Chelsea’s Maika Hamano has been elected as the women’s International Player of the Year for 2025 by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) today.
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 15: Maika Hamano of Chelsea interacts with the fans as she arrives at the stadium prior to the UEFA Women's Champions League 2025/26 league phase match between Chelsea FC Women and Paris FCat Stamford Bridge on October 15, 2025 in London, England.
Chelsea’s Maika Hamano has been elected as the women’s International Player of the Year for 2025 by the Asian Football Confederation today. Shortlisted alongside two other players from the Women’s Super League - Steph Catley of Arsenal and Yui Hasegawa of Manchester City - Hamano was named today as the second recipient of the award by the AFC during a glittering award ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia., then of Olympique Lyonnais, now at Chelsea. A year on, the Manchester City midfielder lost out again, this time to her international team-mate. Tonight’s ceremonies were the 29th edition of the AFC awards. A prize for the Asian Women’s Player of the Year was first awarded in 1999 but not in every year since. There have been five previous winners from Japan - Homare Sawa, Natsuko Hara, Aya Miyama, Saki Kumagai and Kiko Seike. Last year, the award was limited to women playing for Asian clubs with Seike winning for her performances with Urawa Red Diamonds which earned her a move to Brighton & Hove Albion in England. Tonight, the main award went to another Urawa Red Diamonds player, Hana Takahashi of Japan. Speaking via a video link, Takahashi said “I am deeply honoured to have been awarded the AFC Women’s Player of the Year, and it is tremendously encouraging to have my efforts from last season recognised.”A separate prize was inaugurated by the AFC for the best player plying her trade outside of the continent. Hamano was recognised for her performances for club and country during the 2024/25 season.on a four and a half year contract. She had excelled for Japan at the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica. Hayes described her as “a fantastic talent, she is a Golden Ball and Silver Boot winner having shone at the Under-20 World Cup.” SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA - AUGUST 28: Maika Hamano of Japan receives the golden ball after the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022 final match at Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica on August 28, 2022 in San Jose, Costa Rica. Then just 18, she was immediately sent on loan to Swedish team Hammarby where she scored seven goals in 17 appearances in the Damallsvenskan. Unfortunately, she sustained a shoulder injury which cut short her time in Sweden and Three months on, she made her Chelsea debut and later in the season scored a crucial winner away to Tottenham Hotspur as the west London side won the Women’s Super League title on goal difference. The following season, she established her place in the first team squad making a total of 30 appearances, scoring six goals and making three assists as Chelsea won the domestic treble. Last month she was rewarded with a contract extension until 2029. LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 15: Maika Hamano of Chelsea celebrates their first goal with her team mates during the Barclays Women's Super League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea FC at Brisbane Road on May 15, 2024 in London, England.Despite making her senior international debut for Japan a few months after the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in 2022, Hamano failed to score a goal for her country until the summer of 2024. Since then she has now found the net for Japan six times, including a goal at the Olympic Women’s Football Tournament and two at the She Believes Cup, which Japan won. Elsewhere Korea DPR women’s team received the AFC President’s Recognition Award for Outstanding Achievement on account of its youth national teams winning the U20 and AFC President Shaikh Salman said: “The exceptional successes of DPR Korea at both the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup and FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup are a resounding testament to the capable long-term planning and youth development strategies of the DPR Korea Football Association. “The AFC President’s Recognition Award for Outstanding Achievement is a fitting tribute to their unwavering commitment to excellence, and we must once again congratulate them on the historic feats, which will serve as inspiration to the rest of Asia and has also underlined Asia’s strength on the world stage.”
Ellie Carpenter Steph Catley Maika Hamano Asian Football Confederation AFC Player Of The Year Nadeshiko Japan Women's Super League Chelsea
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
NHL Player Props & Best Bets for Today, October 15: Shoot Your ShotsTonight's NHL player props highlight SOG picks for Tage Thompson, Dylan Holloway, and JJ Peterka.
Read more »
Brother Hakeem Muhammad: An international perspective on the Million Man MarchEuropean Student Regional Minister of the Nation of Islam (NOI), Brother Hakeem Muhammad, highlighted the global impact of the Million Man March.
Read more »
Watch 2 Russian cosmonauts spacewalk outside the International Space Station todayMichael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, 'Out There,' was published on Nov. 13, 2018.
Read more »
Number mistake led Powerball player to win half of $1.8B jackpotA lucky Powerball winner in Texas has claimed the second half of a nearly $1.8 billion jackpot.
Read more »
A Mariners Player Appeared to Forget How Many Outs There Were During Game 3 of ALCSMariners first baseman Josh Naylor found an interesting way to end the top of the sixth inning.
Read more »
NHL Player Props & Best Bets for Today, October 16: McDavid's BreakoutOur favorite NHL player props for Thursday, October 16, include Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Zach Werenski.
Read more »