Five United States women’s national team players are nominated for the 2024 Women’s Ballon d’Or, an annual award presented by France Football magazine.
Captain and midfielder Lindsey Horan, goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher and forwards Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson were all nominated for the award Wednesday, a few weeks after helping the U.S. win the 2024 Olympic gold medal.
The U.S. co-leads representation on the 30-player shortlist alongside 2023 World Cup champion Spain, which also has five players on the list.
USWNT head coach Emma Hayes, who took charge of the team just over two months before its Olympic triumph, is nominated for Women’s Coach of the Year.
Four of the five USWNT players also play domestically in the National Women’s Soccer League (Horan plays for Lyon in France). The NWSL is further represented by Orlando Pride and Zambian forward Barbra Banda, who ranks second in the league in scoring in her first NWSL season.
NJ/NY Gotham FC is also nominated Women’s Club of the Year after winning the 2023 NWSL Championship.
Rodman, Smith and Swanson accounted for 10 of the USWNT’s 12 goals at the Olympics. They each scored a game winner in three successive 1-0 victories in the knockout stage on the team’s journey to its first Olympic gold…
