Sam Kerr

Kerr was described by FIFA as being in a relationship with American soccer player Kristie Mewis. The pair began communicating through social media during the COVID-19 pandemic and later confirmed their romance after Mewis comforted Kerr following the Tokyo Olympic bronze-medal match.

Kerr comes from a prominent sporting family. Her father, Roger Kerr, was born in Kolkata and became a professional Australian rules football player, while her brother Daniel Kerr played professional Australian rules football for the West Coast Eagles. Her mother, Roxanne Kerr, was also part of a family with several Australian rules football players.

Kerr grew up in East Fremantle in a family devoted to Australian rules football. She played the sport as a child but stopped at age 12 after injuries and the physical demands of competing against boys. She then took up soccer with Western Knights at Mosman Park.

Her ability became evident quickly. At 13, she ran approximately 70 metres before scoring for Western Australia against Queensland players who were two to three years older. In 2008, she joined Perth Glory and became part of Australia’s under-17 and under-20 national teams.

Kerr made her senior debut for Australia against Italy in 2009, aged 15. The following year, she helped the Matildas win their first AFC Women’s Asian Cup title, scoring the opening goal in the final against North Korea. She later represented Australia at the 2011, 2015 and 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cups, as well as the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games.

Named Matildas captain in 2019, Kerr scored four goals in Australia’s 4-1 World Cup group-stage victory over Jamaica. At the Tokyo Olympics, she scored six of Australia’s 11 goals and found the net in the bronze-medal match against the United States. That goal was the 48th of her international career and made her the Matildas’ all-time leading scorer.

At the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, Kerr scored seven goals and won the tournament’s Golden Boot. She also surpassed Tim Cahill to become the highest-scoring Australian international footballer, male or female.

Kerr played for Perth Glory before moving through the American professional game with Western New York Flash from 2013 to 2014, Sky Blue FC from 2015 to 2017, and the Chicago Red Stars from 2018 to 2019. With Sky Blue FC in 2017, she became the NWSL’s all-time leading scorer after recording her 34th career goal against FC Kansas City. She won the NWSL Most Valuable Player award for the 2017 and 2019 seasons.

In Australia, Kerr won the Julie Dolan Award in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons. During the 2018-19 W-League season, she became Australia’s first female football marquee signing with Perth Glory, scored 17 league goals and led the competition in scoring. In 2019, she also became the W-League’s all-time leading scorer.

Kerr signed with Chelsea in late 2019 and made her debut early the following year. She helped Chelsea win the 2020-21 Women’s Super League title, scoring 21 goals and winning the WSL Golden Boot. The Australian national team profile lists Gotham FC as her current club and Chelsea FC among her previous clubs.

Kerr is one of only three players to score more than three goals in a FIFA Women’s World Cup match, after scoring four against Jamaica in 2019. She holds the NWSL record for goals in a season with 18 and is the only player to record at least 10 goals in three consecutive NWSL campaigns. She also shares the competition record for most goals in a single game and has the most hat-tricks in one NWSL season.

She has finished as the leading scorer in three different leagues on three continents and has topped a league’s scoring charts seven times. Kerr is also recognised for her aerial finishing. In her first full WSL season, she scored nine headed goals in 22 appearances, setting a record for headers in a season.

Her honours include the PFA Women’s Footballer of the Year, three ESPY awards for Best International Women’s Soccer Player, the Julie Dolan Award, the WSL Player of the Season award and the Order of Australia medal. She was the first female footballer to appear on the global cover of the FIFA video-game series, alongside Kylian Mbappe on the FIFA 23 Ultimate Edition.

Kerr taught herself to perform a backflip at age nine and began using it as an occasional goal celebration. She has described the move as spontaneous, particularly after an important goal or in a major match.

Chelsea initially tried to discourage the celebration because of the risk of injury but later embraced it, including the move in a sign at Stamford Bridge.