Book Mia Hamm

Mia Hamm is the American former soccer star whose skill and scoring helped turn women's soccer into a mainstream sport in the United States. She joined the US national team in 1987 at just 15, becoming its youngest player, and starred as a forward and midfielder until 2004. Hamm won the FIFA Women's World Cup in 1991 and 1999, the latter in front of a packed Rose Bowl crowd that marked a turning point for the women's game. She also won Olympic gold in 1996 and 2004 and silver in 2000. At the University of North Carolina she won four NCAA titles with the Tar Heels. A founding player of the Women's United Soccer Association, the first US professional women's league, she played for the Washington Freedom from 2001 to 2003. She retired as the world's all-time leading international goal scorer at the time, with 158 goals. Her honors include the Honda Sports Award, FIFA World Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002, and induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 2022. Through the Mia Hamm Foundation she supports families needing bone marrow transplants and young female athletes.