Japanese · Fuchu, Tokyo, Japan · Born 6 September 1978Japanese midfielder who captained Japan to the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup title, winning the Golden Ball and Golden Boot
Homare Sawa was born on 6 September 1978 in Fuchū, Tokyo, and began playing football at just six years old after a coach spotted her while she was watching her older brother train and invited her to join the boys' team — an early sign of the talent that would make her one of the most decorated players in the history of the women's game. She joined the youth ranks of NTV Beleza and made her senior debut for the club in 1991, still a young teenager. Sawa earned her first cap for the Japanese national team in 1993 and went on to become the sport's definitive Japanese icon, representing her country across an international career spanning more than two decades. A versatile playmaker capable of operating as both a forward and midfielder, she combined technical precision with tactical intelligence that made her the creative heartbeat of the Nadeshiko Japan side for a generation. Sawa's career-defining achievement came at the 2011 World Cup in Germany, where she captained Japan to an unlikely and historic triumph, scoring five goals — including a dramatic last-gasp equaliser in the final against the United States — to win both the tournament and the Golden Ball as its outstanding player, becoming Asia's first World Cup-winning captain in either the men's or women's game. She led Japan to a second consecutive World Cup final in 2015, this time finishing runners-up to the United States. Sawa retired in 2015 having made 205 appearances and scored 83 goals for Japan, both national records that still stand, and having won 11 Japanese league titles and 8 domestic cups across a club career spent almost entirely with NTV Beleza and its successor INAC Kobe Leonessa, aside from brief stints in the United States. She was named Asian Football Confederation Women's Player of the Year and remains one of the most celebrated athletes in Japanese sporting history.
Captaining Japan to the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup title and winning the Golden Ball and Golden Boot
How They Played
Elegant, two-footed midfielder with exceptional vision, composure on the ball and a knack for decisive goals
Lasting Impact
Widely considered the greatest Asian footballer in history and the player who brought Japan's first major honour in the sport
Career Honours
- FIFA Women's World Cup 2011
- FIFA World Cup Golden Ball 2011
- FIFA World Cup Golden Boot 2011
- FIFA World Player of the Year 2011
- Olympic Silver 2012
| Club | Period | Fee | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NTV Beleza | 1991–1999 | — | 136 | 79 |
| Denver Diamonds | 1999–2000 | — | — | — |
| Atlanta Beat | 2001–2003 | — | 55 | 13 |
| Nippon TV Beleza | 2004–2008 | — | 85 | 47 |
| Washington Freedom | 2009–2010 | — | 41 | 6 |
| Nippon TV Beleza | 2009–2009 | loan | 4 | 2 |
| Nippon TV Beleza | 2010–2010 | — | 0 | 0 |
| INAC Kobe Leonessa | 2011–2015 | — | 94 | 12 |
 Japan | — | — | 205 | 83 |
Japanese Athletes