Naomi Girma facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Naomi Girma

Girma with the San Diego Wave in 2023
Personal information
Full name	Naomi Haile Girma
Date of birth	(2000-06-14) June 14, 2000 (age 25)
Place of birth	San Jose, California, U.S.
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Position(s)	Center back
Team information
Current team	Chelsea
Number	16
Youth career
2010–2017	Central Valley Crossfire
2015–2018	Pioneer HS Mustangs
2016–2018	De Anza Force
2016–2018	California Thorns FC
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2018–2021	Stanford Cardinal	68	(8)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2022–2024	San Diego Wave	61	(0)
2025–	Chelsea	5	(0)
International career‡
2016	United States U17
2017	United States U19
2017–2020	United States U20
2022–	United States	48	(2)
Medal record Women's soccer Representing the  United States Olympic Games Gold 2024 Paris Team CONCACAF W Gold Cup Winner 2024 United States CONCACAF W Championship Winner 2022 Mexico
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of May 10, 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of July 2, 2025

Naomi Haile Girma (born June 14, 2000) is an American professional soccer player. She plays as a center back for Women's Super League club Chelsea. Naomi also plays for the United States national team.

Naomi played college soccer for the Stanford Cardinal. She was the captain and helped them win the national championship in 2019. The San Diego Wave FC picked her first in the 2022 NWSL Draft. She won NWSL Rookie of the Year and NWSL Defender of the Year in her first two seasons. She helped San Diego win the NWSL Shield in 2023. In 2025, she joined Chelsea for a record-breaking transfer fee. This was the highest amount ever paid for a female soccer player.

Naomi played for the United States at the under-17, under-19, and under-20 levels. She joined the senior national team in 2022. In 2023, she was named U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year. She won a gold medal with the United States at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She played every minute of every game in that tournament.

Early Life and College Soccer Journey

Naomi Girma was born in San Jose, California. Her parents, Girma Aweke and Seble Demissie, came from Ethiopia. They met in the Bay Area. Naomi has an older brother named Nathaniel. Her family speaks both Amharic and English.

When she was young, Naomi played for Maleda Soccer Club. Her father was the coach of this local team. She went to Hacienda Elementary School and played basketball at the YMCA. She also did gymnastics for five years. But in middle school, she decided to focus on soccer.

Youth Club Soccer

Naomi played for a local youth club called Central Valley Crossfire. She was with them from age 9 to 17. Her coach, Bob Joyce, encouraged her to join Olympic Development Program events. She was even called to a United States under-14 national team camp. Later, she played for other teams like De Anza Force and California Thorns Academy. She also played for Pioneer High School.

When she was a sophomore in high school, she decided to play college soccer at Stanford University. Experts at TopDrawerSoccer ranked her as one of the top college prospects for 2018. She was part of Stanford's top-ranked group of new players, which included Sophia Smith.

Playing for Stanford Cardinal

Naomi played almost every game for the Stanford Cardinal in her first year (2018). She started 22 games and played as a central defender. Her team finished the regular season without losing a game. They won the Pac-12 Conference for the fourth time in a row.

In the NCAA tournament, Naomi played every minute. She scored her first two college goals in a 4–1 win against Ole Miss. Stanford reached the semifinals but lost to Florida State. After the season, she was named to the All-Pac-12 third team. She also made the Pac-12 all-freshman team.

Naomi Girma (right) playing for Stanford in 2019

In 2019, Naomi became team captain and started all 25 games. She played almost every minute of every game. Stanford lost only one game during the regular season. They won their fifth Pac-12 championship in a row. Naomi scored in the last two games of the regular season.

In the NCAA tournament, Stanford made it to the championship game. They tied 0–0 with North Carolina after extra time. Naomi scored her penalty kick in the shootout. Stanford won their third national title! Naomi was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Defensive Player. She also won Pac-12 Defender of the Year.

Naomi missed her entire junior season because she tore her ACL. This season was also affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. While recovering, she was accepted into a special program for business at Stanford.

Naomi returned to play in the fall of 2021 for her senior year. She started all 20 games. Stanford finished fourth in their conference. They lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Even so, Naomi was named Pac-12 Defender of the Year again. She also made the first-team All-Pac-12 and first-team All-American. After this season, she decided to become a professional player. She graduated with a degree in symbolic systems in 2022.

Professional Club Career

Playing for San Diego Wave

Naomi Girma with the Wave in 2024

The new team, San Diego Wave FC, chose Naomi as the very first pick in the 2022 NWSL Draft. She played her first professional game on March 19, 2022. She started in a 1–1 tie against Angel City FC. This was during the NWSL Challenge Cup.

She started 19 games in the 2022 regular season. She mostly played alongside Kaleigh Riehl in defense. San Diego finished third in the league. They were the first new team to make the playoffs in their first season. In the playoffs, they won against the Chicago Red Stars. But they lost to the Portland Thorns in the semifinals.

