Evelyn Ijeh Named Sports Illustrated’s NWSL MVP of the Month

The North Carolina Courage have been on a tear this season, but August’s success came in part due to the breakout season of Swedish international Evelyn Ijeh. In the final month of summer, the striker notched four goals and one assist, including a brace against title contender Washington Spirit.

On the eve of August, on July 31, she became the first Swedish player in NWSL history to score a hat trick when the team took on the Orlando Pride. By month’s end, she had scored 11 goals, tied for third-most by a European player in an NWSL season, trailing Kim Little (16; 2014) and Esther González (13; ’25), and tying Jodie Taylor (11; ’14).

So what is driving the NWSL debutant this season? It’s all about balancing her ambition and life outside of football.

“Coming to a new league, coming to a new country, of course, it’s not always an easy task,” Ijeh says. “You just try to get through it, but coming to North Carolina, they made it a nice and welcoming environment for me.”

Ijeh spent 2024 and ’25 in Italy playing for Serie A’s AC Milan. While there, she flourished, scoring 12 goals and six assists in the 2024-25 season and finishing third in the Golden Boot race.

Adjusting to the NWSL has taken hard work, but it’s been an environment where Ijeh has thrived, and she’s taken her game to the next level. In fact, the league’s reputation for high intensity was part of the reasons she made the trip across the pond to join the NWSL’s ranks.

“There are a lot of great, talented players in this league, which is a great challenge,” Ijeh says. “I’ve always heard that the NWSL is a really high-intensity league in the way that they play, which is something I wanted to add to my game.”

Along with her scoring partner Ashley Sanchez, Ijeh helped contribute a combined 26 goals by the end of August, tying the NWSL record for a pair of teammates.

“Ashley is a really talented player and having that connection with her on the pitch is really like magic,” Ijeh says. “It has been a great thing for both ourselves and our club as well, being able to contribute as much as possible as we can together as a team. I’ve seen some people call us Batman and Robin!”

The Courage currently sit in ninth place in the NWSL standings, just one point outside of a playoff spot. With just four matches to go, it will take the entire team and their combined courage to push and get them over the line.

“Football is a team performance, so everyone has a way of contributing one way or another,” Ijeh says. “I think just the way we are as a team, the way we talk to each other and respect each other, we want to always get better every day. We’re called the Courage for a reason!”

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