Nadia was born in Herat, Afghanistan and raised during her early childhood in a wealthy family. When Nadim was 9 years old her father, an Afghan National Army (ANA) general, was executed by the Taliban.[1][3][4] When she was 11, Nadim, her mother and her four sisters fled Afghanistan and arrived in Denmark as refugees.[4][5] Shortly after arriving in Denmark, when 12 years old, she tried football for the first time and began playing at the small local club GUG in Aalborg.[4] Her senior career began at B52 Aalborg and Team Viborg.[6][7]
Club career
Early career
Nadim played for B52 Aalborg, Team Viborg from 2005 to 2006 and IK Skovbakken from 2006 to 2012, before moving to Fortuna Hjørring in 2012.[8] She made her Champions League debut in September the same year, scoring both goals in a 2–1 win over Scottish Champions Glasgow City.[9]
Nadim joined NWSL club Sky Blue FC near the end of the 2014 NWSL season. Playing in six games, she scored seven goals and registered three assists. She was named player of the week on 19 August and player of the month for the NWSL on 14 August. On 16 February 2015, Sky Blue announced that Nadim had been signed to play for Sky Blue in the 2015 season as well.[10]
Portland Thorns FC
On 14 January 2016, Nadim was traded to Portland Thorns FC.[11] Playing as a striker, she finished the 2016 season as the team's top scorer with nine goals in 20 games as the team won the 2016 NWSL Shield. In the 2017 season, she helped the team to a second-place finish in the league[12] and victory in the NWSL Championship game.
Manchester City
On 28 September 2017, Nadim signed for FA Women's Super League side Manchester City for the 2018 season. She joined the club in January 2018,[13] and made her debut with Manchester City on 7 January 2018 in a 5–2 win over Reading. After six minutes on the ground she scored her first goal for the team, and 26 minutes later she made an assist when Manchester City scored their second goal in the match.[14] In her second match for the team she scored the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Chelsea in the semi-final of the Continental Tyres Cup.[15]
On 26 July 2018, while on the US tour with Manchester City, the BBC reported that Nadim had requested a transfer out of the club, stating that she had never felt at home there and wanted to leave.[16] On 19 December 2018, Manchester City announced that Nadim would be departing the club and her contract would be terminated on 1 January 2019, allowing her to sign with another club.[17]
On 9 July 2019, Nadim extended her contract for Paris Saint-Germain[18] after a successful first season. She was later rewarded with the captain's armband and named the team's vice captain for the 2019–20 season. She scored 13 goals and made 13 assists in 16 league and cup games.
Racing Louisville FC
On 9 June 2021, Nadim signed with Racing Louisville FC,[19] returning to the NWSL four years after leaving Portland Thorns FC for Manchester City.
In September 2021, with the NWSL reeling from abuse scandals, she accused NJ/NY Gotham FC management of forging her signature on a contract extension so they could trade her rights to Portland in January 2016. She also accused league staffers of pressuring her to have a surgery for her season-ending ACL injury[20] in the United States rather than abroad, threatening that "if something went wrong with the surgery outside of US they could consider taking actions against me."[21]
Nadim's Racing Louisville contract expired in December 2023.[22] She left Racing Louisville as the club's best ever goal scorer.[23]
AC Milan
On 27 January 2024, Nadim signed with AC Milan for the rest of the 2023–24 season.[24]
Under Danish nationality law Nadim could not apply for citizenship until turning 18 years old in 2006. When citizenship was eventually granted in 2008, FIFA eligibility rules blocked Nadim from playing for Denmark, because she had not yet been resident for the requisite five years after turning 18.[25] A subsequent challenge from the Danish Football Association (DBU) led to FIFA's legal department making an exception to the rules in Nadim's case.[26]
In the UEFA Women's Euro 2017 tournament, she was instrumental in Denmark's advancement, scoring the tying goal in Denmark's eventual 2–1 win over favorites Germany in the knockout stages, and scoring a go-ahead goal in the final, which Denmark ultimately lost to host Netherlands 4–2.
