Alanna Kennedy facts for kids
![]() Kennedy in 2021
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Personal information | |||
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Full name | Alanna Stephanie Kennedy | ||
Date of birth | 21 January 1995 | ||
Place of birth | Campbelltown, Australia | ||
Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
Position(s) | Centre-back / Midfielder | ||
Team information | |||
Current team
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Angel City FC | ||
Number | 14 | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2010–2011 | Sydney FC | 1 | (0) |
2011–2012 | Newcastle Jets | 9 | (1) |
2012–2013 | Sydney FC | 12 | (3) |
2013–2014 | Western Sydney Wanderers | 9 | (1) |
2014–2015 | Perth Glory | 13 | (2) |
2015–2017 | Sydney FC | 24 | (3) |
2016 | Western New York Flash | 17 | (0) |
2017–2020 | Orlando Pride | 60 | (8) |
2017–2018 | → Melbourne City (loan) | 14 | (1) |
2018–2020 | → Sydney FC (loan) | 22 | (3) |
2020 | → Tottenham Hotspur (loan) | 9 | (0) |
2021 | Tottenham Hotspur | 10 | (1) |
2021–2025 | Manchester City | 40 | (1) |
2025– | Angel City FC | 13 | (0) |
International career‡ | |||
2008–2009 | Australia U-17 | 10 | (6) |
2011–2014 | Australia U-20 | 3 | (0) |
2012– | Australia | 139 | (11) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 June 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 July 2025 |
Alanna Stephanie Kennedy (born on January 21, 1995) is an Australian professional soccer player. She plays as a midfielder and centre-back for National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) club Angel City FC. She also plays for the Australia national team, known as the Matildas.
Contents
Early Life and Soccer Beginnings
Alanna Kennedy grew up in Rosemeadow, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. She went to Westfields Sports High School, a special school for athletes. When she was younger, Alanna was the only girl on a boys' soccer team. Later, she played for the Campbelltown Cobras. She also trained with the Girls Skills Acquisition Program (GSAP) at Macarthur Rams. Alanna has said that the Rams training ground felt like her "second home" when she was growing up.
Club Career Highlights
Starting in the W-League
Alanna began her professional career in the W-League (Australia's top women's league). She first played for Sydney FC in the 2010–11 season. The next year, she joined the Newcastle Jets. She then returned to Sydney FC for the 2012–13 season.
After that, she played for Western Sydney Wanderers in 2013–14. In 2014, she joined Perth Glory. In 2015, Alanna went back to Sydney FC and stayed there for two more seasons.
Playing in the NWSL
In 2016, Alanna signed with the Western New York Flash in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in the United States. She played in 17 games that year. Alanna played every minute of the Flash's playoff games, helping them win the 2016 NWSL Championship.
On January 19, 2017, Alanna moved to the Orlando Pride. She played in every game for the Pride in 2017. In the last game of the regular season, she scored a winning goal from a free kick. This helped Orlando reach the playoffs for the first time. In the semi-final, Alanna scored again, but Orlando lost.
In the 2018 NWSL season, Alanna played in 20 games and scored 2 goals. However, Orlando did not make the playoffs that year. In March 2020, the NWSL season was delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Orlando later decided not to play in the special tournament that was set up.
Loan Spells and Moves
Melbourne City FC
Alanna joined Melbourne City on loan for the 2017–18 W-League season. During this time, fans voted her into the Westfield W-League's "Team of the Decade." This team included the best 11 players to ever play in the W-League.
Sydney FC
After one season with Melbourne City, Alanna returned to Sydney FC for the 2018–19 W-League season. On February 16, 2019, she won her third W-League Championship title with Sydney FC. They beat Perth Glory 4–2 in the grand final. She played for Sydney FC again in the 2019–20 season, where they reached the grand final but lost 1–0 to Melbourne City.
