Mia Hamm could do it all as a footballer. One of the first superstars of the women’s game, the USA icon made her international debut aged just 15 and went on to win two FIFA Women’s World Cups™ and two Olympic gold medals, as well as being twice named FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year.
So talented is USA’s second all-time leading scorer that she even played in goal — albeit very briefly — during the FIFA 1995 Women’s World Cup Sweden™ when Briana Scurry was sent off against Denmark and coach Tony DiCicco had used all of his available substitutes. Naturally, she kept a clean sheet.
Nowadays, Hamm is fully immersed in the business of sport as a co-owner of Major League Soccer club LAFC and the National Women’s Soccer League’s Angel City FC.
She is also dedicated to her philanthropic endeavours with the Mia Hamm Foundation, which promotes awareness of and raises funds for families in need of bone marrow or cord blood transplants. The charity was created following the death of her older brother Garrett from complications of aplastic anemia.
This weekend, Hamm will team up with fellow USA icon Alex Morgan to put on the Goal Cup charity football match at the University of Southern California’s Rawlinson Stadium in Los Angeles, which will raise money for both their foundations. Prior to the event, Hamm spoke to FIFA about her illustrious career and her most memorable Women’s World Cup moments.
Mia Hamm: I was very young, I would say we moved there when I was one. My dad was going to graduate school at the University of Florence and my parents developed a love of the game being in Florence surrounded by Italians and Fiorentina fans. He would watch soccer on TV with one of his neighbours and when we moved back to the States and we all came of age to play, my dad had a greater respect and love for the game that he probably didn’t have when he moved over there.
I don’t think I was ready at all! I think our coach [Anson Dorrance] saw the potential in me and back then the national team got together for maybe four games a year, or if we were lucky six. It was more in terms of in the future, there were talks of me going to the University of North Carolina and playing for him. Also more so, just seeing if I could handle it. I was pretty green when I joined the national team. I had a lot to learn and a lot to develop as a football player.
We were excited about competing. It was a really condensed tournament, there were 12 teams and we played every other day so it was pretty intense. But representing your country and what we all felt was the biggest tournament we could play in was exciting and to be the first-ever to win it was historic and enabled us to move forward and keep building the women’s game.
It was. I messed around in a couple of drills [in goal] but what happened was that we had used all of our subs and then Bri was given a red card for an intentional handball outside the box. So I remember our coach Tony DiCicco coming over and saying, ‘Hey, you need to go in goal’, which made sense at the time as we were up 2-0 and you wouldn’t put one of your centre midfielders or backs in goal, so it was just pulling me out of the front line. The first shot I had to face was a 19-yard free-kick! It was probably the longest 11 minutes of my playing career.
Yes, and our defenders put in extra effort to make sure they limited the number of shots that could threaten our goal.
Oh yeah. They don’t want me in there at 5ft 5in on a good day!
So much credit goes to the World Cup committee to make that change and push FIFA and US Soccer to have it in bigger venues across the country. They believed in not only our team but all the women’s teams, and not just make history but create a legacy that we could build on to where the game is today.
In terms of my evolution as a player and a goalscorer, after the 1996 Olympics we played England in San Jose and I scored three goals and they were all very different. They were thoughtful goals, and as someone who played up top and really cared about her craft, I really wanted to learn to be a goalscorer. I didn’t want to be someone who just scored goals, so that was using the right surface, the right texture, the right pace… understanding the positioning of the goalkeeper as well as the defenders and whether I needed to hit a driven ball or bend a ball or chip a ball.
All these things were part of my development and in that game I had three very thoughtful and sophisticated goals. In terms of my development as a player, I was very proud of that and it gave it so much confidence going forward.
It wasn’t as crazy as people made it out to be. I am the fourth of six kids and I always knew where I stood in the family. There was never a dispute in pulling your weight. I played on an incredible team that I gained so much knowledge and confidence from every single day. These women invested in me and I in them in making each other better and I couldn’t do what I did without them. So I think it was pretty easy to stay focused and stay grounded because I feel that’s who I am. Also, my focus was never on me and what it brought me, I just wanted to use my talents to better the team.
I think Emma has brought a new-found joy and confidence to this team. She’s brought an enthusiasm which has really elevated and challenged the veteran players and given confidence to the younger players. She’s given a lot of players a run [and] their first cap. I think tactically she is incredibly insightful but she takes the time to get to know her players and put them in the best position to succeed. As a player when you know you have not just the confidence in your coach and team-mates but that you feel prepared, that’s something that brings extra energy and life to your team.
I used to do this [charity] game a long time ago when I first started my foundation and Alex has done so many incredible things with her foundation. So we thought it would be a fun way to connect us but also to continue to give back to the groups that mean so much to us with this charity game. It will be celebrities and former players, some former team-mates of Alex’s. It will benefit our foundations and I’m excited to see everyone. Using the game that has given us so much to give back to young girls has been really important to both of us.
