Quick Facts
Biography
Ada Martine Stolsmo Hegerberg (born 10 July 1995) is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a striker for the Division 1 Féminine club Olympique Lyonnais. She has previously played for Kolbotn and Stabæk in Toppserien.
Hegerberg has represented Norway at youth international level, and made her debut for the senior team in 2011. In 2013, she was a part of the Norwegian team that won silver at the 2013 UEFA Women's Championship.
Hegerberg won the 2016 UEFA Best Women's Player in Europe Award on 25 August 2016, and in 2017 was named BBC Women's Footballer of the Year.
Club career
Hegerberg was born in Molde, but grew up in Sunndalsøra where she played for Sunndal Fotball along with her elder sister Andrine. In 2007, their family moved to Kolbotn, where the sisters later joined Kolbotn IL.
She made her debut for Kolbotn in 2010. On 6 August 2011, she scored three goals in seven minutes as Røa were beaten 4–1, with Andrine scoring the last goal. Aged 16, this made her the youngest player ever to have scored a hat-trick in Toppserien. While still 16 years old, she finished as Kolbotn's top scorer in the 2011 Toppserien season and was voted as the league's Young Player of the Year. Ahead of the 2012 season, both Hegerberg sisters joined Stabæk. During a match against Fart in May 2012, she scored five goals during the first half of Stabæk's 8–2 win. At this stage the sisters were considered to be two of the biggest talents in Norwegian women's football, and Ada won the Statoil "Talent of the Month" award for the second time in May 2012. She became top goalscorer in the 2012 Toppserien with 25 goals in 18 matches. She also contributed two goals in the semi-final of the 2012 Norwegian Women's Cup, when Amazon Grimstad were beaten 3–0. Stabæk's 4–0 final victory over Røa saw Hegerberg score a hat-trick.
In 2013, she and her sister signed contracts with the German side 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam until 30 June 2014, where they became teammates of their countrywoman Maren Mjelde. Hegerberg scored in her Bundesliga debut when SC Freiburg was beaten 3–1. In their first season in Germany, the Hegerbergs and Turbine finished second in both the 2012–13 Bundesliga and the 2012–13 DFB-Pokal.
In summer 2014 she transferred to Olympique Lyonnais. Hegerberg had a very successful first season in France. She scored 26 goals in 22 league games, leading Lyon to a ninth consecutive Division 1 Féminine title. 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.
Hegerberg returned to Lyon for the 2015–16 campaign. On 27 September, she scored a hat-trick in Lyon's 5–0 victory against rival PSG. Hegerberg became the first player to score a hat-trick against PSG since Julie Morel in October 2008. In November, Hegerberg reached an agreement on a contract extension to stay with the club through the 2019 season. Lyon retained the league title for the tenth time in a row on 8 May 2016. Hegerberg finishing the season as the top scorer of the league with 33 goals in 21 appearances. One week later, Hegerberg secured the Coupe de France with Lyon. In UEFA Women's Champions League action, Lyon went on to the win the competition behind Hegerberg's 13 goals in 9 matches, to complete a treble.
International career
At the age of 15, Hegerberg was a part of the Norwegian under-19 team that qualified for the 2011 UEFA Women's U-19 Championship. She was also included in the squad for the final tournament, where Norway reached the final. Hegerberg was included in the Norwegian squad for the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, there the team reached the quarter-final. She and Andrine scored the goals in a 2–1 win over Canada in the group stage. She made her senior debut for Norway as a substitute in a 3–1 defeat to Northern Ireland in Lurgan on 19 November 2011.
Hegerberg was selected in the Norwegian squad for the 2013 UEFA Women's Championship and made her championship debut in the opening match; a 1–1 draw with Iceland on 11 July 2013. She scored her first goal in the tournament as Spain were defeated 3–1 in the quarter-final and played the entire 90 minutes as Norway lost the final 0–1 to Germany.
Hegerberg was a member of the Norwegian squad for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. She scored three goals in three group stage games, highlighted by a two-goal performance in Norway's 3-1 win over Côte d'Ivoire. Hegerberg was nominated for the Best Young Player Award for her efforts.
In January 2016, Hegerberg was awarded the 2015 Norwegian Gold Ball, given to the best footballer in Norway. She was the first woman to win the award in 20 years.
Career statistics
- As of 12 September 2017
| Division | Club | Season | League | Cup1 | Continental2 | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Toppserien | Kolbotn | 2010 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 3 | |
| 2011 | 21 | 12 | 1 | 0 | — | 22 | 12 | |||
| Total | 30 | 15 | 1 | 0 | — | 31 | 15 | |||
| Stabæk | 2012 | 18 | 24 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 26 | 33 | |
| Total | 18 | 24 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 26 | 33 | ||
| Bundesliga | Turbine Potsdam | 2012–13 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 5 |
| 2013–14 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 20 | 9 | ||
| Total | 25 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 33 | 14 | ||
| Division 1 Féminine | Lyon | 2014–15 | 22 | 26 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 32 | 34 |
| 2015–16 | 21 | 33 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 35 | 54 | ||
| 2016–17 | 22 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 30 | 24 | ||
| 2017–18 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | ||
| Total | 67 | 85 | 11 | 15 | 21 | 18 | 99 | 118 | ||
| Career total | 140 | 135 | 20 | 23 | 29 | 22 | 189 | 180 | ||
1Includes Norwegian Cup, DFB-Pokal and Coupe de France.
2UEFA Women's Champions League
Honours
Club
- Stabæk
- Norwegian Women's Cup: Winner 2012
- Lyon
- Division 1 Féminine: Winner 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
- Coupe de France: Winner 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
- UEFA Women's Champions League: Winner 2015–16, 2016–17
Individual
- UEFA Best Women's Player in Europe: 2016
- Norwegian Sportsperson of the Year: 2016
- FIFPro: FIFA FIFPro World XI 2016
- BBC Women's Footballer of the Year: 2017