Nadine Keßler

Nadine Keßler (German pronunciation: [naˈdiːn ˈkɛslɐ];[1][2] born 4 April 1988) is a German retired footballer and current UEFA's head of women's football.[3] She played for VfL Wolfsburg and the German national team.[4] Keßler was the recipient of the FIFA World Player of the Year award at the 2014 FIFA Ballon d'Or.

Nadine Keßler
Keßler playing for Germany at UEFA Women's Euro 2013
Personal information
Date of birth (1988-04-04) 4 April 1988
Place of birth Landstuhl, West Germany
Height 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Attacking midfielder
Youth career
SV Herschberg
SV Hermersberg
SC Weselberg
2004–2005 1. FC Saarbrücken
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2005–2009 1. FC Saarbrücken 52 (37)
2009–2011 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam 34 (19)
2011–2016 VfL Wolfsburg 58 (31)
Total 144 (87)
International career
2003 Germany U15 2 (1)
2003–2004 Germany U17 15 (3)
2004–2007 Germany U19 23 (10)
2008 Germany U20 10 (2)
2010–2016 Germany 29 (10)
Medal record
Women's football
Representing  Germany
UEFA Women's Championship
Gold medal – first place2013 SwedenTeam
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

Born in Landstuhl, Keßler was raised in nearby Weselberg, where she attended kindergarten and primary school. As a youth, she began playing for boys clubs[5] SV Herschberg, SV Hermersberg, and SC Weselberg.[6] At the age of 16, she began playing for the female team 1. FC Saarbrücken in the second division.[5] From 2006 to 2007, she was the team's leading scorer.[7]

After graduating from high school in 2007, Keßler began basic training in the Bundeswehr in October 2007. She was stationed in a sports promotion group at the Bundeswehr Sports School in Warendorf and held the rank of Corporal. She also attended the German University for Prevention and Health Management (DHfPG) where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Health Economics in 2012. In 2014, she enrolled in the MBA program at DHfPG.[5]

Club career

1. FFC Turbine Potsdam

Keßler signed with 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam in the top-division Frauen Bundesliga in 2009 at the age of 21.[7] She helped the team finish the regular season at the top of the league table with a 19–1–2 record scoring 11 goals.[8] The team clinched the 2009–10 UEFA Women's Champions League after defeating Olympique Lyonnais in penalty kicks.[9]

VfL Wolfsburg

In 2011, Keßler transferred to VfL Wolfsburg.[10] The team finished second during the 2011–12 regular season with a 18–2–2 record. Keßler scored 11 goals tying for fourth in the league for most goals scored.[11]

During the 2012–13 season, Keßler scored eight goals helping Wolfsburg finish first during the regular season with a 17–3–2 record.[12] She captained the team to win the 2012–13 UEFA Champions League after defeating Olympique Lyonnais 1-0 in the final.[13]

In 2014, Keßler led Wolfsburg to championships in the Frauen Bundesliga and UEFA Women's Champions League.[14] Wolfsburg became the first German team in the history to win the treble of League, German Cup and Champions League. [5] Keßler was awarded the UEFA Best Women's Player in Europe Award.[15] She was awarded the FIFA Player of the Year award in January 2015 having received 17.52% of the vote over Marta (14.16%) and Abby Wambach (13.33%).[14] Upon receiving the award, she said, "It's a reward for hard work, good performances and a good development track. I know it's a trophy for individuals, but I'd never have won it without my teammates."[16]

She signed a new one-year contract on 12 May 2015.[17] She announced her retirement on 14 April 2016.[18]

International career

Keßler represented Germany at the youth level on the under-15, 17, 19, and 20 teams from 2003 to 2008. She made her debut for the senior national team at the 2010 Algarve Cup on 26 February 2010 in a match against Finland after coming on as a 46th-minute substitute for Lena Goeßling and scoring her first international goal in the 77th minute.[19]

Keßler played attacking midfielder for Germany during the 2013 UEFA Women's Euro helping the team win their sixth consecutive trophy with a 1–0 win over Norway.[20]

International goals
Scores and results list Germany's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Keßler goal.
List of international goals scored by Nadine Keßler[21]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
126 February 2010Parchal, Portugal Finland6–07–02010 Algarve Cup
213 February 2013Strasbourg, France France2–33–3Friendly
33–3
411 March 2013Lagos, Portugal Norway2–02–02013 Algarve Cup
521 September 2013Cottbus, Germany Russia2–09–02015 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification
68–0
723 November 2013Žilina, Slovakia Slovakia1–06–02015 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification
84–0
912 March 2014Faro, Portugal Japan1–03–02014 Algarve Cup
108 May 2014Osnabrück, Germany Slovakia4–09–12015 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification

Honours

1. FC Saarbrücken

1. FFC Turbine Potsdam

VfL Wolfsburg

Germany

Individual

References
  1. Krech, Eva-Maria; Stock, Eberhard; Hirschfeld, Ursula; Anders, Lutz Christian (2009). Deutsches Aussprachewörterbuch [German Pronunciation Dictionary] (in German). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. pp. 647, 766. ISBN 978-3-11-018202-6.
  2. Womensoccer is awesome (24 January 2015). "Nadine Keßler ist Weltfußballerin 2014". YouTube (in German). Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  3. "UEFA Women's Champions League: Q&A with Nadine Kessler on new format". uefa.com. 5 December 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
  4. "Steckbrief Nadine Keßler" (in German). dfb.de. Retrieved 27 February 2010.
  5. "Nadine Kessler (26): The German University is Ideal for Competitive Athletes". German University for Prevention and Health Management. 23 May 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  6. "Es ist schön, zu Hause zu sein". Der Pfälzische Merkur. 14 August 2013. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  7. ""Mir imponiert, wie es hier läuft"". 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam. 25 September 2009. Archived from the original on 6 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  8. "Frauen Bundesliga 2009/10". Soccer Way. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  9. "2009/10 UEFA Champions League". Soccer Way. 20 May 2010. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  10. "Nadine Keßler transfers to Wolfsburg" (in German). womensoccer.de. 29 March 2011. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
  11. "2011/12 Frauen Bundesliga". Soccer Way. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  12. "2012-13 Frauen Bundesliga". Soccer Way. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  13. Saffer, Paul. "Wolfsburg show teeth to take Lyon's title". UEFA. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  14. "Nadine Kessler beats Abby Wambach for Women's Player of the Year award". Sports Illustrated. 12 January 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  15. "Kessler wins Best Women's Player Award". UEFA. 28 August 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  16. "Kessler: I'm totally overwhelmed". FIFA. 12 January 2015. Archived from the original on 18 January 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  17. "Keßler verlängert in Wolfsburg bis 2016". dfb.de. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  18. Keßler beendet Karriere mit 28 Jahren
  19. "Deutschland – Finnland 7:0 (1:0)" (in German). dfb.de. Retrieved 27 February 2010.
  20. "Women's Euro 2013: Germans win sixth straight European title". BBC Sport. 28 July 2013. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  21. "Players Info Keßler Goals". DFB. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  22. Awards 2014
  23. "IFFHS WOMAN TEAM - UEFA - OF THE DECADE 2011-2020". IFFHS. 31 January 2021.
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