Fabiana da Silva Simões (born 4 August 1989), known as Fabiana, Fabi Simões or Fabiana Baiana, is a Brazilian

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 lea ...

who plays for

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; ), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian multi sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea. It was founded and named after the Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Flamengo n ...

. Mainly a

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

, she can also play as a

right winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. From 2009 to 2010, Fabiana played in the United States for the

Boston Breakers The Boston Breakers were an American professional women's soccer club based in the Boston neighborhood of Allston. The team competed in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). They replaced the original Breakers, who competed in the defu ...

Women's Professional Soccer Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) was the top-level professional women's soccer league in the United States. It began play on March 29, 2009. The league was composed of seven teams for its first two seasons and fielded six teams for the 2011 ...

(WPS). As well as teams in her native Brazil, Fabiana has played for

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

and

Sporting de Huelva Sporting Club de Huelva is a Spanish women's association football, football club from Huelva, Andalusia. It was founded in Huelva in 2004 as a restructuring of an homonymous junior (men's) football club, which had been founded in 1979 and dissol ...

of Spain's Primera División and

WFC Rossiyanka WFC Rossiyanka was a Russian women's football club from Khimki. History The team was founded in 1990 as Nadezhda Krasnoarmeysk, being initially a futsal club. Futsal was played until 1998, when the club left it to concentrate in association foo ...

of the Russian Top Division. Fabiana has represented the Brazil women's national team since her debut in November 2006 and won a silver medal at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

. She retained her national team place for the

2011 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup was the sixth FIFA Women's World Cup competition, the world championship for List of women's national association football teams, women's national association football, football teams. It was held from 26 June to ...

in Germany, the

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

and 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 f ...

in Canada. A right-sided attacking player noted for her pace and skill, Fabiana can also function as an overlapping

Club career

Fabiana's career began aged 15, when she moved from Bahia to Rio to play for the women's section of America RJ. After a brief spell at CEPE-Caxias, she was signed by Spanish

relegation Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...

-battlers

. In the

2008 WPS International Draft The 2008 WPS International Draft took place on September 24, 2008. It was the first international draft held by Women's Professional Soccer to assign the WPS rights of international players to the American-based teams. For the 2009 season, teams ...

, Fabiana was selected by

. The US club's

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

Tony DiCicco Anthony D. DiCicco Jr. (August 5, 1948 – June 19, 2017) was an American soccer player, coach, administrator, and TV commentator. He is best known as the coach of the United States women's national soccer team from 1994 to 1999, during which ...

picked England's

Kelly Smith Kelly Jayne Smith (born 29 October 1978) is an English former football forward who spent three spells with FA WSL club Arsenal. After moving to the United States, Smith broke records with Seton Hall University then played professionally with ...

in the first round and Fabiana in the second. DiCicco described his Brazilian acquisition as: "very fast and fits that quick Brazilian mold with lot of flair". An existing

anterior cruciate ligament injury An anterior cruciate ligament injury occurs when the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is either stretched, partially torn, or completely torn. The most common injury is a complete tear. Symptoms include pain, an audible cracking sound during in ...

sustained while playing for

Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians () is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author, Sosthenes, and is addressed to the Christian church in C ...

kept Fabiana out of the Breakers' team until the last seven games of

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, all of which she started. Two games on

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

to Boston Aztec in the

Women's Premier Soccer League The Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) is an amateur women's soccer league in the United States. History The WPSL is the longest-running active women's soccer league as it enters its 25th season in 2023. The WPSL is also the largest women ...

(WPSL) had formed part of Fabiana's recuperation. She was given another contract for

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

and started 14 of her 21 appearances, adding a goal against

Chicago Red Stars Chicago Stars Football Club is an American professional soccer team based in the Chicago metropolitan area that competes in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). A founding member of the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league as the Chic ...

. Ahead of season

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, Boston made Fabiana a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

, then made an unsuccessful attempt to sign her on reduced terms. In August 2011 she joined Russian

UEFA Women's Champions League The UEFA Women's Champions League, previously called the UEFA Women's Cup (2001–2009), is a European women's association football competition. It involves the top club teams from countries affiliated with the European governing body UEFA. ...

contestant

from Santos. After another brief return to Brazil with São José, Fabiana transferred to

Tyresö FF Tyresö Fotbollsförening is a Swedish football club in Tyresö, a municipality in Stockholm County. The club was founded in 1971 and is primarily known for its main women's team, which competed in the top-tier league Damallsvenskan between 19 ...

in January 2014, one of four Brazilians joining their compatriot

Marta Marta may refer to: People * Marta (given name), a feminine given name * Märta, a feminine given name * Marta (surname) * Marta (footballer) (born 1986), Brazilian professional footballer Places * Marta (river), an Italian river that flow ...

at the Swedish club. Tyresö were insolvent and on 9 April 2014 the Swedish immigration bureau refused Fabiana a work permit, so she returned to Brazil. She played for

Centro Olímpico Centro may refer to: Places Brazil *Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Du ...

