USWNT Great Heather O'Reilly Will Retire at End of NWSL Season
Heather O'Reilly, one of the greatest U.S. women's soccer players of all time, will retire at the end of the season, she announced via social media on Friday.
O'Reilly will play one more season with reigning NWSL champion NC Courage before hanging up her cleats to mark the end of a sensational playing career during which she has starred in college, multiple U.S. women's leagues and England's Women's Premier League in addition to being part of three Olympic gold medal-winning teams and the USA's 2015 Women's World Cup championship team.
The 34-year-old New Jersey native scored 47 goals and assisted on 55 others in her 231 caps for the USA, and she'll be a pundit this summer for FOX while the U.S. women look to win a fourth world title.
"It’s been a long and beautiful ride," O'Reilly wrote on Instagram. "For the last 17 years I have competed at the elite level, beginning as a teenager on the USWNT. I’ve played with and against the best players on the planet, and have won many trophies along the way with UNC, the U.S. Women’s National Team, and various professional teams. My tank is not empty yet. I am looking forward to helping the North Carolina Courage this season continue to raise the level for women’s football in the U.S. and globally."
O'Reilly's last cap with the USA came in September 2016 in a 9-0 rout of Thailand–the same nation the U.S. will open its World Cup title defense against in June–in which she tied Julie Foudy for fifth-most assists in U.S. history. She returned to the NWSL from Arsenal after winning the women's FA Cup last year, joining NC Courage to be part of its Shield- and championship-winning side.
The Courage open their title defense–and O'Reilly's last season–on Saturday against the Chicago Red Stars.
