Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir (born 29 September 1990) is an Icelandic professional
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 as a
midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for
Saudi Women's Premier League The Saudi Women's Premier League officially the SAFF Women's Premier League () is the top flight of women's football in Saudi Arabia. History The first Saudi women's club were King's United based in Jeddah, and Eastern Flames in Dhahran. Bot ...
club Al Qadsiah. Sara Björk was part of the Iceland women's national football team from 2007 to 2022 and represented her country at the
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 ...
,
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
,
2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
, and
2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
editions of the
UEFA Women's Championship The UEFA European Women's Championship, also called the UEFA Women's Euro, held every four years and one year after the men's UEFA European Championship first held in 1984, is the main competition in women's association football between nationa ...
. She is the only woman to have been named the
Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year The Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year () is an annual award given to the best Icelandic sportsperson of the year. The winner is selected by the Icelandic Association of Sports Journalists. It was first given in 1956 to the triple jumper Vilhjálm ...
twice, in 2018 and 2020. In August 2020, she became the first Icelander to win the
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. ...
.


Club career

Sara Björk joined local team
Haukar Knattspyrnufélagið Haukar (, ) is an Icelandic multi-sport club from Hafnarfjörður with divisions in Association football, Football, Haukar Handball, Handball, Basketball, Haukar RC, Rugby union, Karate, Skiing & Chess. Club history The clu ...
at the age of six and remained until she was 18.


FC Malmö

After three subsequent seasons with Breiðablik, she left Iceland in 2011, to sign a three-year professional contract with Swedish club LdB FC Malmö. She was an immediate success in Sweden, contributing 12 goals as Malmö won the
Damallsvenskan The (; ), known as OBOS for sponsorship reasons, is the highest division of women's football in Sweden. It is one of the best women's leagues in the world, and was founded in 1988. The division consists of a league of 14 teams. From 2013, t ...
title. In August 2013 she announced the extension of her Malmö contract for another two and a half seasons via
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
.


VfL Wolfsburg

In May 2016, Sara Björk announced that she would not extend her contract with Malmö (now known as FC Rosengård) and planned to leave Sweden after winning four Damallsvenskan titles in five years. At that stage she did not confirm speculation that she was heading for German club
VfL Wolfsburg Verein für Leibesübungen Wolfsburg e. V., commonly known as VfL Wolfsburg (), is a German professional sports club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The club grew out of a multi-sports club for Volkswagen workers in the city of Wolfsburg. I ...
. Shortly afterwards the transfer to Wolfsburg was made official, ahead of their 2016–17 season. In her four seasons with Wolfsburg, the club won the
Frauen-Bundesliga The Frauen-Bundesliga (German language, German for ''Women's Federal League''), currently known as the Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of league competition for women's association football in Germany. I ...
and the
German Cup The DFB-Pokal (), also known as the German Cup in English, is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundes ...
each year.


Olympique Lyonnais

On 1 July 2020, she joined
Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a French professional association football, football club based in Lyon, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. With origins dating back to 1899, they were founded in 1950 and p ...
. On 9 August, she won her first title with the club when it defeated
Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...
in the
Coupe de France The Coupe de France (), also known in English language, English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Fed ...
after penalties. On 30 August, she scored one goal in Olympique Lyonnais' 3–1 win against her former club, Wolfsburg, in the
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. ...
final. In December 2020, Sara was named the
Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year The Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year () is an annual award given to the best Icelandic sportsperson of the year. The winner is selected by the Icelandic Association of Sports Journalists. It was first given in 1956 to the triple jumper Vilhjálm ...
, becoming the first woman to win it twice. In April 2021, she announced that she was pregnant with her first child. She returned to the pitch in March 2022. In May the same year, she confirmed that she would leave Lyon at the end of the season.


Juventus FC

On 1 July 2022, Sara joined
Juventus Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...
.


Al Qadsiah FC

On 3 August 2024, Sara signed for Saudi Pro League women's side, Al Qadsiah.


