On Women’s Football Tour

  Happy Birthday, Glódís Perla Viggósdóttir! Strong, composed, and commanding — you are Icelandic steel with a touch of elegance. From Iceland to Sweden to Bayern Munich, you’ve led from the back with vision and voice. Not just a defender, but a presence. A leader. A rock. Wishing you a birthday filled with pride, strength, and joy. Til hamingju með afmælið, Glódís — the game is stronger with you in it.

Six years ago today I walked through the streets of Paris — crying and dancing at the same time, overwhelmed with pride, with joy, with love for the one who just saved it all. I told complete strangers how brilliant she was. How they had just witnessed greatness — “That’s Hedvig Lindahl. That’s my keeper.” It was the first time I ever celebrated in a way that felt almost shameless . No filter, no holding back. Just pure, wild emotion . Because that wasn’t just a penalty save. That was the release of years of loyalty, of fear, of silent hope — all unleashed in one glorious dive. And I? I exploded. Loud, ungraceful, uninhibited. Because finally — finally — she got what she deserved. She didn’t just stop Canada. She stopped the doubts. She reclaimed her aura. She reminded the world: “I’m Hedvig. And I’m not done.” That night in Paris was my personal final. Not on a scoreboard — but in my soul. And in that scandalous cheer of mine, a piece of football history ...

  Inleiding  De kracht achter de glorie De foto’s vertellen het verhaal. Niet van glitter. Niet van media. Niet van scripts. Maar van iets diepers. Een kapitein en een keeper. Twee vrouwen die elkaar vonden op het moment dat de wereld toekeek — en zij hun focus verlegden naar wat écht telde: elkaar. Dit is geen gewone voetbalvriendschap. Dit is Christie Rampone & Hope Solo — de as die een tijdperk van dominantie mogelijk maakte. Hoofdstuk 1 – De rust en de storm Hope Solo was een furie. Een kracht van de natuur. Gedreven, impulsief, op het randje van perfectie én conflict. En dan was daar… Christie Rampone. Rustig. Nuchter. Sereen. Niet om haar te temmen  maar om haar te dragen . Ze stonden symbool voor de balans binnen Team USA. De flamboyante Solo die matchen redde met wonderhanden. De standvastige Rampone die niemand liet ontsporen, niet in de backlijn, niet in het hart van de ploeg. Samen waren ze meer dan de som der delen. Ze waren de ziel van ...

  Christie Rampone – The Captain Who Never Left Us She was never loud. Never needed headlines. She just showed up. And kept showing up — again, and again, and again. From 1997 to 2015, she guarded the U.S. backline like a lighthouse guards a rocky coast. World Cups. Olympics. Friendlies. Crisis moments. She didn’t waver. Not once. She played under Tony DiCicco , stood beside Mia Hamm , lifted gold with Abby , cleared for Hope , and left a legacy for Crystal and Lindsey . Across four eras, she was the constant. In a team of stars, she was the spine. In a world of flash, she was foundation. While others danced, Christie stood firm . She didn't score the goals. She stopped the storms. 50 years today. And still no one has taken her place. Because how do you replace someone who held it all together, so long, so quietly? Happy Birthday, Captain America . We never stopped needing you. And we never will.

  Why Hope Solo Is a Good Role Model They told you she was too loud. Too strong. Too difficult. Too much. But maybe that’s exactly why she’s the role model we needed. Because girls don’t just need someone who smiles for the cameras. They need someone who shows what it looks like to speak up — even when it costs you. They need to see that being emotional doesn’t make you unstable. It makes you human . That standing your ground doesn’t make you arrogant — it makes you brave . Hope Solo didn’t fit the mold. She broke it. And for every girl who’s ever felt too intense, too serious, too different… she said: “Be all of it. Be you . And don’t apologize.” She’s not a polished fairy tale. She’s a fighter. A woman who fell, and got back up. Again. And again. And again. That’s not a scandal. That’s strength. So if you’re looking for a role model who teaches perfection — look elsewhere. But if you’re looking for someone who teaches resilience, truth, and surv...

