The history of women’s football dates back quite a while, as it is one of the most popular women’s sports, played in an annual and regular league.
The first person to propose football for women was Elizabeth Brogan in 1899. She was a distinguished coach, and her daughter later continued her work in training in this field.
Some reports and research suggest that women’s football dates back to 1790, with the first recorded match taking place in 1892 under the supervision of the Scottish Football Association. However, the first documented women’s football match occurred in 1895, despite opposition from the British Football Association, which held onto the principle of “the masculinity of football.”
Women’s football continued to spread, especially in Britain, becoming the popular sport during World War I. At that time, factories supported the sport, and one of the most successful women’s teams was the Dick Kerr Ladies from Preston, England.
At that time, the Female Football Players also contributed to fundraising for many important causes during the war and played international matches against teams from Paris, forming the majority of the England women’s national team, which won a resounding victory against their Scottish rivals with a score of 22-0.
As for the first Women’s World Cup, it was held in China in 1991, and the United States emerged as the winner among 16 participating teams. Norway, Sweden, China, and the United States are considered the strongest women’s teams, alongside Brazil and Canada.
The Laws of Women’s and Men’s Football
There is no difference between the laws of men’s and women’s football; both follow the same rules and regulations. Women’s matches may occasionally be slower due to the physical build of women, but this is not always the case. However, the key difference lies in the media coverage of women’s football matches, which is often very limited compared to the media coverage of men’s matches.
Female football players still face opposition from some groups who hold differing views, believing that they should not enter fields that are considered exclusively for men. However, the growing popularity of women’s matches, especially in international tournaments, has led to a noticeable rise in online football betting on female teams. Many fans now actively follow women’s leagues and place bets on their favorite players and outcomes, showing that the betting world is recognizing and supporting female athletes, even when some parts of society still hold outdated views.
Top Women’s National Football Teams
According to FIFA rankings, women’s national teams worldwide have been ranked based on their matches up until the previous year.
- United States
- Germany
- France
- Netherlands
- Sweden
- England
- Australia
- Brazil
- Canada
- South Korea
Top European Women’s Football Clubs
The French club Lyon leads the rankings of the best women’s football clubs, according to UEFA’s rankings for the past five years. It is followed by German club Wolfsburg in second place, Barcelona in third, French club Paris Saint-Germain in fourth, and German club Bayern Munich in fifth.
The Most Famous Female Football Players Around the World
Many Female Football Players have stood out, becoming influential and internationally known due to their professional play and the victories they have achieved through matches and tournaments they participated in over the years. The list of notable names could reach into the dozens, but here are a few of them:
Vivianne Miedema
The first one on the list of famous female football players is Medema. She started playing professionally at the age of 15 and had signed a contract with the Heerenveen women’s team a year earlier. She became the youngest professional player in the Dutch Women’s Eredivisie.
Medema is considered one of the greatest strikers in modern women’s football and holds the record for being the all-time top scorer in the Women’s Football League. She won the UEFA Women’s Euro 2017 with her Dutch national team and secured two consecutive titles in the German Bundesliga with Bayern Munich in 2015 and 2016, and with Arsenal in 2017.
It is worth noting that Medema is one of the players who scored the most goals at the international level for the Netherlands, and she led her country to second place in the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.
Amandine Henry
The second one of the famous female football players is a French player born on September 28, 1989, Amandine Henry plays as a defensive midfielder for Olympique Lyonnais and the French national team.
Amandine began her professional career in 2004 at the age of 15 with Hénin-Beaumont and then joined the women’s section of the Clairefontaine Academy for two consecutive seasons. She later moved to Lyon, one of the most successful women’s football teams in France. However, she was unfortunately sidelined for a year and a half due to a knee injury.
This injury had a significant impact on Amandine’s mental state, and she considered retiring from football. But with the support of her family and fans, she decided against it.
Amandine earned the Silver Ball award as the second-best player in the 2015 Women’s World Cup. She also participated in the UEFA Women’s Champions League for three consecutive seasons, starting in 2010.
In 2016, Amandine signed a contract with the Portland Thorns, where she played in 8 matches. She then joined Paris Saint-Germain in 2017, playing five matches after undergoing surgery.
She went on to win the American Women’s Football Championship when her team, Thorns, defeated North Carolina Courage in 2017.
Sam Kerr
An Australian female football player born on September 10, 1993, Sam Kerr plays for Chelsea in the FA Women’s Super League. Also one of the most famous female football players
Kerr began her professional career at the age of 15 with Perth Glory, where she played from 2008 to 2012, before moving to Sydney FC.
She made her international debut in 2009 at the age of 15 and represented Australia in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup in 2010, 2014, and 2018.
Kerr has won the title of top scorer in both the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the United States and the Australian W-League. She has been the captain of the Australian women’s national team, the Matildas, since 2019.
Marta da silva
A Brazilian female football player born on February 19, 1986, Marta plays for Orlando Pride in the National Women’s Soccer League and as a forward for the Brazilian national team.
Marta holds the record for the most goals in international Brazilian football, with 109 goals for her country. She is also the first football player, male or female, to score in five World Cup tournaments, a feat later followed by Canadian player Christine Sinclair in 2019.
Marta is considered one of the greatest Female Football Players of all time. She was named the best female football player in the world in 2014, with five consecutive titles from 2006 to 2010. She also won the Golden Ball as the best player and the Golden Boot as the top scorer at the 2007 Women’s World Cup after leading Brazil to the final.
