Sofia Cantore Takes on America As NWSL’s First Italian Star

The first time Sofia Cantore found herself at a National Women’s Soccer League match, she was on vacation in New York, taking in a Gotham FC game. The second time, she was making history, taking on Gotham with her new team in the Washington Spirit, becoming the first Italian international to appear for an NWSL team.

Cantore is no stranger to making history. This summer, she helped take the Italian national team to the Euro semifinals, and earned a coveted Ballon d’Or nomination—all in a single summer. 

The 25-year-old forward from Lecco, Italy, spent her entire career in Italy’s top flight. Across eight seasons in Italy (five with Juventus and one each on loan with Hellas Verona, Florentia and Sassuolo), Cantore notched over 40 goals and 20 assists across over 120 appearances. She also tallied two goals during Juventus’ 2024–25 UEFA Women’s Champions League campaign.

With more history to be made, Cantore enters the NWSL with a renewed spark, gearing up to take on the new challenges that await.

“I’ve always wanted to have an experience in the United States and that’s why the NWSL has always fascinated me,” Cantore says “This year there was this opportunity to come to this prestigious club [Washington Spirit]. So I decided to immediately accept the challenge and put myself to the test with a new experience that’s very different from the one I’ve had up until now.”

Undeterred by a summer calendar foreign to most international players and unbothered by the long travel times across the vast continental United States, Cantore is singularly focused on contributing to the Spirit and bettering herself as Le Azzurre continue to grow. She is so focused, in fact, that she did not even know she was the first Italian player in the NWSL.

“Honestly, I didn’t know before all the news came out, but it’s a beautiful thing,” she says. “I hope maybe to open bridges for other girls and one day recommend playing here in the future.”

Before Cantore, there was Patrizia Panico

Fifteen years ago, before the NWSL even existed, another Italian woman made history becoming the first to play professionally in the United States—prolific striker Patrizia Panico. 

“I decided to come and play in America because I wanted to experience a different style of football, both on and off the field,” Panico says.“The league [WPS] was highly competitive, the level of athleticism was impressive and I knew it would challenge me to grow as a player and as a person. It was also an opportunity to immerse myself in a new culture, which was exciting.”

Panico, now a women’s soccer coach who spent last season as an assistant coach at OL Lyonnes in France, had joined Sky Blue in 2010 during the WPS years. There, she spent a season playing alongside the likes of Heather O’Reilly and Carli Lloyd.

“Playing at Sky Blue was an important step in my career,” she says. “The training environment, the pace of the game and the physical demands were all different from what I was used to in Italy. It helped me improve my mentality, understanding, my fitness and my ability to adapt quickly to different styles of play. Those lessons stayed with me throughout my career.”

Panico was widely considered to be Italy’s best woman player for much of her career, which spanned from 1993 to 2016. For the national team, she scored 110 goals in 196 appearances. Now, young players like Cantore are taking over the mantle and hoping to continue pushing Le Azzurre forward and further onto the world stage. 

At the 2025 UEFA Women’s Euro, Le Azzurre exceeded expectations, coming within seconds of an appearance in the final—a sign that the program is growing, but there is more work to be done.  

“We said that our minimum objective was to reach the quarterfinals, so reaching a semifinal went beyond expectations,” says Cantore. “Since the new coach Andrea Soncin arrived he has given us a new identity. Above all, I think that the player group made the difference in this tournament. We were all truly united and had a single objective.”

Despite the ending of the semifinal, which saw a last minute equalizer from England take the game to extra time before a questionable penalty call ended their hopes, Le Azzurre came away optimistic about the future.

“We are happy despite the last match which, given how it ended, leaves a bit of a bitter taste in our mouths,” Cantore says. “However, now we know what we can do, what we have shown, so we will take this awareness into our next competitions.”

