WOMEN'S WORLD CUP 2023
Who is Alyssa Thompson? Top draft pick becomes youngest player in USWNT squad
The 18-year-old has played just five games for Angel City FC in NWSL but was named in Vlatko Andonovski’s World Cup roster.
USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski has selected his 23-player roster for the 2023 FIFA World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Included in the squad was 18-year-old Alyssa Thompson, who has been one of the breakthrough stars in NWSL this season.
Thompson will become the first teenager to represent the United States at a World Cup since 1995 (Tiffany Roberts and Holly Manthei). The Angel City FC attackerhas played just 11 games for the club but has certainly impressed in her short time in the league.
Here’s our guide for the young forward set to make headlines for USWNT...
Prodigious talent showed from the start
Thompson’s incredible rise began in 2013 when her parents took her to the Total Futbol Academy. Shortly after she moved to Elite Clubs National League side Real So Cal, where she was soon playing alongside players four years older than her.
She starred for Harvard-Westlake School during her high school years, scoring an incredible 48 goals in 18 games. At the age of 15 she received an offer from the Cardinal of Stanford University and gave a verbal commitment to join their program.
By the age of 17 she was the star of the USWNT Under-20 team and had signed a sportswear deal with Nike, becoming the first high schooler to sign with the iconic brand.
She had a place at college guaranteed but opted out of that agreement to enter the NWSL Draft for 2023. By this point her reputation was so impressive that she went as the number one draft pick, signing with Angel City FC.
She scored on her professional debut, a friendly match against Club América, within five minutes of entering the game. She also scored on her NWSL debut for Angel City, scoring in a 1-2 loss against NJ/NY Gotham FC.
Andonovski highlighted Thompson’s talents earlier this year
The forward starred at the Under-20s Women’s World Cup last summer and admitted that she had her eye on a full USWNT call-up. After making her debut for the senior team against England last October she has impressed Andonovski were her talents and her attitude.
Earlier this year he confirmed that she was in contention for a place in the World Cup squad.
“If there’s a coach that believes in Alyssa Thompson, it would probably be me,” Andonovski told GOAL.
“Not long ago when she was 17 years old, her first cap was against one of the best teams in the world in front of 80,000 people, and that was a decision that I made. So that speaks of how much I value Alyssa and how much I believe in her.”
As a player she stands out for her direct running and ability to play on either wing.
“She is an exciting player,” Andonovski said of Thompson earlier this year. “I almost want to say, sometimes for an 18-year-old, it’s borderline arrogant when she goes at you.”