is a Japanese

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays for

NJ/NY Gotham FC NJ/NY Gotham FC is a professional women's soccer team based in Harrison, New Jersey. Founded in 2006 as Jersey Sky Blue, the team was known as Sky Blue FC from 2008 until 2020. A founding member of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in 2013 ...

. A full international since 2008, she won gold at the 2011 World Cup as well as silver at the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and 2015 World Cup. During the 2011 World Cup, she scored two goals—including a lob at 35 yards away against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

during the semifinals—helping

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

eventually win the tournament for the first time in its history.

Early life

Kawasumi was raised in Kanagawa Prefecture about 40 minutes south of Tokyo where she began playing soccer as a youth following the lead of her older sister. She played for the Rinkan Lemons while in elementary school along with future Japanese national team defender

Megumi Kamionobe is a Japanese football player. She plays for Albirex Niigata and formerly played for the Japan national team. Club career Kamionobe was born in Yokohama on 15 March 1986. After graduating from Musashigaoka College, she joined Albirex Niigata i ...

. Kawasumi and Kamionobe scored approximately 70% of the team's goals. Kawasumi attended

Nippon Sport Science University , abbreviated as , is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo and Aoba-ku, Yokohama. The precursor of the school was founded in 1893, and it was chartered as a university in 1949. The school is known for the many famous athletes among its alumni. ...

Playing career

Club

INAC Kobe Leonessa, 2008–2016

Kawasumi signed with

INAC Kobe Leonessa INAC Kobe is a Japanese football club from Kobe, founded in 2001. INAC stands for International Athletic Club while Leonessa means Lioness in Italian. In 2006 INAC Leonessa was promoted to the Nadeshiko.League, where it has played since 2020. ...

in 2008. In 2011, she was named the league's most valuable player after captaining INAC to its first league championship title. The team finished the 2011 season with a 12–3–0 record and 39 points. During the 2013 season, Kawasumi was named the league's most valuable player for a second time. Her twelve goals were second only to her teammate Beverly Goebel. She was also named to the league's Best Eleven team for the fourth year in a row. INAC finished first in the league with a 16–0–2 record securing their third championship in three consecutive years. Their 48 points were 10 more than second place team Nippon TV Beleza. During the

2013 International Women's Club Championship The 2013 International Women's Club Championship was the second worldwide international women's football club tournament, and was held in Japan from 30 November–8 December 2013. Five teams, comprising representatives from Europe, Australia, Sout ...

, Kawasumi scored INAC's second goal during their 3–0 semi-final win against Chilean team, Colo-Colo Femenino. INAC Kobe won the tournament with a 4–2 win over

Chelsea L.F.C. Chelsea Football Club Women, formerly known as Chelsea Ladies Football Club, are an English women's football club based in Norbiton that competes in the Women's Super League, the top flight of women's football in England. Since 2004, the clu ...

in the final. In September 2014, Kawasumi returned to INAC Kobe Leonessa after she finished the

2014 NWSL season The 2014 National Women's Soccer League season is the second season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division of women's soccer in the United States. Including the NWSL's two professional predecessors, Women's Professional Soccer (2 ...

for Seattle Reign FC on loan.

=Seattle Reign FC, 2014 (loan)

= In February 2014, Kawasumi signed with Seattle Reign FC on loan for the

2014 National Women's Soccer League season The 2014 National Women's Soccer League season is the second season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division of women's soccer in the United States. Including the NWSL's two professional predecessors, Women's Professional Soccer (20 ...

. After scoring two goals including the game-winning goal against the Boston Breakers to lift Seattle to a 3–2 win on 6 July 2014, Kawasumi was named NWSL Player of the Week. A few weeks later during a match against the 2013 champions Portland Thorns FC, Kawasumi scored two goals and served an assist to help the Reign win 5–0. She was subsequently named NWSL Player of the Week for the second time during week 16 of the season. Kawasumi finished the 2014 season, having scored 9 goals and provided 5 assists. And she was selected to the NWSL Best XI for the 2014 Season.

