The United States women's national team has won four World Cup championships and five Olympic gold medals since it became a team in 1985. Women's soccer was first played in the World Cup in 1991, and 1996 was the first year it was an Olympic sport. Team USA has dominated since the get-go. In the process, a number of American female soccer athletes have made a name for themselves as dominant players in their sport. These women, including Mia Hamm, have not only been vital to Team USA's success, but also to increasing the popularity and importance of soccer and women's sports as a whole. Check out the gallery to see the five best USWNT soccer players of all time.
1. Mia Hamm
The only player to rank in the top three in USWNT goals and assists is Mia Hamm. Her 147 assists are the most in Team USA history, and her 158 goals only trail Wambach. A genuine prodigy, Hamm made her USWNT debut at 15 years old.
Despite debuting in 1987, she was able to stick around to win her second Olympic gold medal all the way in 2004. The two-time FIFA Player of the Year is the greatest player to represent the stars and the stripes.
2. Abby Wambach
Abby Wambach knew how to put the soccer ball in the back of the net. She scored a record 184 goals for Team USA, and she added 73 assists to that total. Fourteen of her goals came in World Cup games, and another 24 occurred during the Olympics. Wambach won both the Bronze Boot and the Ball in the 2011 World Cup.
Wambach's resume also includes a FIFA World Cup win, two Olympic gold medals, the nod for FIFA Player of the Year in 2012, and six times being named Team USA's best player.
3. Carli Lloyd
Carli Lloyd was made for the big moments. Some of the most iconic memories in USWNT history come from her ability on the soccer field. The two-time Olympic gold medalist scored the championship game-winning goal in both 2008 and 2012. Perhaps even more famously, Lloyd secured a hat trick with a mid-field snipe over the opposing goalie's head during the 2015 World Cup final.
Lloyd excelled in the spotlight, but she has some of the best longevity in USWNT history, too. Her 316 appearances are the second most ever, and her 134 goals are the third most in program history.
4. Alex Morgan
Alex Morgan was the youngest player on the USWNT during the 2011 FIFA World Cup. Despite her youth, she made a huge impact right away, even becoming the first player to ever both score and assist in a World Cup final. She'd go on to have an immensely successful career before retiring recently in 2024.
Morgan scored 123 goals over her international career, becoming the face of women's soccer and raking up endorsement deals in the process. All in all, Morgan won two FIFA World Cups and an Olympic gold medal.
5. Michelle Akers
Michelle Akers was the first star in USWNT history, and her success has stood the test of time. Akers was the best player during Team USA's championship run in the inaugural FIFA World Cup. She had a record that still stands of 10 goals in that tournament. Akers was responsible for both goals in the championship game of that tournament.
Akers would end up with 107 goals in red and blue in total, and she'd also walk away victorious in the 1999 World Cup and 1996 Olympic Games. She is the only female FIFA Order of Merit winner ever and one of only two women on the FIFA 100 list. She was a true pioneer who proved that female soccer players belong on the same stage as men.
