History - The FIFPRO Women's World 11 Of 2015

FIFPRO had listened to numerous female players, who were looking for the same recognition as their male counterparts.

Female players of 33 different nationalities spread out over 20 countries participated in a test vote, following the same format used in deciding the men’s award.

“This is a great step forward in terms of equality, respect and recognition for women’s football," said Carli Lloyd, US national team player. “I’d like to thank FIFPRO for making this possible. It’s an initiative that will be appreciated by female players all over the world.”

Among others, Lloyd's words were echoed by Anja Mittag: "It's really great to know that, from this moment on, we’ll have our own World 11.”

The first Women's World 11 consisted of four players from the USA (Julie Johnston, Meghan Klingenberg, Carli Lloyd and Hope Solo), three players from Olympique Lyon (Amandine Henry, Wendie Renard and Eugenie Le Sommer), two from Germany (Anja Mittag and Celia Sasic), one from Canada (Kadeisha Buchanan) and one from Japan (Aya Miyama).

"Wow, this is a great team”, Sasic reacted on her inclusion in the World 11. “For me it is a big honour to be part of the first FIFPRO World 11. It is all the more special, because it were the players themselves who voted for this award.”

"It is definitely cool to get the respect of the players,"  Buchanan added.

"As a team player, I don't aim at receiving an individual award, but this award is really special to me because it is chosen by the players”, Miyama explained. "I was excited to see the names of other players chosen for the World XI. This is a great team consisting of the players who I really want to play with."

FIFPRO meets the players

FIFPRO and various player unions visited the chosen players to present them their well-deserved World 11 awards. In the video below, witness how the four US players and Anja Mittag reacted on being part of this unique team.

A great test

As we expected, the female footballers thoroughly enjoyed being part of the FIFPRO World 11 tradition. Many of the game's star players appreciated the opportunity and took the time to select their Women's World 11.