To see the full list of goalkeepers in the Hall of Fame or read more about Weighted Cap Totals (WCT), click here.
1990 - Annie Hastie (Dick, Kerr Ladies) - Hastie was a part of the most dominant football team in the history of the game. Starting in 1917, Dick, Kerr Ladies FC amassed an unmatched record of 759-46-28 (W-T-L) in 833 matches over the next 50 years. Over their tenure, the club featured standout goalkeepers such as E Clayton (Dick, Kerr Ladies’ original goalkeeper, 1917-20), Emma Grice (1921), and June Gregson (1950s). Hastie played Dick, Kerr Ladies from 1919-21, with 1920-21 being some of the most successful years for the club. Hastie was also the starting goalkeeper in an all-English side against an all-French side for the first women’s international match in 1920.
Although there were many who helped pave the way to the modern game, Hastie represents the first generation of top goalkeepers in the women’s game before the English FA banned women from playing games on FA fields until 1971.
[Author’s note: Although Hastie and others retired before their induction date, 1990 is simply the starting point of the annual award. Special thanks to football historian Gail Newsham for information and assistance.]
Seghetti (bottom right) with ACF Padova Gamma 3, 1973. (From Wikipedia)
1991 - Wilma Seghetti (Italy) - Italy was one of the first powerhouse nations when women’s international football entered a new era. In 1969 Italy won an unofficial Euro competition, featuring Giovanna Amari in net for the four-team tournament. The next year, Italy finished runner-up in the 1970 World Cup with Seghetti now in goal at the young age of 14. Seghetti was featured for the Italian national team over the next decade, including the 1971 World Cup (where Italy finished third), the prestigious Mundalito tournaments, and likely the 1979 unofficial Euro as well (although no record of rosters is available). In domestic play, Seghetti won the league four times (Range 3 Padua 1973, Valdobbiadene 1976-78) and the Italian Cup in 1980 with Gorgonzola. After a sub-1.00 GAA season with Flase Cagliari in 1982, conceding 23 goals in 24 matches, Seghetti retired. Seghetti’s cap total is unknown but is likely around 30-40 (~80 WCT), based off the available games played.
Kjems (wearing white) won the 1971 World Cup with Denmark in a 3-0 win over Mexico. (From BT)
1992 - Birte Kjems (Denmark) - Kjems is another goalkeeper from an early international champion. Somewhere at the start of the 1970s, Kjems debuted for the Danish international team and would ultimately be the winning goalkeeper in the 1971 World Cup. (Denmark won the 1970 edition but Jytta Termansen was in goal.) Although the previous appearances in goal for Denmark were not FIFA-sanctioned (and thus not counting towards her total caps), Kjems earned six official caps for the national team, never conceding a goal in a match in the three years (74-76) of the Nordic Championship. Kjems’ last known appearance with Denmark is a 1-0 win over Sweden on July 11th, 1976. Kjems’ undefeated run in the 1971 World Cup, where she conceded one goal over the four matches, was named second all-time in the Guardian’s Women's World Cup game-changing moments. Kjems also played for Ribe in the Elitedivisionen, an early dominant force in the Danish football league. Ribe won five league titles in the 1970s, although it’s unclear which of those years consisted of Kjems in goal.
1993 - Marianne Riis (Denmark, 27 caps / 85 WCT) - Picking up where Kjems left off, Riis began her time with the national team in the Nordic Championship, playing in each tournament from 1978-1982, finishing second three times and winning the tournament in 1982. But most notably Riis was in goal for the 1979 championship run during Denmark’s campaign in the 1979 Euro, giving up only one goal in four games. Riis’ last appearance for Denmark was a 2-2 tie against the United States in the 1985 Mundalito. Riis played for Hjortshøj-EGA (now known as VSK Aarhus), which is a club that won the Elitedivisionen six times in the 1980s.