Almost every player on the Italian national team who appeared in the Euros played professionally in Italy last season, with the exception of Arianna Caruso at Bayern Munich. As the program continues to grow, players past and future know how important Italians playing abroad is for women’s soccer in Italy. Now, Italian women are gradually beginning to look outside of Italy for these opportunities to play at a high level.

Following the tournament, as Cantore left for Washington D.C., her Italian teammates began to spread their wings as well. Lisa Boattin signed for the Houston Dash and Elena Linari signed for WSL’s London City Lionesses.

“On the national team there is Aurora Galli at Everton and now Arianna Caruso at Bayern, and it was immediately clear that they bring something more both on and off the pitch,” says Cantore. “They bring different experiences and they have both improved a lot. Testing yourself in different leagues helps you grow, and therefore also at the national team level it is very important.”

Ever since Panico’s retirement, she has seen Le Azzurre making great progress, especially in recent years. The success at the Euros marks a clear sign of growth, and she sees a team playing with confidence, maturity and a belief that they can compete with the best in the world. 

“It’s something we’ve been working towards for many years, and it’s beautiful to see it pay off,” Panico says. “Playing abroad exposes you to different football cultures, higher levels of competition and new challenges that help you develop as a player. That experience can only benefit Le Azzurre, because the players bring back that knowledge and mindset to the national team.”

Growing Italian women’s soccer

All around the world, one thing is becoming increasingly clear: Women’s soccer is growing and is here to stay. 

For Le Azzurre, Cantore and her teammates are putting in the work, getting results on the field and pushing the program forward by sheer force of will. They can see the growth, however slow, because of their results. Now, they are looking to the Italian federation, the FIGC, to start investing more into the women’s product.

“At the first match of the group stage of the Euros, there were maybe three journalists in the press conference, but at the last game there were 20,” she says. “Our results resonated.”

Back in Italy, Le Azzurre are faced with the reality of a federation and a domestic league that is still in the early stages. The players want to see increased investment, one that matches and supports the growth of the product on the field.

“I believe in Italy they need to start investing, even without immediately getting the [economic]  returns, because then in the long run the success will come,” Cantore says. “FIGC is definitely doing good things for us, but in my opinion they could do a bit more. You have to speak well of the product in order to sell it, like during the Euros. We generated positive conversation during the tournament and everyone spoke really well about us.” 

The positive conversation continued well after the tournament as Cantore learned of her nomination for the prestigious Ballon d’Or. 

“It was unexpected, and I’m proud to be among those big names of great players,” Cantore says. “It was strange for me in the sense that I didn’t expect it, so it’s a really great achievement. These things remind you to stay hungry and keep going. I hope it’s a good sign for the future.”

Those who have watched the young forward throughout her career are not surprised by her success. For those paying attention, they’ve seen how Cantore’s efforts have helped drive forward both through her individual talent and her passion for the game.

“Sofia is a very talented player—quick, intelligent and generous,” Panico says. “She’s not afraid to take on defenders and can create opportunities both for herself and her teammates. I think she will adapt well to the NWSL and bring a lot of energy, passion and goals to her team.”

Cantore was nominated alongside her former Juventus teammate Cristiana Girelli. The two combined for numerous goals for both club and country this past year, and mark the second and third Italian women to ever receive a nomination for the award. 

“It’s definitely something that underlines the fact that we’re doing a great job in Italy, growing year after year,” she says. “Last year [Manuela] Giugliano was nominated and this year, there are two of us. It means that the spotlight is on us now, too, after all the work that’s being done. There’s a sense of pride, and I think we both have Juventus and our journey with the national team to thank.”

Welcome to the Washington Spirit

Cantore has now set her sights on her new team, hoping to continue working on her own game while contributing for both club and country. She’s looking to improve both on and off the ball while taking on this new challenge in a league with a physical style of play. 

“I think as a player, I am at a good level athletically, I am fairly quick, but everyone [in the NWSL] is athletically gifted,” she says. “I came here to really learn as much as possible from every point of view. We’ll see what that is, but I am sure it will be a positive thing.”