Seattle Reign FC, 2016–2018

In June 2016, Kawasumi re-signed with

NWSL The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a professional women's soccer league at the top of the United States league system. It is owned by the teams and, until 2020, was under a management contract with the United States Soccer Federatio ...

club Seattle Reign FC. Kawasumi scored a brace on her debut against the Boston Breakers just days after re-signing, earning her NWSL Player of the Week honors. Despite her efforts, the Reign finished fifth in the

2016 NWSL season The 2016 National Women's Soccer League season was the fourth season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division of women's soccer in the United States. Including the NWSL's two professional predecessors, Women's Professional Soccer ( ...

, missing the play-offs for the first time in three years. Kawasumi played in all ten matches for the Reign after re-signing, starting eight and scoring three goals. On 13 May 2017, Kawasumi set a new NWSL single-game record with four assists in a 6–2 win over the Washington Spirit. She continued her good run of form in the rest of the 2017 season, playing in all 24 games and scoring six goals. Despite her contribution, Seattle again finished fifth and missed the play-offs. Following the arrival of new head coach Vlatko Andonovski, Kawasumi saw her playing time diminish and finished the 2018 season scoreless. During the offseason, Kawasumi asked for a trade to maximize her playing time ahead of the

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football championship contested by 24 women's national teams representing member associations of FIFA. It ...

and the

2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...

in her home country.

=INAC Kobe Leonessa, 2016 (loan)

= Following the conclusion of

, Kawasumi signed with former club

on loan for the rest of its

2016 L.League The 2016 Nadeshiko League for Japan's women's association football Nadeshiko League was won by NTV Beleza, who have won the title 14 times. Nadeshiko League Division 1 Result League awards Best player Top scorers Best eleven Best youn ...

season. She helped the club win the

2016 Empress's Cup Statistics of Empress's Cup in the 2016 season. Overview It was contested by 48 teams, and INAC Kobe Leonessa won the championship. Results 1st round * Hiroshima Bunkyo Women's University High School 0-3 Clubfields Linda *Fujieda Junshin High ...

despite not playing in the final.

Sky Blue FC, 2019–

On 15 January 2019, Seattle Reign FC traded Kawasumi to fellow

club Sky Blue FC in exchange for American forward

Shea Groom Shea Ellese Groom (born March 4, 1993) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Houston Dash in the National Women's Soccer League. Groom played collegiate soccer for Texas A&M Aggies before starting her professional ...

International

Carli Lloyd Nahomi Kawasumi Japan vs USA

Kawasumi began playing for the Japan national team, also known as Nadeshiko Japan, in 2008. She scored her first international goal against Finland at the

2011 Algarve Cup The 2011 Algarve Cup was the eighteenth edition of the Algarve Cup, an invitational women's football tournament held annually in Portugal. It took place between 2–9 March 2011. Format The twelve invited teams were split into three groups that p ...

2011 World Cup

During the semi-final match of the 2011 World Cup against Sweden, Kawasumi scored two goals helping Japan win 3–1 and advance to the final against the United States. Kawasumi was in the starting line-up for the first time during the game and scored the equalizer in the 18th minute and the game-winning goal in the 64th. Japan eventually defeated the United States in penalty kicks to clinch the gold medal.

2012 London Olympics

Kawasumi was named to Japan's roster for the

and scored her first goal of the tournament during the team' first group stage match against Canada. Japan defeated Canada 2–1. Japan finished second in their group after tying both

and South Africa 0–0. After defeating Brazil 2–0 in the quarter-finals, Japan faced France in the semi-finals and won 2–1 advancing to the final. The team was defeated 2–1 by the United States in the final earning Japan a silver medal at the tournament. Kawasumi finished the tournament having played in every match for Japan and scoring one goal.

2015 World Cup

Kawasumi remained an integral part of the Nadeshiko side, helping the team finish runners-up in the

2015 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup was the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international soccer championship contested by the women's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament was hosted by Canada for the ...