until 2016, at which point she signed with

Chinese Women's Super League The Chinese Football Association Women's Super League (CWSL) (), commonly known as the Chinese Women's Super League or the CWSL is the top level women's football league in China. It was called the Chinese Women's National Football League from 201 ...

club

Dalian Quanjian F.C. Dalian W.F.C. () was a professional Chinese Association football, football club in Dalian, Liaoning. History The team was founded in 1984 as Dalian Women's Football Team, and participated in National Games of China, representing Liaoning province ...

with two Brazilian teammates. The club would go on to win the 2016 Chinese Women's Super League championship, with Fabiana scoring the game-winning goal and assisting in a second goal during the match to clinch the title. Fabiana had a successful four-year career with Internacional, where she scored 47 goals in 86 games and acquired the nickname " Gre-Nal Woman" due to scoring nine goals in 11

derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

games against Grêmio. She left Internacional in December 2022 when the club offered her a new contract with a 30% reduction in salary. On 7 January 2023, Fabiana returned to Santos after nearly 12 years.

International career

At the

2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship The 2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship was held in Russia from 17 August to 3 September 2006. It was the officially recognized world championship for women's under-20 national association football teams. Matches were held in four Moscow st ...

, FIFA.com reported that Fabiana contributed vital "skill and speed" to the Brazilian team which finished third. In November 2006 Fabiana made her senior international debut in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

's 2–0 South American Women's Football Championship win over

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

Estadio José María Minella The Estadio José María Minella is a stadium in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. It is owned and administrated by the Municipality of General Pueyrredón. Inaugurated for the 1978 FIFA World Cup hosted by Argentina, the stadium is currently ...

Mar del Plata Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Argentine Sea, Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón Partido, General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires ...

. She trained with the senior team ahead of the

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games () and commonly known as Rio 2007, were a major Americas, continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of ...

, but was not selected for the final squad. Good form with Corinthians saw Fabiana break into the squad ahead of the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

. She was restored to the team for a 2–1 win over

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Suwon Sports Complex Suwon Sports Complex () is a group of sports facilities in Suwon, South Korea. The complex consists of the Suwon Stadium, Suwon Baseball Stadium, and Suwon Gymnasium. Facilities Suwon Stadium Suwon Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium and cu ...

in the 2008 Peace Queen Cup. Fabiana was included in Brazil's 18-player squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics and made substitute appearances in the semi-final and final. She won a silver medal when Brazil lost the final 1–0 after

extra time Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required t ...

to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. At the

in Germany, Fabiana's Brazil beat

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and

Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. It has an area of . Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name refers to its location both near the Equ ...

to qualify in first place from their group. They then lost a controversial quarter-final on penalties to the United States after a 2–2 draw. Fabiana went to her second Olympic football tournament at

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

. Amidst allegations of a broken down

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a motor vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but fewer than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used ...

plot, Brazil lost their final group E game 1–0 to hosts

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

before a record crowd of 70,584 at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

. Fabiana had been dropped from the team for the Great Britain match. The defeat consigned Brazil to a quarter-final meeting with World Cup holders

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, who knocked Brazil out by winning 2–0 at Cardiff's

Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium (), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium () for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it has a retractable roof and is the home of the Wales national rugby union team; it has ...

. In February 2015 Fabiana was included in an 18-month residency programme intended to prepare the national team for the

and the

2016 Rio Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

. At the World Cup in Canada, Fabiana played in all four of Brazil's games as the team was eliminated after a 1–0 defeat by Australia in the second round. Fabiana was named in Brazil's initial squad for 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, football championship contested by 24 List of women's national association football teams, women's ...

, but suffered a thigh injury in the pre-tournament training camp. She withdrew from the squad and was replaced by Poliana.

International goals

Honors

Individual

* IFFHS CONMEBOL Woman Team of the Decade 2011–2020

Notes

References

External links

* *
Fabiana da Silva Simões
– FIFA World Cup profile
Boston Breakers player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabiana Da Silva Simoes 1989 births Living people Brazilian women's footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Women's association football forwards Olympic footballers for Brazil Olympic silver medalists for Brazil Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Footballers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Boston Breakers players Expatriate women's soccer players in the United States 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup players 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup players Olympic medalists in football Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Liga F players Sporting de Huelva players Brazil women's international footballers Tyresö FF players Associação Desportiva Centro Olímpico players Sport Club Corinthians Paulista (women) players Santos FC (women) players WFC Rossiyanka players Brazilian expatriate women's footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate women's footballers in Russia Expatriate women's footballers in Spain Expatriate women's footballers in Sweden Footballers from Salvador, Bahia Footballers at the 2015 Pan American Games São José Esporte Clube (women) players Dalian Quanjian F.C. players Chinese Women's Super League players Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in China Expatriate women's footballers in China FC Barcelona Femení players Pan American Games gold medalists in football Pan American Games gold medalists for Brazil Pan American Games footballers for Brazil Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games Women's Professional Soccer players Sport Club Internacional (women) players 21st-century Brazilian sportswomen