USWNT defender Naomi Girma has completed her move from the San Diego Wave to Chelsea, making it the most expensive transfer in women’s soccer history.
athletic It was reported earlier this week that Chelsea had reached an agreement with the Waves to sign Girma for a record $1.1 million, according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The 24-year-old was under contract in San Diego until 2026, so the contract required a fee, which made her the first women’s soccer player to earn more than $1 million.
The deal surpasses the previous record €735,000 paid by Bay FC for Zambian forward Rachel Kundananzi at Madrid CFF in February 2024.
Girma has attracted considerable interest from elsewhere in Europe, with eight-time European champions Lyon coming up with a $1 million offer.
deeper
The first $1 million female soccer player will be a defender, and it feels like a perfect fit.
“I’m so happy to be here, I’m really happy,” Girma told Chelsea’s website. “It doesn’t feel real.
“There are many things about Chelsea that made me want to come here: the culture, the winning mentality, the staff and the players. It’s the best environment to learn and grow.
“That’s exactly what I want to do right now. “It was an easy choice for me.”
Girma appears at Stamford Bridge stadium ahead of the Women’s Super League match against Arsenal (Bradley Collyer/PA Images via Getty Images)
The Waves were prepared to lose a center back for the 2025 season when they signed 17-year-old Trinity Armstrong from the University of North Carolina to a three-year deal last week.
Girma joins the Wave as the first pick of the 2022 NWSL Draft after playing at Stanford at the collegiate level. She was named NSWL Defender of the Year in 2022 and 2023 and was part of the Wave team that won the NWSL Shield in 2023.
Chelsea now have added depth at centre-back after losing Canada international Kadeisha Buchanan to an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury last December.
Sonia Bompastor’s side are leading the Women’s Super League and have qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League, where they are yet to win.
Analysis by Jeff Rueter, senior football writer for The Athletic
When the United States won Olympic gold in 2024, Girma’s praise echoed as loudly as that of the team’s offensive trio of Sophia Smith, Trinity Rodman and Mallory Swanson.
Even with the advancement of modern metrics, it’s difficult to quantify a defender’s value in numbers. Instead, a combination of data, eye exams, and expert approval helped us get to that point. Girma quickly rose to the top of his position.
“She is the best defender I have ever seen.” Former Chelsea manager Emma Hayes said this after the team’s resounding win over Germany in the Olympic semi-finals. “Always. She has it all: calm, composed, protective, anticipating, leading.”
In Germany’s win, Girma completed more passes than any other player attempted. She shut down the German attackers whenever they got close to the final third. She held the ball for 687 meters, 24% of the USWNT’s total distance, giving her teammates valuable time to make off-the-ball moves.
Currently, Girma is in a class of her own. By many people’s estimation, she is the best player at her position in the women’s game around the world. The position also allows her to participate in broader conversations about the sport’s best athletes. And in that regard, she’s on her way to becoming the best in USWNT history.
deeper
Who is Naomi Girma? USWNT defender’s transfer fee exceeds $1 million with Chelsea move
How does Girma’s fee compare to other players in women’s football?
Girma’s transfer fee marks the fourth time the women’s transfer record has been broken in less than three years. It was broken twice in one month in 2024.
This also marks the third time that Chelsea has signed a player for a female transfer fee, following Myra Ramirez from Levante in 2022 and Pernil Harder from Wolfsburg in 2020.
deeper
The women’s world transfer record has been broken three times in 18 months. Is that good or bad?
Analysis from The Athletic’s tactical writer Michael Cox
Normally it takes a few games for a centre-back to realize his full potential, but something is different in Girma’s case. She seems to be the perfect defender, reading the game well, covering the space behind her well and being able to fight physically without having to rely on stamina.
Perhaps the only thing she lacks is true aerial dominance. At 5ft 6in (1.68m), she is not a huge presence and won just 51.5% of her aerial duels in the NWSL last season. These are not particularly reassuring figures for a centre-back. But the fact that she can dominate her penalty box despite her relative lack of aerial power almost adds to her aura.
It also speaks to the overall development of the women’s game. While the men’s game has steadily reduced its diet around long balls and crosses, the women’s game has evolved in a different way, focusing on ground attacks through technique or speed. For example, in the Women’s Super League, aerial duels occur only about 75% of the time compared to the Premier League.
Of course, being the most valuable footballer in the world does not mean being the absolute best footballer. Despite this, the centre-back feels particularly striking. Even before Girma’s move, 10 of the 50 most expensive transfers in the women’s game involved defenders, while only 6 of the top 50 most expensive transfers in the men’s game were defenders.
First of all, the next generation of soccer players may grow up wanting to play on defense.
(Top photo: Luis Robayo/AFP via Getty Images)
