Shannon Leigh Boxx Spearman (; born June 29, 1977) is an American retired soccer player and former member of the
United States women's national soccer team
The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) represents the United States in international women's soccer. The team is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF (the Confederation of North, Central Ameri ...
, playing the
defensive midfielder
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. ...
position. She last played club soccer for the
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 ...
in the American
National Women's Soccer League
The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional Association football, soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system#Women's leagues, United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Supe ...
. She won gold medals with the United States at the
2004 Athens Olympics,
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 ...
, and
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 ...
. She has also finished third place or better with the US at the
2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
,
2007
2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year.
Events
January
* January 1
**Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
,
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 ...
and
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 ...
s. She was a finalist for the
2005 FIFA World Player of the Year award, and won an
NCAA Women's Soccer Championship with
Notre Dame in 1995. Shannon Boxx announced her retirement from international and club soccer after winning 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 ...
.
She played her last game on October 21, 2015, when the USWNT tied with Brazil as part of their victory tour.
Boxx is the younger sister of
Gillian Boxx, who won a gold medal at the
1996 Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
with the United States softball team.
Boxx was diagnosed with
lupus
Lupus, formally called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Common ...
in 2007 when she was 30 years old, and went public with her diagnosis shortly before 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 ...
at which she won gold with the United States team.
In 2020, Boxx joined the ownership group of
Angel City FC
Angel City Football Club is an American professional Association football, soccer team based in Los Angeles, California, that competes in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). The formation of the team was announced on July 21, 2020; it beg ...
of the
National Women's Soccer League
The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional Association football, soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system#Women's leagues, United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Supe ...
.
In 2022, Boxx was inducted into the
National Soccer Hall of Fame
The National Soccer Hall of Fame is a public-private partnership among FC Dallas, the City of Frisco, Frisco Independent School District, and the U.S. Soccer Federation, and currently located in Toyota Stadium (Texas), Toyota Stadium in Frisco, T ...
.
Early life
The
multiracial
The term multiracial people refers to people who are mixed with two or more
races (human categorization), races and the term multi-ethnic people refers to people who are of more than one ethnicity, ethnicities. A variety of terms have been used ...
Boxx, whose biological father was
Black
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
, was raised by her
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
single mother in Southern California. In a 2008 interview, she remembered that she had little contact with her African American heritage until she went to
Notre Dame:
Youth Club
From U/12-U/18, Boxx played for the Torrance United Waves Soccer Club,
Torrance, California
Torrance is a coastal city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the metropolitan ...
, and helped to lead them to 4 State Cup Championships and two trips to the USYSA National Championship Final Four in 1993 and 1994 at U/17 and U/19.
High school
From 1991 to 1995, Boxx attended
South Torrance High School, where she was a four-sport athlete, playing soccer, volleyball, softball and basketball. She was named to the ''
Parade
A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...
'' All-America team for girls' soccer in 1995.
College
Boxx played for the
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are the athletic teams that represent the University of Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish participate in 26 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate sports and in the NCAA's Division ...
from 1995 to 1998. She helped the team win the school's first
NCAA Women's Soccer Championship in 1995, beating defending champions
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
in the semifinal. Boxx was named to the All-
Big East
The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...
team in 1995, 1996 and 1997, and is tied for the most soccer games played for the Irish at 101 games.
College statistics
Professional career
1999–2000
In 1999, Boxx played for the
Boston Renegades of the
W-League, and then went to Germany to play for
1. FC Saarbrücken
1. Fußball-Club Saarbrücken () is a German Football in Germany, football club based in Saarbrücken, Saarland. The club plays in the 3. Liga, which is the third tier of football in Germany.
History
The club began its existence as the footbal ...
in the
women's Bundesliga. However, she was unhappy and considered retiring from soccer.
WUSA
In 2001,
Women's United Soccer Association
The Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the Uni ...
began play, and Boxx was drafted by the
San Diego Spirit in the third round of the entry draft, with the 19th pick overall.
In the 2001 season, Boxx started all 21 matches for the Spirit, missing 20 minutes of the entire season, and was named to the All-WUSA team.