1994 - Sue Buckett (England, 30 caps / 170 WCT) - Upon the English FA repealing their ban on women’s football playing on member club grounds in 1970, Buckett immediately put her stamp on English football. Of the first eleven FA Cups, Buckett led Southampton to the finals ten times, winning eight of the contests. Starting with the club in 1967, Buckett would play with Southampton until the club folded in 1986. In 1991-92, and at 45 years old, Red Star Southampton finished second in both the Premier League National Division (the precursor to the WSL) and the FA Cup with Buckett in goal.
Although international football was nearly bare in the 1970s, Buckett amassed 30 caps with the Lionesses, the equivalent of fielding 170 in today’s game (WCT). Teammate Wendy Owen described Buckett as “a supremely agile shot stopper, decisive on crosses and prepared to marshal her defense with calm authority.” Although England never played in a major tournament during Buckett’s time, Buckett continued her club career until 1994 at the age of 48. In an era where goalkeepers were rarely playing past 30, Buckett was not only an early standout at the position but one who surpassed her peers with incredible longevity. She remains an undervalued pioneer of the position who paved the way for future English greats.
Picture from Women’s Football Archive
1995 - Theresa Wiseman (England, 60 caps / 167 WCT) - Wiseman set the standard for the next wave of English goalkeepers as she saw four strong performances in the 1979, 1984, 1987, and 1991 Euros. After taking over the starting spot from Sue Buckett, Wiseman led England to fourth, second, and fourth-place finishes in her first three Euros. In the 1984 Euro, Wiseman was a standout in goal for England, who held a Pia Sundhage-led Swedish side to only one goal in the two-leg final before losing in penalties. Ahead of the 1991 World Cup, England narrowly missed qualification despite tying Norway 0-0 and losing to Germany in a home-and-away series, all the while with Wiseman in goal. (Norway would end up finishing second at the 1991 World Cup with Germany finishing fourth.) Wiseman was affectionately nicknamed as the “female Shilton”, after contemporary English goalkeeping legend Peter Shilton.
In 1984 and 1985 she won back-to-back FA Cups with Howbury Grange, first, and then Friends of Fulham. Both FA Cup wins came against the Doncaster Belles and fellow English international goalkeeper Tracey Davidson (15 caps / 37 WCT). Wiseman would return to the FA Cup final with Friends of Fulham in 1989 and 1990, although narrowly falling short in both matches, losing 3-2 and 1-0, respectively. As the Premier League National Division sprung up in 1991-92, Wiseman suited up for Wimbledon FC. Wimbledon finished third in the inaugural season, although it’s unclear how long Wiseman played with the club after the first year.
Photo of Elisabeth Leidinge from Sweden’s national team website.
1996 - Elisabeth Leidinge (Sweden, 112 caps / 239 WCT) - There aren’t many goalkeepers with a Weight Cap Total (WCT) over 200 but it’s a testament to Leidinge’s two-decade relevancy on the international stage. Originally one of the great goalkeepers prior to the World Cup-era, Sweden and Leidinge earned a second place finish in FIFA Women's Invitation Tournament in 1988, an unofficial World Cup test-run. Three years later, the official and inaugural World Cup in 1991 featured a dominating display from Leidinge. Although Sweden fell short in the first World Cup (a third-place finish) and again in 1995 (lost to China in penalties in the quarterfinals), Leidinge assisted Sweden in earning their only major trophy to date, the 1984 Euro. The 1984 Euro final finished with alternating 1-0 results between Sweden and England, before Sweden won in penalties. In domestic play, she won four league titles with Jitex BK (79, 81, 84, 89) and two with Malmö (93, 95) in the Damallsvenskan.
Leidinge was one of the first goalkeepers to showcase a modern approach to shot stopping, emulating her idol and Swedish national team goalkeeper Ronnie Hellström, which can be seen on display in the quarterfinal win over China in the 1991 World Cup where she withstood a barrage of shots on goal. Leidinge was awarded the Diamond Ball (given to the top female Swedish player for the year) in 1983 and 1991, after her efforts in the World Cup. Leidinge was inducted to the Swedish Football Hall of Fame in 2015.
