Sam Mewis facts for kids
Mewis in 2019
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Samantha June Mewis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | October 9, 1992 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Weymouth, Massachusetts, United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2010 | Scorpions SC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2010 | Whitman Hanson Regional | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Boston Breakers Academy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| College career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2014 | UCLA Bruins | 87 | (31) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Pali Blues | 10 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Western New York Flash | 34 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2020 | North Carolina Courage | 53 | (11) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Manchester City | 17 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | North Carolina Courage | 5 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Kansas City Current | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 119 | (29) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | United States U-17 | 13 | (8) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2012 | United States U-20 | 33 | (8) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | United States U-23 | 6 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2021 | United States | 83 | (24) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Samantha June Mewis (born October 9, 1992) is a former American professional soccer player. She played as a midfielder. Sam Mewis is now the editor-in-chief and podcast host for The Women's Game from Men in Blazers.
Sam grew up in Hanson, Massachusetts. She played college soccer for the UCLA Bruins. In 2013, she helped her team win an NCAA championship. In 2015, the Western New York Flash picked her fourth overall in the 2015 NWSL College Draft. She won her first NWSL Championship with the Flash in 2016.
Later, the club became the North Carolina Courage. With them, she won three NWSL Shields in a row. She also won two Championships in 2018 and 2019. Mewis then joined FA Women's Super League club Manchester City. There, she won the FA Cup in 2020. She played for the Kansas City Current before she stopped playing soccer in 2024. This was because of a long-term knee injury.
Sam played a lot for youth national teams. She joined the United States senior national team in 2014 while still in college. She played 86 games for the national team. She helped them win the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. She also earned a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. In 2020, she was named the U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year.
Contents
Early Life and College Soccer
Sam Mewis was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts. She grew up in Hanson, Massachusetts. Her parents are Robert and Melissa Mewis. She went to Whitman-Hanson Regional High School. There, she played on the soccer team. She scored 77 goals and made 34 assists during her high school years.
Sam grew up playing soccer with her older sister, Kristie. They played for many youth teams, like Scorpions SC. They also played for the United States under-17 and under-20 national teams. Sam was named a Parade All-American twice in high school. In 2010, she was named the national player of the year by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
Playing for UCLA Bruins
In her first year at UCLA, Sam was second on her team in scoring. She had six goals and seven assists. She was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team. In her junior year, Mewis helped UCLA win the Pac-12 championship. They then won their first NCAA championship. In December 2014, she won the 2015 Honda Award for soccer.
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Professional Club Career
Starting with Pali Blues
In 2013, Mewis joined the Pali Blues in the W-League. Her team won the western conference title. They also won the national championship in July 2013.
Western New York Flash (2015–2016)
The Western New York Flash picked Mewis fourth overall in the 2015 National Women's Soccer League draft. She started all 20 regular-season games for the Flash. She scored 4 goals and made 4 assists. This made her one of the top scorers for the team. In September 2015, Mewis was a finalist for the NWSL Rookie of the Year award.
In 2016, Mewis missed some games. She was training with the U.S. national team for the 2016 Summer Olympics. The Western New York Flash finished fourth in the league. They made it to the play-offs. In the semi-final, Mewis scored a goal. This helped the Flash beat the top-ranked Portland Thorns. In the NWSL Championship game, Mewis scored again. The game went to penalty kicks. Even though Mewis missed her penalty, the Flash won the championship 3–2.
North Carolina Courage (2017–2020)
On January 9, 2017, the Western New York Flash team was sold. It moved to North Carolina and became the North Carolina Courage. Mewis had a great 2017 season. She played in every game for the Courage. She scored 6 goals and made 3 assists. She was named to the NWSL Best XI team. She was also a finalist for the NWSL Most Valuable Player Award.
Mewis missed the start of the 2018 season. She was recovering from a knee injury. She played in 17 regular season games. The Courage won their second NWSL Shield in a row. In the play-offs, Mewis started the semi-final game. She scored a goal in the 86th minute. North Carolina won 2–0 and went to their second championship game. She played all 90 minutes in the NWSL Championship game. The Courage beat the Portland Thorns 3–0. Mewis had now won three NWSL Championships.
Because she played in the 2019 World Cup, Mewis only played in 12 regular season games for the Courage in 2019. North Carolina won the NWSL Shield for the third year in a row. They reached the final after beating Reign FC in the semi-final. Mewis scored a goal in the championship game. North Carolina beat the Chicago Red Stars 4–0. They won their second NWSL Championship in a row.
The 2020 season was changed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Mewis played in the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup. She played in five games and scored one goal. North Carolina finished first in the first round. But they were knocked out in the first play-off round by the Portland Thorns.
Manchester City (2020–2021)
On August 10, 2020, Mewis signed with Manchester City. This is an English club in the FA WSL. She played her first game for the club on August 29. It was at Wembley Stadium. She came in as a substitute in a 2–0 loss to Chelsea.
In total, Mewis played 32 games and scored 16 goals for Manchester City. This included the winning goal against Arsenal in the semi-final of the 2019–20 Women's FA Cup. She also scored in the final. Manchester City beat Everton 3–1 in extra time to win the title. City finished second in the league for the fourth year in a row. Mewis was named to the FA WSL PFA Team of the Year at the end of the season.