International career

Sara Björk was included in Iceland's senior national squad in August 2007, aged 16. She had recovered from an
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 ...
after having to delay surgery because she was too young and her bones were not yet fused. Still a month short of her 17th birthday, she made her national team debut in a
UEFA Women's Euro 2009 qualifying Qualifying for UEFA Women's Euro 2009 determined which 11 teams joined Finland women's national football team, Finland, the hosts of the 2009 tournament, to play for the UEFA Women's Championship. Preliminary round 20 teams were divided into 5 g ...
match versus
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
in
Dravograd Dravograd (; ) is a small town in northern Slovenia, close to the border with Austria. It is the seat of the Municipality of Dravograd. It lies on the Drava River at the confluence with the Meža and the Mislinja. It is part of the traditional ...
. Sara Björk
substituted Substitution may refer to: Arts and media *Substitution (poetry), a variation in poetic scansion *Substitution (theatre), an acting methodology Music *Chord substitution, swapping one chord for a related one within a chord progression *Tritone ...
in for
Katrín Ómarsdóttir Katrín Ómarsdóttir (born 27 June 1987) is an Icelandic football coach and former player who played the midfielder position. Before spending four seasons in the English FA WSL with Liverpool and Doncaster Rovers Belles from 2013, she had play ...
on 87 minutes. Sara Björk scored twice in Iceland's 3–1 win over
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 ...
at the
2009 Algarve Cup The 2009 Algarve Cup was the sixteenth edition of the Algarve Cup, an invitational women's football tournament held annually in Portugal. It took place between 4 and 11 March 2009. It was won by Sweden who defeated holders the United States in a pe ...
and was selected in the squad for the
UEFA Women's Euro 2009 The 2009 UEFA Women's Championship, or just Women's Euro 2009, was played in Finland between 23 August and 10 September 2009. The host was appointed on 11 July 2006, in a UEFA Executive Committee meeting in Berlin and the Finnish proposal won over ...
finals in Finland. She played in all three group matches as Iceland were eliminated in the first round. Women's national team coach Siggi Eyjólfsson selected Sara Björk in the Iceland squad for
UEFA Women's Euro 2013 The 2013 UEFA Women's Championship, commonly referred to as Women's Euro 2013, was the 11th European Championship for List of women's national association football teams#UEFA, women's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament ...
, where she played in all four matches including the 4–0 quarter-final defeat to hosts
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
. With
Margrét Lára Viðarsdóttir Margrét Lára Viðarsdóttir (born 25 July 1986) is an Icelandic former association football, footballer who played as a striker (association football), striker. She is the all-time top goalscorer of the Iceland women's national football team, ...
on
maternity leave Parental leave, or family leave, is an employee benefit available in almost all countries. The term "parental leave" may include maternity, paternity, and adoption leave; or may be used distinctively from "maternity leave" and "paternity leave ...
, incoming national coach
Freyr Alexandersson Freyr Alexandersson (born 18 November 1982) is an Icelandic association football, football Coach (sports), coach and former player who currently manages Eliteserien club SK Brann. He was the manager of the Iceland women's national football team ...
appointed Sara Björk as Iceland's new
team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...
in 2014. Sara Björk limped out of the
2018 UEFA Women's Champions League Final The 2018 UEFA Women's Champions League Final was the final match of the 2017–18 UEFA Women's Champions League, the 17th season of Europe's premier women's club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the ninth season since it was renamed from ...
with an injury. She was ruled out of Iceland's match with Slovenia in June 2018, which was the first national team fixture she had missed since 2009. On 13 January 2023, she announced her retirement from the Icelandic national team.


Personal life

Sara Björk is married to fellow footballer
Árni Vilhjálmsson Árni Vilhjálmsson (born 9 May 1994) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays for Al-Tarajias a striker. Club career In January 2017, Árni joined Swedish side Jönköpings Södra IF. On 28 January 2022, he signed for French club R ...
; the couple have a son together. In January 2023, Sara Björk wrote an article in the Player's Tribune publicizing
Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
's neglect of maternal care for her while she was pregnant and postpartum, including failure to properly pay her.


Career statistics


Club


International

:''Scores and results list Iceland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gunnarsdóttir goal.''


Honours

Rosengård *
Damallsvenskan The (; ), known as OBOS for sponsorship reasons, is the highest division of women's football in Sweden. It is one of the best women's leagues in the world, and was founded in 1988. The division consists of a league of 14 teams. From 2013, t ...
:
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 ...
,
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
,
2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...
,
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
*
Svenska Cupen Svenska cupen (, ), also known as the Swedish Cup in English, is a knockout cup competition in Swedish football and the main Swedish football cup. ''Svenska cupen'' usually refers to the men's tournament, although a women's tournament is also ...
: 2015–16 *
Svenska Supercupen Svenska Supercupen, ''Swedish Super Cup'', was a one-off fixture in Swedish football played between the Allsvenskan champions and the winners of Svenska Cupen. The fixture was played in November, after the Allsvenskan season. In the event of a ...
: 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016 VfL Wolfsburg *
Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...
: 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20 *
DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal (), also known as the German Cup in English language, English, is a German knockout Association football, football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competiti ...
: 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20 Olympique Lyonnais *
Division 1 Féminine Division may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting of 10,000 to ...
: 2021–22 *
Coupe de France The Coupe de France (), also known in English language, English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Fed ...
: 2019–20 *
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. ...
: 2019–20, 2021–22 Juventus *
Coppa Italia Coppa Italia () is the annual domestic cup of Italian football. The knockout competition was organized by the DDS and the Lega Calcio until the 2009–10 season and by Lega Serie A ever since. Juventus is the competition's most successf ...
: Individual * Sport Person of the Year in Haukar in 2008 * Icelandic Women's Footballer of the Year: 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 *
Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year The Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year () is an annual award given to the best Icelandic sportsperson of the year. The winner is selected by the Icelandic Association of Sports Journalists. It was first given in 1956 to the triple jumper Vilhjálm ...
: 2018, 2020


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gunnarsdottir, Sara Bjork 1990 births Living people Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir FC Rosengård players Damallsvenskan players Expatriate women's footballers in Sweden Expatriate women's footballers in Germany Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir Sara Bjork Gunnarsdottir VfL Wolfsburg (women) players Frauen-Bundesliga players Women's association football midfielders FIFA Women's Century Club Expatriate women's footballers in France Juventus FC (women) players Serie A (women's football) players Expatriate women's footballers in Italy Icelandic expatriate sportspeople in Italy UEFA Women's Euro 2022 players UEFA Women's Euro 2017 players Saudi Women's Premier League players Al Qadsiah FC (women) players UEFA Women's Champions League–winning players