Before social media. Before primetime coverage. Before the world watched… She was the moment. Not because she asked for it — but because she earned it. In 1999, she filled the Rose Bowl before anyone thought it was possible. They laughed when she booked it months in advance. Then they cried when history was made. 158 goals. Countless assists. Two World Cups. Two Olympic golds. But her numbers are just echoes. Her impact is what remains. She inspired a generation — and then another. And even now, when she walks into a room, it’s as if time itself pauses. An Icon Beyond Borders She didn’t just belong to the United States.She belonged to the game. Whether in Tar Heels blue or USWNT red,Mia Hamm moved with a clarity few ever reach —a purpose that made fans from every corner rise. She broke records,but more than that — she opened gates. Before club banners and before packed stadiums,she was already a beacon.For girls in Brazil, boys in Japan, dreamers in Nigeria…Mia Hamm meant: You can. S...

  Giulia Gwinn – Die Eleganz der Rückkehr Manche Spielerinnen stürzen. Manche stehen wieder auf. Und dann gibt es Giulia Gwinn – die mit einer solchen ruhigen Kraft zurückkehrt, dass man vergisst, dass sie je gefallen ist. Ihr Name klingt wie Musik. Und wenn sie die Linie entlangläuft, scheint sich das Gras zu neigen, als erkenne es ihren Rhythmus. Technik und Spielintelligenz, Tempo und Ruhe — eine seltene Kombination, geformt in Freiburg, gereift in München, und leuchtend auf der Weltbühne, als sie gerade erst ankam. Sie gewann den Goldenen Ball bei der U17-WM. Sie traf bei ihrer ersten Weltmeisterschaft. Sie schien die Antwort auf eine Generationenfrage. Und dann kam die erste Verletzung. Und noch eine. Zweimal das gleiche Schicksal. Aber nie dieselbe Giulia. Sie kehrte zurück. Reifer. Klarer. Noch immer mit dem gleichen Biss, aber mit mehr Tiefe in ihrem Blick. Wie jemand, der weiß: nichts ist selbstverständlich. Sie macht Deutschland charmant. In...

  Hope Solo – Where Silence Stops She didn’t just guard the goal. She dared the world to shoot. Every save was a sentence. Every glare, a warning. They say goalkeepers live in isolation. Hope Solo ruled that exile like a kingdom. She played not just with hands and reflexes, but with defiance, instinct, pride. The record books remember the clean sheets. But those who watched remember the presence. The walk. The eyes. The gravity she brought. She wasn’t always understood. But greatness rarely is. She spoke when others stayed silent. She stood when others flinched. And when the world blinked — Hope didn’t. She was more than a goalkeeper. She was a warning. And a promise. That no matter how dark the moment, someone will always rise to meet it.

  Julie Ertz  The Wall With a Pulse Not just a defender. A presence. A pulse behind every clearance, a roar behind every set piece, a shadow that strikers dreaded. She didn’t just play the game. She pressed it to the edge of its limits. From 2015 to 2019, she was the heartbeat of a team that feared no one. In Canada, she was the wall. In France, she was the spine. Always first to put her body where others flinched. And yet — she danced. She laughed. She carried her child onto the field. She reminded the world: You can be steel and soft. Fierce and full of grace. Julie Ertz didn’t just defend. She inspired. And now, the silence after her farewell — isn’t empty. It echoes. Because legends leave shape. And Julie left hers in gold.  

Give Her a Mural. Get Salma. (And Never Forget Who Chelsea Really Is) Chelsea stands at a crossroads. The club that rose to dominance by making bold calls, by refusing to put any one name above the collective, now faces a defining question: Do we stay loyal to yesterday, or do we build tomorrow? Sam Kerr. Legend. Finisher. Icon. But also: injuries, age, and a comeback that – as much as we all hope – might never reach the same level again. Even assuming she returns at full strength is already an optimistic take. And yet the assumption lingers: “She’s Sam, so she starts.” That’s dangerous thinking. Because the future has already knocked – not quietly, but with power and purpose. Enter Aggie Beever-Jones. English. Young. Clinical. Smart movement, ice-cold finishing, born in Chelsea blue. A striker with the potential to become England’s greatest ever. She’s no prospect anymore — she’s the real deal. And if Chelsea benches her to make way for a returning Kerr, what message d...

