USWNT star, NWSL champion Tobin Heath announces retirement

U.S. women’s national team and NWSL star Tobin Heath announced her retirement from professional soccer on Thursday. Though it has been nearly three years since Heath competed professionally, she chose to make it official on “The RE-CAP Show,” a podcast she hosts with partner and former teammate Christen Press.

“Over New Year’s, I actually came to the full acceptance that I wasn’t going to be playing, which was like a two-year, some might say three-year process of acceptance,” Heath told listeners.

Heath was a joy to watch for over a decade thanks to her creativity and elite technical skill. An intense student of the game, Heath was known for her tricky nutmegs, sneaky jukes, joyful juggling, slick dribbles and clever passes.

The now 37-year-old had her career cut short by a serious knee injury in 2022 that required several surgeries to repair and eventually ended up being career-ending. Her last U.S. appearance came on Oct. 26, 2021. Her last NWSL appearance was Aug. 14, 2022, for Seattle Reign (then OL Reign).

Despite injuries throughout her career, Heath made 181 appearances in 13 years for the senior national team, scoring 36 goals and adding 42 assists. She won two World Cups (2015, 2019) and three Olympic medals (gold in 2008 and 2012, bronze in 2020/21).

The University of North Carolina alumni began her pro career with the Atlanta Beat after being picked No. 1 overall in the 2010 WPS College Draft. While still a Tar Heel, Heath won four straight Atlantic Coast Conference titles and three NCAA National Championships.

In the NWSL, Heath won multiple Championships and Shields. The attacker won two NWSL championships with the Portland Thorns, in 2013 & 2017. Heath was named the 2013 NWSL Championship MVP for scoring the game-winning goal directly from a free kick. She also won two NWSL Shields, one with Portland in 2016 and the other with the Seattle Reign in 2022. Between 2013 and 2022, Heath made 75 NWSL appearances, recording 13 goals and 24 assists.