. Her cross forced a last-minute own goal by English defender

Laura Bassett Laura Bassett (born 2 August 1983) is an English former football defender who represented England internationally. She played for FA WSL club Notts County, Birmingham City (two separate spells), Arsenal, Leeds Carnegie, Chelsea, and Australian ...

and sent Japan into the final.

2018–

Following Japan's failed qualification to the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

, new national team head coach

Asako Takakura , also known as Asako Takakura-Takemoto or Asako Takemoto due to her marriage, is a Japanese football manager and former player. She played for Japan national team. She is a former manager of the Japan national team. Her husband is former footb ...

left off many veterans (including Kawasumi) in favor of younger players. However, Kawasumi was surprisingly recalled to the Nadeshiko in March 2018, following a two-year absence. Her experience helped the team lift the

2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup The 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup was the 19th edition of the AFC Women's Asian Cup, the quadrennial international football tournament in Asia competed by the women's national teams in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was originally schedul ...

. Faced with a real chance to make Japan's

roster and with playing time diminished at Seattle Reign FC, Kawasumi requested a trade and joined Sky Blue FC in January 2019.

Career statistics

Club

National team

Japan Football Association
/ref>

Honors

; Japan national team *

FIFA Women's World Cup The FIFA Women's World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association ( FIFA), the sport's international governing bo ...

:''Champion'':

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

:''Runner-Up'':

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

* Olympic Games : ''Silver Medal'':

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

AFC Women's Asian Cup The AFC Women's Asian Cup (formerly known as the AFC Women's Championship) is a quadrennial competition in women's football for national teams which belong to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It is the oldest women's international football ...

: ''Gold Medal'':

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

: ''Gold Medal'':

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

* Summer Universiade : ''Bronze Medal'':

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

; INAC Kobe Leonessa *

L.League The , commonly known as the , is a semi-professional women's association football league in Japan. The Nadeshiko League consists of two divisions that correspond to the second and third levels of the Japanese women's football pyramid respective ...

:''Champion'': 2011, 2012, 2013 * Empress's Cup : ''Champion'': 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 * Nadeshiko League Cup : ''Champion'': 2013 *

International Women's Club Championship The International Women's Club Championship (IWCC), previously named the mobcast Cup and the Nestlé Cup for sponsorship reasons, was an international association football knockout cup competition contested by women's champion clubs. It was organ ...

: ''Champion'': 2013 ; Seattle Reign FC *

: ''Shield (regular season winners)'': 2014 ; Individual * Japan Women's Football League :''MVP'': 2011, 2013 :''Top Scorers (1): 2011'' :''Best XI: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013'' *

:''Player of the Week'': Week 13, Week 16 ( 2014 season); Week 11 ( 2016 season); Week 5 ( 2017 season) :''Best XI: 2014''

Personal life

Endorsements

Kawasumi has appeared in commercials for

CalorieMate CalorieMate (カロリーメイト ''karorīmeito'') is a brand of nutritional energy bar and energy gel foods produced by Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., in Japan. It was first released in 1983 debuting with a cheese flavored block. CalorieMate com ...

, Toyota, and skin care line Acnelogy.

References

External links

* * * *
Japan Football Association
* – Kawasumi's Official Blog (Japanese)
Seattle Reign player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kawasumi, Nahomi 1985 births Living people People from Yamato, Kanagawa Asian Games gold medalists for Japan Asian Games silver medalists for Japan Asian Games medalists in football Association football people from Kanagawa Prefecture Expatriate women's soccer players in the United States FIFA Women's World Cup-winning players Footballers at the 2010 Asian Games Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Footballers at the 2014 Asian Games INAC Kobe Leonessa players Japan women's international footballers Japanese women's footballers Japanese expatriate footballers Japanese expatriate sportspeople in the United States Nadeshiko League players Medalists at the 2010 Asian Games Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics National Women's Soccer League players Nippon Sport Science University alumni Olympic footballers of Japan Olympic silver medalists for Japan Olympic medalists in football OL Reign players Women's association football forwards Women's association football midfielders 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup players 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup players NJ/NY Gotham FC players Nadeshiko League MVPs