Washington, D.C. (My Sportsbook) - Norway's Bente Nordby will be in net again as the Scandinavians face Brazil in a Group B first-round matchup of the Women's World Cup at RFK Stadium on Wednesday.

Norway with Nordby at goalkeeper, blanked France 2-0 in their opening match. The 29-year-old former WUSA player actually announced her retirement from soccer last season, but Norway coach Age Steen convinced her to help the national team reach World Cup glory for the second time. The Norwegians won the 1995 event in Sweden.

"I told her we could win the World Cup, but only if she played," said Steen. "I knew she would want to play some more if I said that. Plus with Bente, the bigger the match, the better she plays. That is why she is so important to us."

Nordby made many thrilling saves in the win over France and will face a Brazilian squad with a creative attack that rolled to a 3-0 win over South Korea.

Samba Queen forward Katia scored twice against the Asians, while young phenom Marta netted the other goal.

Brazil's win has them one up on Norway in goal differential and the Scandinavians saw how valuable Nordby is to their chances.

"You could see it today," said Norway forward Dagny Mellgren after Saturday's victory over the French. "Bente made everyone in the back more calm. We also knew we could rely on her, and that gave us more confidence."

Norway took home gold at the 2000 Olympics and face a Brazilian squad ranked sixth in the world.