Edite Cristiana Fernandes (born 10 October 1979) is a Portuguese former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

er who most recently played for CF Benfica of the

Campeonato Nacional de Futebol Feminino The Campeonato Nacional Feminino (English: Women's National Championship), also known as Liga BPI for sponsorship reasons, is the top-tier women's association football league in Portugal. It is run by the Portuguese Football Federation and began ...

. She is a former

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

of the

Portugal women's national football team The Portugal women's national football team represents Portugal in international women's football competition. The team is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) and competes as a member of UEFA in various international football ...

, who scored a national record 39 goals in the 132

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

she accumulated between 1997 and 2016.

Club career

Edite began her career with local club Boavista, before moving to

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

side 1º Dezembro at age 19. She would win nine Portuguese Liga titles and three Portugal Cups at the two clubs before moving abroad to play in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. In August 2002 Edite was the

Player of the Match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...

as Beijing Chengjian beat Shanghai SVA on

penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...

in the

Chinese Women's Super League The Chinese Women's Super League (CWSL) is the top level women's association football, football league in China. It was called the Chinese Women's National Football League from 2011 to 2014. History The league started in 1997 as the Chinese Wome ...

final. She has played for several clubs in Spain, and joined Arsenal Ladies F.C. for pre-season training but did not sign a permanent deal with the club. She also played in Norway's

Toppserien The Toppserien is the top level of women's association football in Norway. It was founded in 1984. History Women's league football was introduced on a county basis in 1977. These leagues acted as qualification for the regional (South) league in 1 ...

with

Donn In Irish mythology, Donn ("the dark one", from cel-x-proto, Dhuosnos) is an ancestor of the Gaels and is believed to have been a god of the dead. Donn is said to dwell in Tech Duinn (the "house of Donn" or "house of the dark one"), where the ...

during 2010. Veteran Edite transferred from

SC Braga Sporting Clube de Braga () (), commonly known as Sporting de Braga or just Braga, is a Portuguese sports club from the city of Braga. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portugues ...

to CF Benfica in July 2018. In April 2021, 41-year-old Edite announced her departure from CF Benfica and her retirement as a footballer.

International career

Edite made her Portugal national team debut in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

against

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

at Cantanhede in 1997. In November 2011 she made her 100th appearance for the national team, having scored 31 goals. In March 2016 she moved level with

Luís Figo Luís Filipe Madeira Caeiro Figo (; born 4 November 1972) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a winger for Sporting CP, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan. He won 127 caps for the Portugal national team, a one-ti ...

's total of 129 caps.

International goals

References

External links

*
Edite Fernandes Official
* 1979 births Living people Portuguese women's footballers Portugal women's international footballers Expatriate women's footballers in China Expatriate women's footballers in Spain Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in China Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Spain USL W-League (1995–2015) players FIFA Century Club Primera División (women) players Atlético Madrid Femenino players Zaragoza CFF players FK Donn players Toppserien players Expatriate women's footballers in Norway People from Vila do Conde Portuguese expatriate footballers Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Norway Women's association football forwards Campeonato Nacional de Futebol Feminino players Valadares Gaia F.C. (women) players S.C. Braga (women's football) players S.U. 1º Dezembro (women) players Beijing BG Phoenix F.C. players Sportspeople from Porto District Boavista F.C. (women) players {{Portugal-footy-forward-stub