However, her playing time was reduced the following season, and in September 2002, she was sent to the
New York Power
The New York Power was an American professional soccer team that played in the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), the first professional soccer league for women in the United States. The team played at Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale ...
, in a six-player trade that gave San Diego the first overall pick in the 2003 draft, used to select
Aly Wagner.
With New York, Boxx returned to form, starting all 21 games, scoring once and assisting a career-high eight times, and was named to the 2003 All-WUSA squad.
Former
women's national team coach and league commissioner
Tony DiCicco called Boxx "the best in our league at (defensive midfield) – physical, strong, technical".
WPS

In 2009, Boxx signed to the
Los Angeles Sol
The Los Angeles Sol was an American professional association football, soccer club that was based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California, that participated in Women's Professional Soccer.
The team was co-owned and operated by Anschutz E ...
for the inaugural season of
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 ...
and was named team captain. She started in 18 of the 19 matches she played for the Sol, scoring three goals with three assists. Boxx was named to the WPS First Team and played in the WPS All-Star Game. The Sol finished in first place during the regular season with a 12–3–5 record.
In 2010, she was signed to the
Saint Louis Athletica during the
Los Angeles Sol
The Los Angeles Sol was an American professional association football, soccer club that was based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California, that participated in Women's Professional Soccer.
The team was co-owned and operated by Anschutz E ...
dispersal draft.
Later in the season after
Saint Louis Athletica folded, she was traded to the
FC Gold Pride. Boxx helped the team win the WPS regular season title and championship. She started in 19 of the 20 games she played in, while scoring one goal and providing five assists. She was a WPS All-Star Game starter and received the fifth overall votes.
For the
2011 WPS season, Boxx signed with
magicJack and played 833 minutes in 10 games starting in them all. She helped the club make a run to the playoffs in the second half of the season and win the quarterfinal match against 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 ...
.
NWSL
In 2013, she joined
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 ...
in the new
National Women's Soccer League
The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional Association football, soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system#Women's leagues, United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Supe ...
. Due to injury Boxx played 2 matches in 2013, played in 5 matches in 2014 due to pregnancy and birth of her first child, and in 2015 played 4 times due
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
duties. On July 27, 2015, Boxx announced retirement from NWSL and Red Stars effective immediately.
International career

Although Boxx was a member of the United States Under-21 national team pool, she did not receive her first senior cap until August 2003, when
U.S. national team coach
April Heinrichs named her to the team's
2003 FIFA Women's World Cup
The 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup was the fourth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial championship of women's association football, women's national soccer teams organized by FIFA. It was held in the United States from September ...
squad, making her the first uncapped player to be named to a U.S. Women's World Cup squad.
Prior to the call-up, following the suspension of
WUSA, Boxx had planned to take a coaching position at
Cal State-Dominguez Hills and pursue a graduate degree at
Pepperdine University
Pepperdine University () is a private university, private Christianity, Christian research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ, with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pepperdine's main campus consists ...
.
Boxx scored a goal in each of the two pre-World Cup friendlies, against
Costa Rica
Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
and
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, and in the opening match of the World Cup against
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 ...
, Boxx became the first American woman to score three goals in her first three matches with the national team.
Boxx started five matches at the Women's World Cup, scoring again against
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
in the third place match. She was voted the player of the match against Canada by the FIFA Technical Study Group, who said Boxx "seized control of the game, spurred on her team-mates and finally scored the decisive goal in USA's victory".
Boxx started 31 of 32 national team matches she played in 2004, including all six matches at the
2004 Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece.
The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...
, where she scored a goal, assisted on another and helped the team win a gold medal.
She scored eight goals over the course of the year, including a
hat trick
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mechan ...
against
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...
in an Olympic qualifying match. Boxx came in seventh in the voting for the
2004 FIFA World Player of the Year award.
In 2005, Boxx started all nine matches US national team matches, playing all but 23 minutes of all matches played. She was a finalist for the
2005 FIFA World Player of the Year, coming in third behind
Birgit Prinz and
Marta.
