Michelle Anne Akers (formerly Akers-Stahl; born February 1, 1966) is an American former soccer player who starred in the 1991 and 1999 Women's World Cup and 1996 Olympics victories by the United States. At the 1991 World Cup, she won the Golden Shoe as the top scorer, with ten goals.
Akers is regarded as one of the greatest female soccer players in history. She was named FIFA Female Player of the Century in 2002, an award she shared with China's Sun Wen. In 2004, Akers and Mia Hamm were the only two women named to the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living soccer players selected by Pelé and commissioned by FIFA for that organization's 100th anniversary.
Born to Robert and Anne Akers in Santa Clara, California on February 1, 1966, Akers grew up in the Seattle, Washington suburb of Shoreline, where she attended and played soccer for Shorecrest High School. Early in her career, she was not sure whether she was willing to do the training necessary to excel. After losing a youth game, she was frustrated and walked off the field in tears. Her father asked her "Did you have fun". Her answer was "yes" which led to the realization that this was the real reason she played, and that helped turn her into the fierce competitor she became. She was named an All-American three times during her high school career. At 5feet 10inches (178cm) in height and 150 pounds (68kg), Akers had an imposing physical presence on the soccer field and was noted for her aggressive and physical style of play.
University of Central Florida
Akers attended the University of Central Florida on a scholarship where she was selected as four-time NCAA All-American. She was Central Florida's Athlete of the Year in 1988–89, was the all-time leading scorer in UCF history, won the Hermann Trophy in 1988 as the nation's top college soccer player, and had her #10 jersey retired by the school.
International career
Akers was a member of the 1985 United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) for its first-ever game, at a tournament in Italy in August 1985. Due to an ankle injury, she did not play in the first game. However, in the U.S.'s second-ever international game, she scored the first goal in the history of the program, in a 2–2 tie against Denmark.
Akers scored 15 goals in 24 games for the U.S. from 1985 to 1990, before scoring a team-record 39 goals in 26 games in the 1991 season. In 1990 and 1991 she was named the Female Athlete of the Year by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF). Akers was also the lead scorer in the inaugural FIFA Women's World Cup in China in 1991, scoring ten goals, including five in one game. This led the U.S. women's team to the first women's world championship, defeating Norway 2–1 in the final. Akers scored both U.S. goals in the final.
Throughout most of her career, Akers was afflicted by chronic fatigue syndrome, repeatedly considering retirement only to continue playing in some of U.S. Soccer's most significant matches.
After the 1991 World Cup, she shifted from striker to central midfielder, in part to minimize the beatings doled out by opposing defenders. Despite the precautions, Akers suffered a concussion and a knee injury early in the 1995 World Cup, and was hampered by the knee in the U.S.'s semifinal loss to Norway.
In 1996, Akers was again a member of the U.S. women's national team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where it won the first gold medal in Olympic Women's Soccer. She played with a torn medial collateral ligament in the holding central midfielder role, anchoring the team's defense, dominating in the air, and playmaking out of the back to maintain possession and generate goal-scoring opportunities. After the tournament her knee required reconstructive surgery for the third time. She was also a member of the gold medal-winning 1998 Goodwill Games team. On June 7, 1998, she was awarded the FIFA Order of Merit, FIFA's highest honor in the global game of soccer, for her contributions to the game of soccer on and off the field; she was the first woman ever to receive it. Akers again was a leader and member of the 1999 Women's World Cup team, where the team won their second World Cup championship. Despite playing with a dislocated shoulder, caused by a fan in the quarterfinals,
she was awarded the Bronze Ball of the tournament by FIFA.
Shortly before the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, Akers retired from the game due to injuries incurred before and during the 1999 FIFA World Cup. She was the U.S. national team's second all-time leading scorer (behind Mia Hamm) with 105 goals, 37 assists and 247 points.
Coaching career
On January 19, 2022, the Orlando Pride announced Akers as an assistant coach for the 2022 season, serving under head coach Amanda Cromwell. She also served in a player development and mentorship role, and assisted with community outreach.
Personal life
From 1990 to 1994, she was married and was known as Michelle Akers-Stahl. Later she married again (2003–2007) and had a son in Orlando, Florida. She has had several horses since 1996 and runs a horse rescue ranch on 8 acres (3.2ha) in Powder Springs, Georgia, with her son Cody.
Since her retirement from the USWNT in 2000, she has also continued to promote the game of soccer as a spokesperson, advocate, and leader on various platforms.
12Layden, Joseph, 1959- (1997). Women in sports: the complete book on the world's greatest female athletes. Los Angeles: General Pub. Group. p.14. ISBN1-57544-064-4. OCLC36501288.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
↑Sources disagree on whether Akers scored vs Hungary on April 3, 1991, or whether Wendy Gebauer got 2 that day. Compare "USWNT Results: 1990-1994". Society for American Soccer History. March 5, 2019. Archived from the original on August 31, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2023. (credits Gebauer), vs RSSSF: Litterer, Dave. "USA - Women - International Results". RSSSF. Archived from the original on October 28, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2023. (credits Akers-Stahl)
Match reports
Further reading
Grainey, Timothy (2012), Beyond Bend It Like Beckham: The Global Phenomenon of Women's Soccer, University of Nebraska Press, ISBN0803240368
Kassouf, Jeff (2011), Girls Play to Win Soccer, Norwood House Press, ISBN1599534649
LaFontaine, P.; Valutis, E.; Griffin, C.; Weisman, L. (2001), Companions in Courage: Triumphant Tales of Heroic Athletes, Hatchette Digital Inc., ISBN0759520518
Lisi, Clemente A. (2010), The U.S. Women's Soccer Team: An American Success Story, Scarecrow Press, ISBN0810874164
Longman, Jere (2009), The Girls of Summer: The U.S. Women's Soccer Team and How it Changed the World, HarperCollins, ISBN0061877689
Mitchell, N.; Ennis, L. (2007) Encyclopedia of Title IX and Sports, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN0313335877
Rutledge, Rachel (2000), The Best of the Best in Soccer, First Avenue Editions, ISBN0761313923
Silverman, Al (2004), It's Not Over 'til it's Over, Penguin, ISBN1468304313
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