 Ach… ’t was te verwachten. Niet goed genoeg. Maar laat ons eerlijk zijn: wie dacht nu écht dat we hier gingen winnen? We moeten dit toernooi bekijken zoals de Schotten dat op tornooien doen. Met realisme, met zelfspot, met pinten in de hand. Drie matchen. Drie dagen feest. En als we ergens een puntje pakken, is het bonus. Niet omdat we geen ambitie mogen hebben — maar omdat dromen mooier zijn als je ze niet forceert. Supporter niet omdat je denkt dat we Europees kampioen worden. Supporter omdat je van die kleuren houdt, van de verhalen, van de meisjes op dat veld. En omdat ze, hoe hard het vandaag ook was, wél alles geven wat ze in zich hebben. Maar sportief? Nee. Not good enough. En dat mogen we zeggen. Zeker als we er daarna ook weer staan. En we blijven het herhalen… Zonder betere competitie… Zal dit nooit veranderen. Niet nu. Niet over 30 jaar. Dan volgt die degradatie uit de hoogste groep van de Nations League toch eens een keer. En op termijn speel je zelfs ...

 My Moments with Legends 41-50 Volume 41: Sara Thunebro No Headlines. Just Excellence. You don’t win games just by flair. You win them by people like Sara Thunebro . Quiet. Relentless. Smart. She didn’t need the spotlight. She needed a job to do — and she did it better than most. For years, she owned Sweden’s left side. Not just as a defender — but as a calm, tactical presence you could always count on. She didn’t play for applause. She played for results . When I met her — the same energy. No fuss. No ego. Just intensity in her eyes, and the posture of someone who knows what it means to carry a team without asking for thanks. She gave everything — at club level, in Germany, in Sweden, and always in yellow and blue. Olympics. World Cups. Countless battles. And she did it all with that Thunebro consistency . Sara Thunebro you won’t find her in flashy montages, but ask any teammate… they’ll tell you: you don’t win without a player like her. Volume 42: Jessic...

  Dolores Silva  The Captain Who Never Stopped Believing She arrived when no one was watching. When Portugal in women’s football was little more than a footnote. But she saw something greater. And chose to stay. Dolores Silva, the girl from Barreiro with a fearless dream, left for Germany young – carrying her heart in her suitcase and her future in her boots. At FF USV Jena, alongside Laura Luís, she learned the discipline of those who want more. At Atlético de Madrid, she proved she could lead among giants. But it was with the Portugal shirt that she wrote her most beautiful chapters. When Portugal reached the Euros for the first time, there she was – with the armband, with heart, with courage. A serene leader, a voice that united instead of commanded. She knows every step of the evolution. Every training in the dark. Every tear shed far from home. Every small victory no one wrote about. Today, she is a symbol. A mirror for the young. But more than ...

  Dolores Silva – A capitã que nunca parou de acreditar Ela chegou quando ninguém olhava. Quando Portugal era apenas uma nota de rodapé no futebol feminino. Mas ela viu mais. E decidiu ficar. Dolores Silva, a menina de Barreiro que sonhou alto, foi para a Alemanha muito jovem – como quem leva o coração na mala e o futuro nos pés. No Duisburg e no Jena, aprendeu a disciplina de quem quer mais. No Atlético de Madrid, provou que podia comandar entre gigantes. Mas foi com a camisola das Quinas que escreveu os capítulos mais belos. Quando Portugal chegou ao Europeu pela primeira vez, lá estava ela – de braçadeira, de alma, de coragem. Uma líder serena, uma voz que une em vez de mandar. Ela conhece cada passo da evolução. Cada treino sem luz. Cada lágrima longe de casa. Cada pequena vitória que ninguém noticiou. Hoje é símbolo. Hoje é espelho para as jovens. Mas acima de tudo, hoje continua a correr. Porque para Dolores, a missão nunca foi ser estrela. A miss...

  Imke Courtois – De stem die altijd al aanwezig was Sommige speelsters moet je eerst zien spelen om ze te waarderen. Bij Imke Courtois wist je het al bij het opwarmen. Ze kwam het veld op, deed geen zotte dingen, zwaaide niet overdreven naar de tribune. En toch voelde je het: die gaat iets extra brengen. Geen franje, maar impact . Ze was nog maar 15 jaar toen ze haar opwachting maakte in de ploeg van Wezemaal. Een meisje tussen vrouwen – en toch: ze stond er. Met een natuurlijke rust, met voeten die vooruit dachten, en met een hoofd dat al begreep wat het spel nodig had. Zoals Kompany bij Anderlecht , kwam zij er op haar vijftiende in – en ze is eigenlijk nooit meer weggegaan. Niet uit het spel. Niet uit de studio. Niet uit ons hoofd. Bij Standard Fémina werd ze het referentiepunt van een sterke generatie. Ze was geen roeper, maar een baken. Degelijk, aanwezig, betrouwbaar. Je ging naar de match, en zei: “Courtois speelt, dan wordt het de moeite.” Maar het zou...