Return to North Carolina Courage (2021)
On May 17, 2021, Mewis rejoined the North Carolina Courage.
Kansas City Current (2022–2023)
On November 30, 2021, Mewis was traded to Kansas City Current. She had surgery on her knee after the 2021 Olympics. Mewis played in two Challenge Cup games for the Current in March 2022. But she did not play for the rest of that season. She had a second knee surgery in January 2023. This meant she missed the entire 2023 NWSL season.
After the 2023 season, Mewis announced she would stop playing professional soccer. This was because of her long-term knee injury.
International Career
Mewis was part of the United States under-17 team. They finished second at the 2008 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in New Zealand. Her sister Kristie was also on the team. They were the first sisters to play for the United States at a Women's World Cup. They also played together at the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. At the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, Mewis helped the team win the championship. They beat Germany 1–0 in the final.
On January 24, 2014, Mewis was called up to the senior national team for the first time. She played her first game for the team at the 2014 Algarve Cup. This was during the team's second match, a 1–0 loss to Sweden.
After some time away, Mewis was invited back to the senior team. This was after their success at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. She continued to play regularly. She scored four goals in 2016. This included the winning goal against Germany in the 2016 She Believes Cup. That win helped the United States win the trophy. Mewis was named an alternate player for the U.S. women's national team for the 2016 Summer Olympics.
In 2017, Mewis was one of only three players to play in every game for the U.S. women's national team. She played 1,242 minutes, which was the second most on the team. She scored three goals. She was also a finalist for the 2017 U.S. Female Player of the Year.
Mewis hurt her knee in a November 2017 game against Canada. This injury kept her from playing for six months. She missed the 2018 SheBelieves Cup. Mewis returned to play for the U.S. in June 2018 in a friendly game against China. In September 2018, she was named to the team for the 2018 CONCACAF Women's Championship.
In May 2019, Mewis was named to the team for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. She played in 6 out of 7 matches, including the final. She scored two goals. Both goals were in a 13–0 win against Thailand in the group stage. The United States won the 2019 World Cup. They beat the Netherlands 2–0.
In 2020, Mewis played in 8 of the 9 matches for the U.S. team. She started 6 matches and scored 4 goals. In December 2020, Mewis was named the 2020 U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year for the first time. She was the 17th player to win this award.
On January 18, 2021, Mewis scored her first hat-trick (three goals in one game). This was in a 4–0 friendly win against Colombia. Her sister Kristie scored the only other goal in that game. Mewis was on the U.S. team at the 2020 Olympic Games in August 2021. She scored one goal in their quarterfinal win against the Netherlands. She and her team won the bronze medal. They beat Australia 4–3.
Mewis had knee surgeries in 2021 and 2023. This kept her from playing for the national team for a long time. On January 19, 2024, Mewis announced she was retiring from professional soccer. This was due to her long-term knee injury.
Coaching and Media Work
On June 7, 2024, it was announced that Mewis would lead Vermont Green's first-ever women's team. This was for an exhibition game played on June 22. She will continue to advise Vermont Green after the match.
Mewis and Lynn Biyendolo hosted a podcast called Snacks. It was about women's soccer. They hosted it from April 2021 to November 2023. After she retired in January 2024, Mewis joined the Men in Blazers Media Network. She became The Women's Game Editor-in-Chief. Her job includes hosting The Women's Game podcast. This podcast has "Friendlies," where she interviews soccer stars. It also has "Good Vibes FC" with Williams and Becky Sauerbrunn. Mewis also sometimes hosts live post-match coverage for USWNT games.
Personal Life
Sam Mewis's older sister, Kristie, also plays for the United States women's national soccer team. She plays professionally for West Ham United. In late December 2018, Mewis married her longtime boyfriend Pat Johnson in Boston, Massachusetts.
After the United States won the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, Mewis and her teammates were honored. They had a ticker tape parade in New York City. Each player received a key to the city from Mayor Bill de Blasio. After winning the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, Mewis shared that when she was young, her father, Bob Mewis, worked extra jobs. He did this to pay for her and her sister's soccer costs.
Honors and Awards
UCLA
- NCAA Women's Soccer Championship: 2013
Western New York Flash
- NWSL Champions: 2016
North Carolina Courage
- NWSL Champions: 2018, 2019
- NWSL Shield: 2017, 2018, 2019
Manchester City
- Women's FA Cup: 2019–20
United States U20
- FIFA U20 Women's World Cup: 2012
- CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship: 2012
United States National Team
- FIFA Women's World Cup: 2019
- CONCACAF Women's Championship: 2018
- CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament: 2016; 2020
- SheBelieves Cup: 2016; 2020
- Tournament of Nations: 2018
- Olympic Bronze Medal: 2020
Individual Awards
- U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year: 2020
- NWSL Best XI: 2017
- ESPN FC Women's Rank: #1 on the 2021 list of 50 best women's soccer players
- FA WSL PFA Team of the Year: 2020–21
- Honda Sports Award 2015
Images for kids
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Mewis (top) celebrating the 2012 FIFA U20 Women's World Cup win with teammates
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Mewis with the United States women's national soccer team in June 2016
See also
In Spanish: Samantha Mewis para niños