Boxx missed most of 2006, first for surgery to repair torn cartilage in her right hip, and then for torn
medial collateral ligament
The medial collateral ligament (MCL), also called the superficial medial collateral ligament (sMCL) or tibial collateral ligament (TCL), is one of the major ligaments of the knee. It is on the medial (inner) side of the knee joint and occurs in ...
s she suffered on her first day back in training with the national team. She returned in 2007 after an eight-month layoff, and was named to the United States' squad for the
2007 FIFA Women's World Cup
The 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup, the fifth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, was an international football competition for women held in China from 10 to 30 September 2007. Originally, China was to host the 2003 edition, but the outbreak o ...
. Boxx helped the team reach the semifinal match against
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 ...
, but she was sent off after receiving two yellow cards, and the United States went on to lose 4–0.
Boxx played every minute of all five U.S. games in 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 ...
in Beijing.
In 2011, she played in all but one of the World Cup games, earning defensive team honors for her efforts throughout the tournament. During the World Cup final against
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 ...
, which went to overtime penalty shoot-out, Boxx was one of the Americans elected to take one of the penalty kicks, and had her shot saved by Japan's goalkeeper
Ayumi Kaihori.
(*Correct )
International goals
In popular culture
Video games
Boxx was featured along with her national teammates in the
EA Sports' FIFA video game series in ''
FIFA 16
''FIFA 16'' is a football simulation video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports label. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4,
Xbox 360, Xbox One, Android and iOS.
The g ...
'', the first time women players were included in the game.
Ticker-tape parade and White House honor
Following the United States' win at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, Boxx and her teammates became the first women's sports team to be honored with a
ticker-tape parade
A ticker-tape parade is a parade event held in an urban setting, characterized by large amounts of shredded paper thrown onto the parade route from the surrounding buildings, creating a celebratory flurry of paper. Originally, actual ticker tap ...
in New York City. Each player received a key to the city from Mayor
Bill de Blasio
Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...
. In October of the same year, the team was honored by
President Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. Ob ...
at the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
.
See also
*
List of footballers with 100 or more caps
*
List of Olympic medalists in football
This is the complete list of Olympic medallists in association football, football.
Men
Women
Individual multiple gold medallists
Men
Two Golds
: (2004, 2008)
: (1964, 1968)
: (1924, 1928)
: (1924, 1928)
: (1924, 1928)
: (1924, 1928)
: ...
*
List of multiple Olympic gold medalists in one event
*
List of multiple Olympic gold medalists
This article lists the individuals who have won at least four gold medals at the Olympic Games or at least three gold medals in individual events.
List of most Olympic gold medals over career
This is a partial list of multiple Olympic gold medali ...
*
List of 2004 Summer Olympics medal winners
This is a list of medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics, which were held in Athens
Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterrane ...
*
List of 2008 Summer Olympics medal winners
*
All-time Los Angeles Sol roster
*
All-time Saint Louis Athletica roster
References
;Match reports
External links
*
*
US Soccer player profileLos Angeles Sol player profileChicago Red Stars player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boxx, Shannon
1977 births
Living people
United States women's international soccer players
Sportspeople from Fontana, California
Soccer players from San Bernardino County, California
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in soccer
Parade High School All-Americans (girls' soccer)
American Youth Soccer Organization women's players
Footballers at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
1. FC Saarbrücken (women) players
Frauen-Bundesliga players
Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's soccer players
San Diego Spirit players
Los Angeles Sol players
Saint Louis Athletica players
FC Gold Pride players
MagicJack (WPS) players
African-American soccer players
American women's soccer players
FIFA Women's Century Club
2003 FIFA Women's World Cup players
2007 FIFA Women's World Cup players
2011 FIFA Women's World Cup players
2015 FIFA Women's World Cup players
National Women's Soccer League players
Chicago Red Stars players
Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
New York Power players
FIFA Women's World Cup–winning players
Women's association football midfielders
American expatriate women's soccer players in Germany
Expatriate women's soccer players in Australia
People with lupus
21st-century African-American sportswomen
21st-century American sportswomen
American expatriate women's soccer players
20th-century African-American sportswomen
20th-century American sportswomen
Women's Professional Soccer players
National Soccer Hall of Fame members
USL W-League (1995–2015) players
Boston Renegades players
Women's United Soccer Association players
South High School (Torrance, California) alumni
Angel City FC owners