The two-time World Cup and Olympic gold medalist Becky Sauerbrunn has announced her retirement from professional soccer.
Sauerbrunn announced her retirement on Dec. 17 during a press conference. She has been one of the greatest defenders on the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) for the past decade. She made her debut with the national team in 2008, and 16 years later, she chose to hang her boots.
National Team Caps
Following her call to the national team in 2008, her time with the team was short-lived, following an incident in which her nose broke. This setback only pushed her for a greater comeback in 2010. This marked her dominance and impact on the team, with the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup around the corner. She was on the starting roster against France in the semi-final games at the tournament. The team fell short in the finals, losing 3-1 in penalties to Japan.
She continued showing dominance on the team and was named to the 2012 Summer Olympics. The USWNT had a great run at the games without conceding a goal to the opponents and beating Japan in the finals (2-1) to claim gold. Sauerbrunn came off the bench in three of the six games at the tournament, but her impact on the defense played a great role in solidifying the USWNT’s dominance against its opponents. Sauerbrunn became a regular at the National Team camps, representing the USA at international tournaments across Europe and the Americas.
She cemented her role on the team and soon was a starting player on the roster. Her defensive role in making great saves and commanding a force in defense led to the USA winning gold at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada.
In her sixth year with the national team, she was named as a team captain, leading the USWNT to the 2016 Olympic Games. Sweden knocked the USA out in the quarter-finals. She continued her campaign with the USWNT, securing gold at the 2019 World Cup games. She also featured for the national team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics Games, where the team secured bronze.
The 2024 Paris Olympics were the first Olympic Games she had not been on the roster since 2008. By the end of her career, she had 219 National team caps.
Club Level
Sauerbrunn has a long record of the clubs she played for during the formative years of the NWSL and through the years of the new NWSL. She played for the Boston Renegades in the United Soccer Leagues before transferring to the Richmond Kickers Destiny. Most of her time with these clubs was just a season before progressing to the next club. In 2008, she was drafted by the Washington Freedom as a third overall pick in the Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) Draft. During the offseason, she had a short stint with Roa IL in Norway, playing in the Women’s Professional Soccer league.
She played for the Washington Freedom for two more years, even after the club was rebranded as Magic Jack in 2011. Her time with the Sky Blue FC in 2012 was short-lived due to the legal disputes within the WPS, which led to the folding of the league.
In 2013, the NWSL was announced, and she was selected to join FC Kansas City, where she played for four years. She was named Defender of the Year in 2013, 2014 and 2015, setting a new record for the young league.
In 2018, she joined the Utah Royals, continuing her dominance in the defensive position, earning her the fourth title as Defensive Player of the Year.
She announced her retirement while playing for the Portland Thorns FC, with who she has been for the past four years.
She retires as a three-time NWSL champion: in 2014 and 2015 with FC Kansas City and in 2022 with the Portland Thorns.
College Career
She attended the University of Virginia, where she played on the college team, earning several honors. In 2003, she was named to the first All-Conference Team and the ACC Defensive Player of the Year. She was also named the 2003 ACC Freshman of the Year. For her next college years, she was named on the Academic All-American teams, ACC All-Tournament Team, ACC All-Academic Team and NSCAA All-Region honors.
Vocal Leader
In the book The National Team: The Inside Story of the Women Who Changed Soccer by Caitlin Murray, Sauerbrunn’s name is mentioned time and again because of the pivotal role she played in speaking up against any discrimination toward wage inequities in women’s soccer athletes are subjected to. Her leadership has been groundbreaking in today’s equity and bargaining position women in the NWSL have.
Life After Soccer
Despite hanging her boots, the veteran made it clear she would not step away from the green turf. She will continue to actively engage in soccer and play other roles within the sport.
