History of Alyssa Naeher in Timeline

April 20, 1988

Alyssa Michele Naeher (/nɛər/ NAIR; born April 20, 1988) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Chicago Stars FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL).

2007

Naeher attended Penn State from 2006 to 2009. She started 74 games during that span with a record of 50–19–5, including 24 shutouts. She was a first-team All-American in 2007 and 2008 and was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2007.

2008

In 2008, Naeher was the starting goalkeeper for the U-20 squad that won the 2008 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile. She started and played in all but one game during the tournament. She only conceded one goal throughout the World Cup, which was to North Korea during the final minutes of the championship game. She was awarded the Golden Glove Award as the best goalkeeper in the tournament.

2010

Naeher played college soccer for the Penn State Nittany Lions, earning two-time first-team All-American honors. She began her professional career with the Boston Breakers in Women's Professional Soccer in 2010, but when the league folded, she went to Turbine Potsdam in Germany. She returned to the Boston Breakers when the NWSL formed and was named NWSL Goalkeeper of the Year in 2014. She has been the starting goalkeeper for Chicago since 2016.

August 04, 2010

Naeher was selected by the Boston Breakers with the 11th overall pick in the 2010 Women's Professional Soccer draft; she was the first goalkeeper selected in the 2010 WPS draft. Naeher recorded her first career shutout on August 4, 2010, against the Atlanta Beat. The Breakers finished second in the WPS standings that season but lost the Super Semifinal to the Philadelphia Independence.

May 2013

In May 2013, Naeher signed with the Boston Breakers in the newly formed National Women's Soccer League, returning to the United States after playing for two years in Germany.

December 18, 2014

On December 18, 2014, Naeher made her first appearance and start for the United States Women's National Team in a 7–0 win over Argentina in the International Tournament of Brazil. She played the full 90 minutes and earned her first career shutout.

November 22, 2015

On November 22, 2015, Naeher was traded from the Boston Breakers to the Chicago Red Stars for defender Whitney Engen.

July 2016

In July 2016, Naeher was named to the USWNT roster for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Brazil.

June 2018

Naeher was named Player of the Week in week 6 of the 2018 season by the NWSL Media Association; she was also named to the Team of the Month in June 2018.

August 18, 2018

On August 18, 2018, Naeher earned her 100th NWSL cap in a 2–2 draw against the Portland Thorns FC.

May 02, 2019

On May 2, 2019, Naeher was named to the United States roster for the 2019 World Cup; this was her second World Cup. Naeher entered the tournament as the U.S.'s number one goalkeeper. When Naeher started the team's first group game on June 11, it was the first time in over two decades that neither Hope Solo nor Briana Scurry was in goal for the U.S at a World Cup. Naeher recorded three consecutive shutouts in the group stage as the U.S won 13–0, over Thailand, 3–0 over Chile and 2–0 over Sweden.

June 23, 2021

On June 23, 2021, Naeher was nominated for the 2020 Summer Olympics, which were postponed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Naeher brought her team into the semi-finals with three saved penalties in the quarter-finals against European champions Netherlands: a save in the 81st minute and two additional saves in the penalty shootout. She was in goal until the 30th minute of the semi-final against Canada and then had to be replaced by Adrianna Franch due to injury. Her team won the bronze medal.

2023

Wick Bambix dedicated the song "Alyssa" to Naeher in 2023 .

2024

Naeher made 115 appearances for the United States national team between 2014 and 2024. She was the starting goalkeeper for the winning squads at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2024 Paris Olympics and also played at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, taking home the bronze medal, and the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. She was Hope Solo's backup at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, which the United States won, and the 2016 Rio Olympics. She was named the Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper in 2024.

February 07, 2024

On February 7, 2024, Naeher was named to the roster for the inaugural 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup. During the tournament, Naeher played 5 of the 6 matches and also earned her 100th national team cap during the quarter-final match against Colombia, where she kept a clean sheet in a 3–0 victory. Naeher became the third goalkeeper in the history of the USWNT team to make 100 appearances for the senior team, following Brianna Scurry and Hope Solo.

March 23, 2024

On March 23, 2024, Naeher made NWSL history by becoming the first goalkeeper with 50 wins for a single club when the Red Stars defeated Seattle Reign FC in a 2–1 victory.

June 26, 2024

On June 26, 2024, Naeher was named to the United States roster for the 2024 Summer Olympics, her third Olympic tournament. She made seven saves to shut out Germany in the semi-finals, including a game-winning kick save in the last seconds of extra time. She made key saves against Brazil's Gabi Portilho and Adriana in the final, which the United States won 1–0 on a goal from Mallory Swanson.

November 25, 2024

On November 25, 2024, Naeher announced that she would retire from international play at the end of the year. She played her final international game on December 3, 2024, a 2–1 victory over the Netherlands in which she made several strong saves. For her performances during her final year, Naeher was named U.S. Soccer's 2024 Female Player of the Year. Naeher is the second goalkeeper to win this award. Her career was honored by the national team in a pre-match ceremony before the US Women's 3–1 friendly win against Portugal on October 26, 2025.