Tottenham Hotspur
In August 2020, Alanna moved to the English club Tottenham Hotspur on a six-month loan. This was for the 2020–21 season. In November 2020, her NWSL playing rights were given to Racing Louisville FC. After her loan and NWSL contract ended in December 2020, Alanna decided to stay in England and signed permanently with Tottenham. She left Tottenham on May 25, 2021.
Manchester City
In August 2021, Alanna signed a two-year deal with Manchester City. She joined her national teammate Hayley Raso there. On January 21, 2025, Alanna announced she was leaving Manchester City after three and a half seasons.
Angel City FC
Alanna signed a one-year deal with Angel City FC in the NWSL on January 21, 2025. She also has an option to stay for an extra year. Alanna played her first game for Angel City on March 16, 2025. It was a home game against San Diego Wave FC and ended in a 1–1 draw. On May 9, 2025, Alanna made her first assist for Angel City, helping Christen Press score a goal in a 2–0 win against Utah Royals.
International Career
Alanna Kennedy first played for the Matildas in 2012 against New Zealand. In 2014, when she was 19, she was chosen for the Matildas squad for the 2014 AFC Women's Asian Cup. She played in three games as Australia finished second.
FIFA Women's World Cup Appearances
2015 FIFA Women's World Cup
In May 2015, Alanna was named to Australia's team for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. She was the second youngest player on the team. Alanna played in all five of Australia's matches. The Matildas finished second in their group and moved to the knockout stage. They beat Brazil but lost to Japan in the quarter-finals.
2019 FIFA Women's World Cup
In May 2019, Alanna was again chosen for the Matildas squad for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. This was her second World Cup. She started all four of Australia's matches. In the game against Norway, Alanna received a red card for a foul that stopped a clear scoring chance. Australia then lost the game in a penalty shootout and was out of the tournament.
Olympic Games Participation
2016 Summer Olympics
Alanna played in her first Olympic Games in 2016 in Rio. She played every minute of Australia's four matches. Their quarter-final game against Brazil ended in a 0–0 tie after extra time, so it went to penalties. Alanna was the last player to take a penalty for Australia, but she did not score. Brazil won the match 7–6 on penalties.
2020 Summer Olympics
Alanna was part of the Matildas team for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The Matildas reached the quarter-finals and beat Great Britain. They were then knocked out in the semi-final by Sweden. In the game for the Bronze medal, they were beaten by the USA.
2024 Summer Olympics
On June 4, 2024, Alanna Kennedy was named to the Matildas team for the Paris 2024 Olympics. This was her third time being selected for the Olympic Games.
Other International Success
Alanna was part of the Matildas team that won the 2017 Tournament of Nations. They also beat the United States for the first time ever in that tournament. At the 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup, Alanna scored two goals for Australia. One of her goals was a late equalizer against Thailand in the semi-final. Australia won that game on penalties but lost 1–0 to Japan in the final.
Style of Play
Alanna Kennedy is known for being a very flexible and skilled player. She is good with her right foot and is a specialist at taking free kicks. While she is known internationally as a centre-back (a defensive player), Alanna also plays in the midfielder position.
