Women’s soccer has been on the rise for a while, but due to the smashing success of the 2023 Women’s World Cup, there’s more eyes than ever and a brighter future ahead. Several young players have seized their opportunity to inscribe their names into the history books but also into women soccer’s future, letting us know their intentions of becoming the next biggest name. Let’s talk about four standout players and their stories to make it to soccer’s biggest stage.
Linda Caicedo
Colombia surprised the world: as underdogs, they advanced to the 2023 World Cup quarterfinals where they narrowly lost to England. Among the stars of that team was Linda Caicedo, the 18 year old forward who recently won goal of the tournament for her stunner and game winner against Germany in the group stage.
Her path to make it to the world stage was not easy. At just 15 she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and had to undergo chemotherapy—she thought she would never play again. But after months of treatment, she was finally cancer free. In just the few short years, she’s made notable appearances in the U-17 and U-20 World Cups, she has signed with top club Real Madrid, and was named the player of the tournament at the 2022 Copa America. There’s a lot of pressure for her to live up to the expectations of people who are already comparing her to great players like the Brazilian Marta, but she’s already proved that she can hold her own on the biggest possible stage.
Salma Paralluelo
At the age of just 19 years old, Salma Paralluelo has won the U17, U20, and Senior Women’s World Cup, scoring in Senior World Cup’s quarter final and final. While she narrowly missed representing her country in the 2022 European Women’s Championship, her dazzling success on the World Cup stage will make it hard to justify leaving her out of future Spanish teams.
We know Paralluelo as a soccer talent, but there’s more to her. From a young age, she excelled in two sports: track and soccer. She became the Spanish Indoor champion in the women’s 400m, and played a part in leading her 4x400m relay team to a national title, becoming the second youngest athlete to play in the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships. In addition to this, she earned two gold medals at the European Youth Summer Olympic Festival.
However as both sports took a large toll on her, she had to decide which one she wanted to pursue, eventually choosing soccer when she got the opportunity to play with her heroes at FC Barcelona. Now, she’s already becoming a difference maker in the club, using her experience in track to her advantage as a fast and effective winger. She has a bright future playing for one of the best clubs and rising nations.
Mary Fowler
When you saw one of Australia’s dazzling passes, like the assist for Caitlin Foord’s goal against Denmark in the World Cup, did you wonder who was behind it? The obvious choice might be Sam Kerr, but Australia has a new player in town.
Mary Fowler always had great talent. In fact, one coach said that a rival team tried to ban her from a game with opponents two years older. They were boys.
Fowler’s siblings played soccer as well. Her family moved around, spending time in Ireland, where her siblings played on Ireland Youth teams, and the Netherlands, where her brother played professionally at the time. Fowler did not play for Australia at a youth level, nor was she enrolled at an academy.
Nonetheless, hard work and talent eventually made her dream come true. When they made their move back to Australia, she was called up to play for Ireland but ultimately made the decision to stick with Australia. Since then, she has quickly moved up the ranks and has made quite a name for herself this World Cup. Without the commanding presence of Sam Kerr, the Matildas required other players to step up. Fowler, while no replacement, rose to the occasion in her midfield role, becoming both a scorer and playmaker when her team needed it the most. She has now signed with Manchester City in England, and is an exciting new youth prospect.
Naomi Girma
The Americans might have crashed out in the round of 16, but there were positive takeaways. A bright spot for the US in many poor games: Naomi Girma. The 23 year old center back plays with composure beyond her age, earning her consistent starts for her club team, San Diego Wave as well as now for her national team.
Girma was born to Ethiopian parents, with her father fleeing the country and her mother coming to pursue education. She was exposed to soccer from an early age due to her father’s creation of the Maleda Soccer Club in San Jose, inspired by his days of playing barefoot in the dirt growing up in Adama. This was an opportunity for fun and to help navigate a new place as Girma notes that they relied on a network of friends to understand American systems.
She was 9 years old before she went to a formal club team which was prompted by an invitation from a friend. While Girma was unaware of the specific etiquette around how to wear socks and shin guards, it was no reflection on her ability to play. Her first movement on the field blew everyone away, and she was immediately invited to move up to the top team. She did, however, choose to finish the season with her friend’s blue team as she always had a keen sense of loyalty.
It took a village to make Girma’s top team prospects happen as she often did not have a ride to practice. Luckily, she had massive support from the entire team who would go to lengths to make sure she could make it to practice and games. Girma was eventually called up to national camps. She initially felt like the odd one out being one of the few non ECNL (top level) players, but she soon saw that she fit right in. In addition to continuing with her local team, Girma joined De Anza Force for a greater challenge.
The possibility of going to college on a soccer scholarship was foreign to Girma’s family, but several coaches spotted her talent, and she was soon named a Stanford player. Over the years, she had tremendous impact and success captaining and playing for Stanford, one of the best college teams in the nation. She was picked #1 in the National Women’s Soccer League (NSWL) draft and made her senior national team debut in 2022. Even though Girma’s starting spot at the World Cup was only possible because of injuries to other veteran defenders, she took the opportunity in stride and established herself as a key part of the US Women’s National Team (USWNT) future.
References:
https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/soccer/arid-41205043.html
https://www.ussoccer.com/players/g/naomi-girma
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/worldcup/spain-salma-paralluelo-womens-world-cup-1.6940183
https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/02/sport/linda-caicedo-colombia-womens-world-cup-spt-intl/index.html