USWNT forward Lynn Williams becomes NWSL's all-time leading goal scorer
Football
In the 57th minute of NJ/NY Gotham’s 2-1 win over the Chicago Red Stars on Sunday (19 May), Lynn Williams wrote her name into the National Women’s Soccer League history books.
Her close-range header was her 79th career goal in the league, seeing her surpass Sam Kerr and become the NWSL’s all-time leading scorer.
The 30-year-old has been a mainstay in the league since her debut in 2015, with a handful of short-term spells in Australia between 2019 and 2022.
Williams’ best spell in front of goal to date was during her four seasons with the North Carolina Courage, where she found the back of the net 48 times, and assisted 20, in 100 appearances.
Legendary tennis great Serena Williams joined the flurry of congratulatory messages for the league leader.
But despite stealing the headlines for her prolific form, the USWNT forward was quick to credit her teammates for helping her reach this milestone.
“I don’t get the goals without my teammates,” she said post-match.
“I have played with so many incredible people over the past 10 years and I owe it all to them. I couldn’t put any of those goals away without them.”
“When you’re in it, you don’t really get to reflect, so it’s moments like this that I cherish and value. I’m not done yet, it’s just another evolvement in my career that I reflect on and then just keep moving forward.”
Kerr remains second in the scoring rankings but is now competing in the Women’s Super League for Chelsea.
It paves the way for Christine Sinclair (76), Alex Morgan (66), and Debinha (63) to move past her tally.
But for right now, the accolade belongs to Lynn Williams.