WWC: How Bob Marley's Daughter Revived Jamaica's Reggae Girlz

• Jamaica are through to the last 16 of the Women's World Cup
• The Reggae Girls shocked Brazil to progress from their group
• Jamaica will face the winner of Group H in the knockout stage

Jamaica made history at the FIFA Women's World Cup after holding favourites, Brazil, to a goalless draw and advancing to the second round of the competition.

Going into the tournament, the island nation were one of the lower-ranked teams and few expected them to progress from a group that included France and the Selecao.

However, after holding France in their first game and beating Panama in their second match, Jamaica put up their best performance by frustrating Brazil, who have now been eliminated from the tournament following their third-place finish, as reported by SuperSport.

The remarkable performance of the Reggae Girlz at the Women's World Cup can be attributed to the efforts of Cedella Marley, the daughter of legendary musician, Bob Marley.

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Revival of the Jamaican team

In 2008, Jamaica's female national team was disbanded after funds were cut. This meant the team could not compete internationally, forcing them to withdraw from zonal competitions as well.

However, six years after the Reggae Girlz were left stranded, Cedella started the journey of reviving the team through the Bob Marley Foundation and re-organised women's football in the country.

She pumped in money to support football with the hopes of helping girls with ambitions become footballers.

"Daddy played every day,” Marley told CNN Sport. “He would play anywhere he was: on the road, you’d find a field, you’d find a team. Sometimes, it would be the photographers who were out there, you know; sometimes, it would be the journalists and it would be the band against the journalists."

Cedella recalled watching him and her brothers, Ziggy and Steve, play.

"They played football growing up, too, and it was just always something that I loved. I love to kick a ball and was super competitive when my brothers would challenge me."

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The former coach of the Reggae Girlz, Hue Menzies, also stated the team would not be at the Women's World Cup without the support of Cedella.

"[Cedella] told me her purpose. A large part of it is her dad’s love for the game and, second of all, she wanted to inspire young females in Jamaica."

“...She helped create some type of positive vibe. When she talked about the impact it could have on the kids, the culture, the mindset, I said ‘I’m in’ because that’s what I’m here for. I’m not here for money and accolades, I’m just here to change the mindsets of people."

Jamaica will face the winner of Group H in the round of 16.

Jamaica reach round of 16

Earlier, Sports Brief reported on Jamaica making Women's World Cup history as they drew with Brazil to reach the last 16 on Wednesday and condemn the South Americans to an earliest WWC exit since 1995.

It was heartbreak for the legendary Selecao attacker, Marta, who said this would be her last World Cup. On the other side, the Reggae Girlz were jubilant at reaching the knockouts for the first time in their history.