cup semi-final 👏#CFC #WomensFACup
— GiveMeSportW (@GiveMeSportW) October 31, 2021
pic.twitter.com/RUnEYFYobZ
Melanie Leupolz doubled Chelsea’s lead five minutes later, slotting home a low shot to make it 2-0. Beth England then put the game out of reach, nodding home a well-placed cross from Jessie Fleming for a 3-0 win.
What an assist from Jessie Fleming 🔥 pic.twitter.com/I8RoYtoHlx
— CFCBlogs (@CFCBlogs_) October 31, 2021
After the game, Chelsea coach Emma Hayes said she was “delighted” with her team’s performance. “I thought our mentality was superb today — our pressing, our counter-pressing, our restarts –how we created chances was so efficient.”
Chelsea will take on the winner of the Arsenal v Brighton semifinal in December’s FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.