Ada Hegerberg

Ada Martine Stolsmo Hegerberg (born 10 July 1995) is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a striker for the Division 1 Féminine club Lyon and the Norway national team.

Hegerberg was born in Molde,[4] but grew up in Sunndalsøra where she played for Sunndal Fotball along with her older sister Andrine.

In the Coupe de France Féminine Final, Hegerberg scored the tying goal in the 47th minute, eventually culminating in a 2–1 victory over Montpellier.

In UEFA Women's Champions League action, Lyon went on to win the competition behind Hegerberg's 13 goals in 9 matches, to complete a treble.

There was controversy during the ceremony, however, as the host, DJ Martin Solveig, asked Hegerberg upon receiving the award if she wanted to dance in celebration and "knew how to twerk", who in turn responded "no".

"[20] In a later interview, she said, "I know the importance of having role models to look up at," and called the decision of France Football to have a Ballon d'Or for women "a huge step forward".

Lyon completed the treble against Barcelona with a 4–1 victory,[22] winning a fourth UWCL trophy in a row, a unique performance in modern football.

Injury On 30 October 2019, she became the UEFA Women's Champions League all-time top scorer, after scoring her 53rd goal in her 50th appearance.

[27] She scored her first goals post-injury on 14 November 2021, with a brace against arch-rival Paris Saint-Germain, in one of the biggest games in women's football.

In April 2022, she was instrumental in the qualification of her team to the final of the Champions League, being credited with an assist in a 3–2 victory at home against Paris Saint-Germain, and scoring the opening goal in a 2–1 win away, in a national record 43,000 fans at the Parc des Princes.

[33] She scored her first goal in the tournament as Spain were defeated 3–1 in the quarter-final[34] and played the entire 90 minutes as Norway lost the final 1–0 to Germany.

[36] She scored three goals in three group stage games, highlighted by a two-goal performance in Norway 3–1 over Ivory Coast.

[39] Despite some improvements including the doubling of the remuneration pot for women, Hegerberg felt there was "still a long way to go" so has continued to refuse to be called up and missed the 2019 World Cup.

[42] On her first game back on 7 April, Hegerberg scored a hat-trick in a 5–1 win against Kosovo in the 2023 World Cup qualification.

[49] In May 2020, in an online interview with ESPN, Hegerberg said that women's football would suffer due to COVID-19 because it is the sport's "weakest link".

Hegerberg stressed not losing track of women's football, especially as positives have emerged in terms of support for the game: "We need to raise our voices obviously to keep the subject warm.

During the summer of 2019, after attending events such as the UEFA Champions League Final and the French Open for her sponsor Mastercard, she became the global ambassador of the Danone Nations Cup, the biggest international tournament of U12, for both girls and boys.

In the summer of 2020, after six years collaborating with sports equipment supplier Puma, Nike and herself announced a long-term partnership.

Hegerberg has had a massive media impact over the past years, widely considered as the number one spokesperson for her sport, given the numerous interviews she gave for women's football.

Ada Hegerberg playing in 2014
Hegerberg warming up for Lyon in the 2019 UEFA Champions League Final
Ada Hegerberg playing for Norway in 2013
Ada Hegerberg with Lyon in 2019