Female football has been around for nearly as long as male football - both invented and first played in the 19th century. However, growing the popularity of women’s football has been somewhat a struggle, which the largest football association FIFA have previously admitted on many occasions. This can be clearly seen when looking at news portals for football results, where the majority of the coverage will be focused on male championships and the well-known players from men’s teams. So, for a change, let’s get to know more about the best female football players of all time.
Marta Vieira da Silva
Born in 1986, in Dois Riachos Brazil, Marta Vieira da Silva is commonly referred to as the most talented female footballer ever seen. Marta has won a number of awards already, including the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot at the Women’s World Cup in 2007 as well as being announced as the scoring leader of the competition with a whopping 15 goals. Not only that, the footballer has won the World Player of the Year award by FIFA six times (2006-2010 and 2018).
The Brazilian player has been scoring skillful goals for a number of teams since starting her career in 1999: Santa Cruz, Los Angeles Sol, Gold Pride and Western New York Flash to name a few. However, she is far from being done, as she continues her vision-driven career playing for Florida’s Orlando Pride.
Mia Hamm
Mia Hamm, an American football player, started her youth career with Notre Dame Knights in 1986 and impressively moved on to play for the US national team in 1987. Born in 1972, Mia is considered one of the most iconic and skilled female footballers of all times, scoring an incredible 158 international goals right before her retirement in 2004 - talk about leaving with a bang!
Besides being a great inspiration for female footballers throughout her career, with great vision, amazing skills and a jaw-dropping scoring ability, Mia Hamm has also actively discussed the importance of growing the popularity of female football and encouraging young women to pursue sports as a career option. Although retired as a player, Mia Hamm continues to support the game as well as works as the founder of her non-profit organisation to help families in need.
Michele Akers
Another great footballer from the US, Michele Akers was born in 1966 in Santa Clara, California. The former football player started her career in 1985 and played for UCF Knights, Tyresö FF, Orlando Lions Women as well as the national team of the United States in the years between 1985 and 2000.
Akers was recognised as one of the top-scoring footballers, awarded with the Golden Shoe award in 1991, after supporting the US victory in the World Cup with 10 goals that same year. Additionally, the footballer was named the FIFA Female Player of the Century in 2002, sharing the award with Sun Wen. While Michele Akers has completed her career as a football player in 2000, she has recently been announced as the new assistant coach of Orlando Pride, in 2022, continuing her impressive career in the football world.
Nadine Angerer
Moving over to Germany, Nadine Angerer is yet another female football player often praised for being one of the greatest of all time. Born in 1978, in Lohr a. Main in West Germany, Nadine made her career as a goalkeeper in a number of teams in both Germany and the United States. The footballer is known for being the penalty-saving specialist, who has stopped the above talked-about Marta’s kick in FIFA Women’s World Cup Final in 2007. In 1996, Angerer won a total of 146 caps for Germany's women's international football team.
Following her impressive performance in the national games, Nadine Angerer was appointed as the captain of Germany in 2011, after the retirement of yet another great German player Brigit Prinz. In 2014, the footballer became the first goalkeeper - female and male - to be named the World Player of the Year in FIFA awards. Nadine retired as a player from the international team in 2015 and continued her career as the goalkeeper coach for Portland Thorns in the US.
Sun Wen
Last but by no means least, Sun Wen was born in 1973, in Shanghai China. Sun Wen started playing football at the age of 10 and had an impressive career as a forward position player up until her retirement in 2006. The female footballer has played for Shanghai SVA and Atlanta Beat teams as well as represented the national team of China for 16 years in a row. In the years playing for the national team, Sun Wen scored an amazing 106 goals.
Throughout her career, Sun Wen has won a number of awards for being a top scorer and top player, including the FIFA Female Player of the Century in 2000 and the Golden Ball and Golden Boot awards for her performance in 1999 Women’s World Cup by FIFA. That same year, she also became the first woman nominated for the player of the year award by Asian Football Confederation. Today, Sun Wen continues her career as the vice president of the Chinese Football Association.