Pulisic, Smith among U.S. Soccer Male, Female Player of the Year Nominees

The full list of U.S. Soccer Male and Female Player of the Year nominees is officially out.

Christian Pulisic, Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Tim Ream, and Antonee Robinson are the five nominees for the 2024 Male Player of the Year award. Sophia Smith, Naomi Girma, Alyssa Naeher, Trinity Rodman, and Mallory Swanson are the five nominees for the Female Player of the Year award.

Voting will run from December 4-13, with fans, national team players, coaches, media, and other consultants all having a say.

Here is a closer look at the nominees for both awards:

Soccer Male Player of the Year Nominees

A four-time winner of Male Player of the Year, Pulisic could make federation history with his fifth honor. Pulisic totaled four goals and three assists for the USMNT in 2024, being part of the CONCACAF Nations League-winning squad. At club level, he’s totaled eight goals and four assists for AC Milan this season.

The 23-year-old Balogun was a standout performer for the USMNT this year, scoring two goals at the Copa America, and registering two assists in other competitions. For AS Monaco, Balogun scored three goals this season before a shoulder injury sidelined him. He recently returned to action in November.

Pepi scored in both quarterfinal legs against Jamaica earlier this fall and overall has taken a major step forward. The former FC Dallas academy player has tallied 10 goals in all competitions for Dutch Eredivisie side PSV. It marks his second-straight nomination for the award.

Veteran defender Ream has captained the USMNT in all four matches under new head coach Mauricio Pochettino. He registered the second-most minutes among field players in the USMNT squad this year. At club level, Ream made the move back to MLS from EPL side Fulham, helping Charlotte FC to a third-place finish in regular season play.

Robinson carried his club form over to the USMNT, playing the second-most games and minutes of his career in a calendar year. At Fulham, Robinson was named Cottagers’ Player of the Year for 2023-24.

Pulisic has won the award on four occasions while Robinson, Pepi, Balogun, and Ream will be seeking to win it for the first time in their careers.

Soccer Female Player of the Year Nominees

The USWNT enjoyed early success under new head coach Emma Hayes, winning the Gold Medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Goalkeeper Naeher excelled in France this summer, conceding only two goals in the USWNT’s route to a gold medal finish. With her clean sheet against Brazil in the gold medal game, Naeher became the first goalkeeper to keep clean sheets in a World Cup Final and Olympic Final.

Girma, who became the first defender to win Female Player of the Year in 2023, continued to be a key leader for the program. She was the only field player to play every minute for the USWNT in Paris and later netted her first two senior goals this fall.

Rodman also shined at the Olympics, scoring the winning goal against Japan in the quarterfinal round. She finished the Olympics with four goal contributions and heads into 2025 as one of the leading attacking weapons in Hayes’ squad.

Smith led the USWNT in scoring this year with nine goals and four assists, while also achieving the same feature in the NWSL with the Portland Thorns.

The veteran of the “Triple Espresso” trio, Swanson led the USWNT in scoring at the Olympics with four goals and two assists. She also surpassed 100 international caps for the program.

Girma and Smith have both won the award once apiece in past years.