Career Statistics
Club
Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Sydney | 2010–11 | W-League | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
Newcastle Jets | 2011–12 | W-League | 9 | 1 | — | — | — | 9 | 1 | |||
Sydney | 2012–13 | W-League | 12 | 3 | — | — | — | 12 | 3 | |||
Western Sydney Wanderers | 2013–14 | W-League | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||
Perth Glory | 2014–15 | W-League | 13 | 2 | — | — | — | 13 | 2 | |||
Sydney | 2015–16 | W-League | 12 | 1 | — | — | — | 12 | 1 | |||
2016–17 | W-League | 12 | 2 | — | — | — | 12 | 2 | ||||
Total | 68 | 9 | — | — | — | 68 | 9 | |||||
Western New York Flash | 2016 | NWSL | 17 | 0 | — | — | — | 17 | 0 | |||
Orlando Pride | 2017 | NWSL | 25 | 5 | — | — | — | 25 | 5 | |||
2018 | NWSL | 20 | 2 | — | — | — | 20 | 2 | ||||
2019 | NWSL | 15 | 1 | — | — | — | 15 | 1 | ||||
Total | 60 | 8 | — | — | — | 60 | 8 | |||||
Melbourne City (loan) | 2017–18 | W-League | 14 | 1 | — | — | — | 14 | 1 | |||
Sydney FC (loan) | 2019–20 | W-League | 12 | 3 | — | — | — | 12 | 3 | |||
Tottenham Hotspur (loan) | 2020–21 | Women's Super League | 19 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | 23 | 3 | |
Manchester City | 2021–22 | Women's Super League | 14 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 |
2022–23 | Women's Super League | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
2023–24 | Women's Super League | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 20 | 0 | ||
2024–25 | Women's Super League | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 15 | 1 | |
Total | 40 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 64 | 2 | ||
Angel City FC | 2025 | NWSL | 13 | 0 | — | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||
Career total | 243 | 23 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 271 | 26 |
International
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Australia | 2012 | 7 | 0 |
2013 | 5 | 0 | |
2014 | 8 | 0 | |
2015 | 16 | 0 | |
2016 | 12 | 2 | |
2017 | 11 | 1 | |
2018 | 15 | 3 | |
2019 | 9 | 1 | |
2020 | 4 | 0 | |
2021 | 14 | 1 | |
2022 | 7 | 0 | |
2023 | 11 | 1 | |
2024 | 13 | 2 | |
Total | 132 | 11 |
- Scores and results list Australia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kennedy goal.
No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 March 2016 | Nagai Stadium, Osaka, Japan | ![]() |
3–0 | 9–0 | 2016 Olympics qualifying |
2 | 9 August 2016 | Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador, Brazil | ![]() |
3–0 | 6–1 | 2016 Summer Olympics |
3 | 7 March 2017 | VRS António Sports Complex, Vila Real de Santo António, Portugal | ![]() |
3–0 | 3–2 | 2017 Algarve Cup |
4 | 10 April 2018 | Amman International Stadium, Amman, Jordan | ![]() |
2–0 | 8–0 | 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup |
5 | 17 April 2018 | King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman, Jordan | ![]() |
2–2 | 2–2 | |
6 | 2 August 2018 | Toyota Park, Bridgeview, Illinois, USA | ![]() |
1–0 | 2–0 | 2018 Tournament of Nations |
7 | 6 March 2019 | AAMI Park, Melbourne, Australia | ![]() |
2–0 | 3–0 | 2019 Cup of Nations |
8 | 30 July 2021 | Kashima Soccer Stadium, Kashima, Japan | ![]() |
1–0 | 4–3 | 2020 Summer Olympics |
9 | 27 July 2023 | Lang Park, Brisbane, Australia | ![]() |
2–3 | 2–3 | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup |
10 | 28 July 2024 | Stade de Nice, Nice, France | ![]() |
1–1 | 6–5 | 2024 Summer Olympics |
11 | 31 July 2024 | Stade Vélodrome, Marseille, France | ![]() |
1–2 | 1–2 |
Honours and Awards
Sydney FC
Perth Glory
- W-League Premiership: 2014–15
Western New York Flash
- National Women's Soccer League Championship: 2016
Melbourne City
- W-League Championship: 2017–18
Manchester City
- FA Women's League Cup: 2021-22
Australia
- AFF U-16 Women's Championship: 2009
- AFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament: 2016
- Tournament of Nations: 2017
- FFA Cup of Nations: 2019
Individual Awards
- Sydney FC Player of the Year: 2015–16
- Orlando Pride 2017 Golden Swans: Coaches Award
- FIFPro 2017 Women's World XI shortlist: defender
- IFFHS AFC Woman Team of the Decade 2011–2020
See also
In Spanish: Alanna Kennedy para niños
- List of Perth Glory FC W-League players
- List of Western Sydney Wanderers Women players
- List of foreign FA Women's Super League players
- List of Orlando Pride records and statistics
- List of foreign NWSL players