Soccer (Football)
Top 10 young women's soccer players
Women’s soccer has come a long way as far as talent and popularity, and the incoming class of talent is only going to add fuel to that fire.
Before establishing a dominant career in the German Frauen-Bundesliga, Sarah Zadrazil had a record-breaking, four-year collegiate career at East Tennessee State.
The Austrian midfielder was very fond of her time playing soccer in the United States, saying, “I was the first Austrian to get a college scholarship…we went to the college and I was immediately impressed in the way they were developing football and the opportunities that were there.”
Sarah Zadrazil trains in Munich, Germany on Juli 30, 2021
© Marcel Lämmerhirt / Red Bull Content Pool
Over the past several years, the popularity of women’s soccer has skyrocketed, with legendary players like Mia Hamm and Marta delivering masterful performances that have captured the hearts of sports fans.
This rise in popularity has allowed us to see more and more promising young talent in women’s soccer. In this article, we will share some of the top women’s soccer prospects, including where they play and what makes them special!
01
Trinity Rodman (Forward)
Trinity Rodman
© Matthew Stith / Red Bull Content Pool
- Age: 21
- Height: 5’10"
- Hometown: Newport Beach, California
- Club team: Washington Spirit
Trinity Rodman was drafted second overall by the Washington Spirit in the 2021 NWSL College Draft. At age 18, she was the youngest player ever drafted at the time. Since then, she has more than lived up to the hype. She scored eight goals across 29 appearances during her rookie season, winning the NWSL Rookie of the Year award. That leads to 2022 where Rodman finished 18th in Ballon d’Or Féminin voting. She is currently on the U.S. Women’s National team. On the ball, Rodman is dangerous, adept at getting both herself and her teammates in position to get shots on target.
02
Vicki Becho (Forward)
- Age: 19
- Height: 5’6"
- Hometown: Montreuil, France
- Club team: Olympique Lyonnais
If there’s a soccer prodigy that French fans are most excited for, it’s Vicki Becho. Rising out of PSG’s youth system, Becho has a lot of potential as a forward with dazzling technique and spectacular finishing. The only question for Becho is whether the teenager will be able to secure the consistent minutes at the top level she’ll need to aid her development. However, based on how she’s looked so far, Becho is well on her way to establishing herself as one of the best talents in Europe.
03
Sophia Smith (Forward)
- Age: 22
- Height: 5’6"
- Hometown: Windsor, Colorado
- Club team: Portland Thorns
If Trinity Rodman is the best young American women’s soccer player now, the player that held that spot before her was Sophia Smith. Following a national championship win with Stanford in her sophomore year, Smith was selected first overall by the Portland Thorns in the 2020 NWSL Draft. She has starred several times for the U.S. Women’s National team, scoring 12 goals across 27 appearances. Last year, Smith was sensational, scoring 11 goals (including one hat-trick and three braces) across 17 international appearances and recording 18 goals across 25 domestic appearances in a championship-winning campaign with Portland. Smith also added to the trophy case in 2022, winning MVP of the NWSL Championship game and becoming the first Black woman ever to be voted U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year. Smith has shown fantastic versatility as a forward, with the ability to play either in the center as a striker or out wide as a winger.
04
Julie Blakstad (Midfielder)
- Age: 21
- Height: 5’7"
- Hometown: Stange, Norway
- Club team: Manchester City
Only 21, Julie Blakstad has established a fruitful career already. Beginning her senior career in her home country of Norway in 2018, the midfielder scored 29 goals in 77 appearances across three clubs before moving to Manchester City in January 2022. Blakstad has also become a mainstay for the Norwegian women’s national team, accumulating 19 appearances and three goals. Blakstad has shown throughout her career that she has the creativity to match with her overwhelming self-confidence, allowing her to make her mark on games when chances seem futile.
05
Jule Brand (Forward)
- Age: 20
- Height: 5’10"
- Hometown: Germersheim, Germany
- Club team: VfL Wolfsburg
You have to put up a spectacular performance to win Player of the Match despite coming on as a sub in the 60th minute. That’s exactly what Jule Brand did in her senior international debut, recording a goal and an assist in her first five minutes on the pitch as Germany cruised to a 5-2 victory over Australia. Brand is known for her pace and ability to challenge defenders, playing with supreme confidence at all times.
06
Haley Bugeja (Forward)
- Age: 19
- Height: 5’9"
- Hometown: Pietà, Malta
- Club team: Orlando Pride
It’s hard to imagine a national team that sits 94th in FIFA’s women’s national team rankings has one of the most promising prospects in women’s soccer, but Haley Bugeja is more than deserving of the praise. Bugeja first started making waves at 14, when she led the Maltese Women’s League (top-level league in Malta) with 26 goals in 19 appearances en route to a Golden Boot and a Player of the Year award. The following season, she again won Player of the Year, scoring 26 goals in just 10 appearances. Since then, Bugeja has shown tremendous ability, including a spell at Sassuolo that won her the Best Young Player of the Year award for the 2020-21 Serie A Femminile campaign.
07
Mia Fishel (Forward)
- Age: 22
- Height: 5’7"
- Hometown: San Diego, California
- Club team: Tigres UANL
After a successful three-year collegiate career at UCLA, it seemed like a done deal when Mia Fishel was drafted fifth overall in the 2022 NWSL Draft by the Orlando Pride, who was now being managed by her college head coach. However, for a myriad of reasons including being critical of how the draft process is run, Fishel instead opted to go across the border and play for Tigres UANL in Mexico. During the 2022-23 Liga MX season, Fishel became the first foreign-born player to win the Liga MX Femenil Golden Boot when she scored 17 goals in 17 appearances during the 2022 Apertura.
08
Lauren Hemp (Forward)
- Age: 22
- Height: 5’4"
- Hometown: North Walsham, England
- Club team: Manchester City
Lauren Hemp is one of the most promising young players for an England side that won the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 tournament. Hemp played the corner across that resulted in England’s game-winning goal in the 2022 Final. Starting her professional career at 16 for Bristol City, Hemp scored 9 goals across 24 appearances before moving to Manchester City in 2018. In her career, Hemp has won the PFA Women’s Young Player of the Year award four times, the only player to win the award multiple times. A natural winger, Hemp’s blazing speed and passing ability makes her a headache for any defender unlucky enough to be assigned to her for a match.
09
Lena Oberdorf (Midfielder)
- Age: 21
- Height: 5’9"
- Hometown: Gevelsberg, Germany
- Club team: VfL Wolfsburg
We can’t have a best young players list and not include the best young player from the most recent international competition in women’s soccer. Lena Oberdorf took home the Best Young Player award as she starred for a Germany side that finished as runners-up in the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 tournament. One of Oberdorf’s greatest qualities is her versatility. She can play several positions around the pitch including central midfielder, defensive midfielder and central defender.
10
Diana Ordoñez (Forward)
- Age: 21
- Height: 5’11"
- Hometown: Frisco, Texas
- Club team: Houston Dash
During her three-year career at Virginia, Diana Ordoñez scored 45 goals, tied for third-most in program history. During her third and final year with the Cavaliers, Ordoñez was a first-team All-American, scoring 18 goals across 39 games, and was drafted sixth overall by the North Carolina Courage in the following NWSL Draft. She has shown the ability to dominate in front of goal and will look to parlay that ability into consistent call-ups to the Mexican national team.
Conclusion
Women’s soccer has come a long way as far as talent and popularity, and the incoming class of talent is only going to add fuel to that fire. If you ask any woman on this list, the success has come with great discipline, both in the drills they routinely perform and the mental toughness they bring to the pitch.