During her first year, Naomi was named NWSL Rookie of the Month twice. She was also chosen for the NWSL Best XI First Team. She won both the NWSL Rookie of the Year and NWSL Defender of the Year awards. She was the first NWSL player to win multiple awards in her first season.

On June 14, 2023, the Wave announced that Naomi signed a new contract until 2026. She started 19 games in the 2023 season. She helped her team allow only 22 goals all season, which was second best in the NWSL. San Diego won the NWSL Shield for having the best record in the league. However, they lost to OL Reign in the semifinals. At the end of the year, she was named to the NWSL Best XI First Team again. She also won NWSL Defender of the Year for the second year in a row.

In 2024, Naomi helped her team win the season-opening 2024 NWSL Challenge Cup. They beat NJ/NY Gotham FC 1–0. She played in 20 games during the 2024 regular season. However, the Wave finished 10th and missed the playoffs. Naomi was still named to the NWSL Best XI Second Team.

Moving to Chelsea

On January 26, 2025, the Women's Super League club Chelsea announced they signed Naomi. She joined them on a four-and-a-half-year deal. The transfer fee was about $1.1 million (£890,000). This broke the world record for a women's soccer transfer. Naomi became the first female player to be sold for over $1 million.

She missed the start of the season due to an injury. She played her first game for Chelsea on March 2, 2025. It was a 2–2 tie against Brighton & Hove Albion.

International Career with the United States

Naomi Girma has played for the United States at different levels. She played for the under-17, under-19, and under-20 teams. She also plays for the senior national team. She was the captain of the under-20 team that won the 2020 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship. In December 2020, Naomi won the 2020 U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year award.

Naomi was first called to the United States senior team in December 2019. But she had to miss it due to an injury. She was called up again in October 2020. She made her debut for the senior team on April 12, 2022. This was in a friendly game against Uzbekistan. She also played in the 2022 CONCACAF W Championship. She helped Sophia Smith score a goal against Jamaica in that tournament.

In June 2023, Naomi was chosen for the US team for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. This tournament was held in Australia and New Zealand. She started as a defender in the team's first game against Vietnam. The US won 3–0. She helped set up the second goal by passing the ball to Alex Morgan. Naomi was named U.S. Soccer's 2023 Female Player of the Year. She was the first defender to win this award. The defense she was part of allowed very few goals that year.

In 2024, Naomi played for the US in the first 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup and the 2024 SheBelieves Cup. She was also chosen for the 18-player team for the 2024 Summer Olympics in France. Many people said she was the team's most important player during the Olympics. She was the only player on the field to play every minute of the tournament. The United States won the gold medal game against Brazil 1–0. She scored her first two international goals in a friendly game against Argentina on October 30, 2024.

In January 2025, she had to leave the US team due to an injury.

Style of Play and Skills

Naomi Girma is known as one of the best center backs in the world. She is praised for being calm, smart, and a great leader. When she was younger, she played as a central or defensive midfielder. But she changed to center back at a youth national team camp.

She is good at predicting what will happen in the game. She positions herself well to stop attackers. She can also use her speed to beat opponents one-on-one. Naomi has good technical skills and passes the ball well to start plays. In 2024, the United States head coach Emma Hayes said Naomi was "the best defender I've ever seen."

In December 2024, The Guardian newspaper voted her 10th among the top 100 women's soccer players in the world.

Career Statistics

Club Appearances

International Appearances

International Goals

International goals scored by Naomi Girma

No.	Cap	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	42	October 30, 2024	Lynn Family Stadium, Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.	Argentina	1–0	3–0	Friendly
2					3–0

Awards and Honors

Stanford Cardinal

• NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament: 2019

San Diego Wave

• NWSL Shield: 2023
• NWSL Challenge Cup: 2024

Chelsea

• Women's Super League: 2024–25
• Women's FA Cup: 2024–25

United States U17

• CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship: 2016

United States U20

• CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship: 2020

United States National Team

• Summer Olympic Games Gold Medal: 2024
• CONCACAF Women's Championship: 2022
• CONCACAF W Gold Cup: 2024
• SheBelieves Cup: 2023, 2024

Individual Awards

• CONCACAF W Championship Best XI: 2022
• U.S. Soccer Player of the Year: 2023
• U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year: 2020
• NWSL Defender of the Year: 2022, 2023
• NWSL Rookie of the Year: 2022
• NWSL Best XI: 2022, 2023
• NWSL Second XI: 2024
• NCAA Division I Tournament Most Outstanding Defensive Player: 2019
• Pac-12 Defender of the Year: 2019, 2021
• The Best FIFA Women's 11: 2024
• ESPN FC Women's Rank: #2 on the 2024 list of 50 best women's soccer players
• IFFHS Women's World Team: 2024

See also

In Spanish: Naomi Girma para niños