In 2013, Marta was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador, and she appeared in the TV documentary series Sveriges Television The Other Sport in the same year. She was one of the eight athletes who carried the Olympic flag during the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Rachel Daly
Born on December 6, 1991, Rachel Daly is an English Female Football Player who plays as a forward for Houston Dash and the England national team.
She made her international debut in June 2016 and scored goals in England’s 7-0 win over Serbia in the 2017 UEFA Women’s Euro qualifiers. However, she was excluded from Mark Sampson’s squad in 2017.
Daly was part of the England squad for the SheBelieves Cup in 2018 under new coach Phil Neville. She also played in four of England’s World Cup qualifiers in 2018, helping the team win their group and secure qualification for the 2019 Women’s World Cup.
Daly won the SheBelieves Cup with England in 2019, participating in two of the matches during the tournament.
Pernille Harder
A Danish female football player born on November 15, 1992, who is considered one of the most famous female football players. She plays as a forward for the VfL Wolfsburg women’s team and the Denmark women’s national football team.
Harder began playing for the Denmark national team in 2009 and later became the team’s captain. She achieved success during the 2016 Swedish Women’s Football League season, where she won the Best Player of the League award, as well as the top scorer title with 23 goals. She also led Linköping to win the Swedish league title.
Harder’s name appeared in the Denmark squad for the 2017 UEFA Women’s Euro, where she scored a goal in the match where Denmark lost to the Netherlands. She was awarded second place for the Best European Player award in 2016-2017, just behind Lieke Martens.
Harder won the Swedish Cup titles in 2014 and 2015. She also received the Danish Young Player of the Year award in 2010, Best Player of the Swedish League in 2015, and the top scorer of the Swedish League in 2016.
Wendie Renard
A French female football player born on July 20, 1990, who plays as a center-back for Olympique Lyonnais women’s football team and the France national team.
Renard is considered one of the most decorated Female Football Players in modern women’s football, having won 14 French league titles and seven European Cups.
At the age of 15, Renard traveled to France for a trial at Clairefontaine, the French National Football Training Center, but was not accepted into the national training program. She was later accepted into Olympique Lyonnais and settled in Lyon at the age of 16.
Renard has represented France in two Women’s World Cups and two Olympic Games, and she was the team captain from September 2013 until she was stripped of the captaincy in 2017.
In 2020, Renard won her fourteenth consecutive French league title, her fifth consecutive UEFA Women’s Champions League title, and her seventh overall.
Renard is known for her physical strength, speed, and exceptional technical skills, and she is particularly famous for her prowess with set pieces.
Nilla Fischer
A Swedish female football player who plays as a midfielder, defender, and center-back, and has represented the Sweden women’s national football team.
Fischer played most of her matches for Sweden as a defensive midfielder after her debut against Norway in January 2001, before being moved to center-back in 2013.
Nilla Fischer has represented Sweden in four Women’s World Cup finals: China 2007, Germany 2011, Canada 2015, and France 2019. She has also participated in three Olympic Games: Beijing 2008, London 2012, and Rio 2016, where she won a silver medal.
Fischer achieved victory over Argentina in 2008 and South Africa in 2016. She played a key role in helping Sweden reach the top position in the 2011 World Cup, scoring a goal in the 35th minute against the United States, which resulted in a loss for the Americans in the group stage.
To this day, Fischer is considered one of the best center-backs in Europe, having completed 92 passes out of 93 for Sweden in the 2021 UEFA Women’s Euro qualifiers.
Jill Roord
a Dutch female football player who plays for Arsenal and the Netherlands national team.
Roord has won several domestic titles in the Netherlands and was the top scorer in the Dutch Eredivisie.
In 2017, Roord led the Netherlands national team to their first victory in the UEFA Women’s European Championship.
In 2020, Roord reintroduced herself as a forward, playing in the Netherlands’ final match in the absence of Vivianne Miedema, where she scored the only goal for her country in their victory over Russia.
Dominique Janssen
A Dutch female football player born on January 17, 1995, who plays for VfL Wolfsburg and the Netherlands women’s national football team, in forward, defense, and midfield positions.
Jansen first played for the Dutch national youth team on March 17, 2010, in a friendly match for the U-15 team against England.
In 2012, Jansen became the captain of the Netherlands U-17 team during the UEFA Women’s Championship qualifiers.
In 2014, Jansen successfully led her team to the final round of the UEFA Women’s U-19 Championship in Norway, where the Netherlands won the title for the first time by defeating Spain 1-0.
Jansen also participated in the Netherlands squad for the 2014 Cyprus Cup. On March 5, 2014, she made her debut when she came off the bench in the 65th minute against Australia.
Julie Ertz
Julie Ertz made her debut with the United States national team in a friendly match against Scotland on February 9, 2013. Since then, she has played over 100 matches with the team.
Ertz won her titles at the age of 23, securing the Women’s World Cup in 2015 and 2019.
She played in defense until 2017, after which she moved to midfield. Ertz was named the best football player in the United States and helped her team win the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France.
Ertz also appeared with her national team teammates in the EA Sports FIFA video game series in FIFA 16, marking the first time female players were included in the game.
She was selected for the final 23-player roster for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, marking her second appearance in World Cup tournaments. During that tournament, she helped the team win 3-0 against Chile and was awarded the title of Best American Female Soccer Player. She is the last on of our list of the most Famous Female Football Players.