Pia Sundhage and Marion Isbert before the start of the third-place match (Photo from FIFA’s 1991 World Cup technical report)
1997 - Marion Isbert (Germany, 58 caps / 85 WCT) - Marion Isbert (née Feiden) first appeared for the German national team at 18 years old and enjoyed a ten-year career with the national team. In the 1984 edition of the Mundalito, Isbert and Germany reached the final before falling to Italy 3-1. (Watch an acrobatic back-to-bar save from Isbert here.) However Isbert had more success in the 1989 Euro, where Germany got revenge against Italy in the semifinal. Tied at one, the game went to penalties, where Isbert saved three penalties and converted her own to capture the win. Germany topped Norway 4-1 in the following final, marking Germany’s first major title. Two years later, FIFA praised Isbert during the 1991 World Cup in their technical report, “their keeper (Isbert) in fact proved to be one of the best, along with her Swedish counterpart (Leidinge). These two were real towers of strength within their teams.” Isbert returned as the starter in the 1991 Euro, featuring another successful win over Norway. Isbert saw success in the Bundesliga as well, becoming a two-time Bundesliga champion with TSV Siegen in 1991 and 1992.
(Photo from the German national team’s website)
1998 - Manuela Goller (Germany, 45 caps / 47 WCT) - Although she retired before 30, Goller accomplished much in her with the German national team. At 21, Germany lost in penalties during the 1993 Euro semifinal for a fourth-place finish. Two years later, Germany reached the 1995 World Cup final, losing out to Norway in a rainy 2-0 affair, although Goller was featured as a star in the tournament. However Goller rebounded to finally win her first international major trophy at the 1995 Euro, becoming the first of six consecutive Euro championships by Germany. Goller was awarded the Silver Laurel Leaf for her efforts with the national team in 1995. Goller was the starter in the 1996 Olympics although the run resulted in a disappointing finish for Germany, tying Brazil 1-1 in the last group stage game and ending the Germans’ quest for gold.
In the Bundesliga, Goller’s club FFC Brauweiler Pulheim were named champions of Germany after finishing as runner-ups in 1992, 1994, and 1995. Although Goller was left on the cusp of winning more trophies than one would typically care to be, she is undoubtedly another top name in a long line of standout German goalkeepers.
1999 - Eva Russo (Italy, 57 caps / 87 WCT) - Eva Russo, also referred to as Roberta, was a mainstay in Italy football throughout the 1980s. Russo was the starting goalkeeper for the 1984, 1987, and 1989 Euro campaigns, falling short in the semifinals to the eventual champion each time. Italy were named champions of the prestigious Mundalito tournament in 1984 and 1986, both times with Russo in goal. (The full match of the 1984 championship match can be found here.) Russo’s strengths were found in her speed off her line, opting to confront attackers early through utilizing her quickness. Although a little undersized, the Italian goalkeeper’s bravery helped fend off opposing teams and drew comparisons to Italian international goalkeeper Walter Zenga.
In 1989, Russo’s time with the national team was derailed due to a positive testing for trace amounts of marijuana and cocaine. Russo proclaimed her innocence and La Repubblica writer Fulvio Bianchi speculated that, due to the rarity of such drug tests, it was odd to see a “surprise check in a peripheral activity such as women's football. It suggests that the managers already suspected of Russo and wanted to catch her.” (translated from Italian, Feb 16 1990) Another La Repubblica writer, Eugenio Capodacqua, would paint a more polarizing picture of Russo, “Certainly Eva had not cultivated many sympathies with her character. The rest may have been made by envy for beauty and success.” (translated from Italian, Feb 17 1990)
Although Russo never returned to the national team after the suspension in 1989, she continued to play in Serie A until 1998, winning the league title in 1980, 1987, 1988 and the Coppa Italia in 1985. Russo played for half a dozen Italian clubs but she was mainly featured with Lazio, amounting nine years with the club over four different stints.
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