On 27 October 2020, Denmark had to win away against Italy to qualify for the UEFA European Championship 2022, and Nadim was crowned player of the match after scoring two crucial goals in Denmark's 3–1 win over Italy in Florence. The two goals secured Denmark's spot in the upcoming Euros.[32]
On 24 June 2022, she played her 100th match for Denmark in a friendly match against Brazil.[33]
Style of play
Nadim is recognized for her energetic and determined style of play.[34] She is successful from the penalty spot, having converted all but one of her penalties in the NWSL (and with the one miss being a save by the goalkeeper and immediately scored by Nadim on the rebound) and both of her attempts at Euro 2017.[35]
Controversies
In December 2021, Nadim received criticism in the media for describing Qatar as a nation that helps people in need.[36] Her positive description of the state was in conflict with the general consensus in the Danish population and the opinion formulated by the Danish FA on the suppression of human rights and poor conditions for migrant workers in Qatar.[37] Subsequently, Nadim denied having received money for her performance in Qatar, which turned out to be untrue when Danish newspaper B.T. found out that she had received payment for attending the education summit in the country.[38]
As a consequence of her role as an ambassador for World Cup in Qatar, Danish Refugee Council removed Nadim from her role as a goodwill ambassador.[39] Nadim stated on her Twitter that her collaboration with the Danish Refugee Council had been inactive since the beginning of 2019. However, B.T. demonstrated that this statement was inaccurate.[40][41]
Personal life
Nadim attended medical school at Aarhus University (remotely during the football season) with the aim of becoming a surgeon when her playing days are over.[6][5] In 2020, she was assisting in surgery.[7] She qualified as a doctor in January 2022.[42]
In 2018, Forbes ranked her Number 20 in their "Most Powerful Women in International Sports" list.[45]
Her mother, Hamida Nadim, was killed in a motor vehicle accident on 23 November 2022, aged 57. When Nadia learned that her mother had died, she departed during her work as a pundit for British broadcaster ITV at the Denmark–Tunisia match in the Men's World Cup.[46]
On August 9, 2024 Nadim married her long-term partner Idrees in Istanbul, Türkiye. Nadim’s aunt Aryana Sayeed performed at the wedding. According to Nadim’s sister the couple have met when they both resided in Viby near Aarhus.[47]
Endorsements
Nadia signed a representation contract with Nike in 2017, making her the first ever Danish female football player to be represented by Nike.[48] Nike has used Nadia in many of their branches on top of doing work for the football department. She has also done commercials for Air Jordan[49] as well as Nike's collaborations with Martine Rose.[50] Besides her work with Nike, Nadia is also known for her work with Visa[51] and Hugo Boss.[52]
In 2016, Danish TV station DR released a four-episode long documentary about Nadia that followed her from Denmark to the United States, documenting her player development with the Portland Thorns.[53]
In 2018, Danish publisher JP/Politiken published Nadia Nadim's autobiography called "Min Historie"[54] which translates to "My Story". The book got nominated for Sports book of the year. The book was released in French on 26 May 2021, through the French publisher Hachette Book Group.[55]
In 2023, Nadia entered a collaboration with H&M along with Zlatan Ibrahimovic, to be the face of H&M's sports section called H&M Move [56]
Career statistics
Key (expand for notes on "international goals" and sorting)
Location
Geographic location of the venue where the competition occurred Sorted by country name first, then by city name
Lineup
Start – played entire match onminute (offplayer) – substituted on at the minute indicated, and player was substituted off at the same time
offminute (onplayer) – substituted off at the minute indicated, and player was substituted on at the same time
(c) – captain Sorted by minutes played
#
NumberOfGoals.goalNumber scored by the player in the match (alternate notation to Goal in match)
Min
The minute in the match the goal was scored. For list that include caps, blank indicates played in the match but did not score a goal.
Assist/pass
The ball was passed by the player, which assisted in scoring the goal. This column depends on the availability and source of this information.
penalty or pk
Goal scored on penalty-kick which was awarded due to foul by opponent. (Goals scored in penalty-shoot-out, at the end of a tied match after extra-time, are not included.)
Score
The match score after the goal was scored. Sorted by goal difference, then by goal scored by the player's team
Result
The final score.
Sorted by goal difference in the match, then by goal difference in penalty-shoot-out if it is taken, followed by goal scored by the player's team in the match, then by goal scored in the penalty-shoot-out. For matches with identical final scores, match ending in extra-time without penalty-shoot-out is a tougher match, therefore precede matches that ended in regulation
aet
The score at the end of extra-time; the match was tied at the end of 90' regulation
pso
Penalty-shoot-out score shown in parentheses; the match was tied at the end of extra-time
Light-purple background color – exhibition or closed door international friendly match
Light-yellow background color – match at an invitational tournament
Pink background color – Continental Games or regional tournament
NOTE on background colors: Continental Games or regional tournament are sometimes also qualifier for World Cup or Olympics; information depends on the source such as the player's federation.
NOTE: some keys may not apply for a particular football player
In July 2019, Nadia Nadim was named UNESCO Champion for Girls and Women's Education. She received this recognition for her role in promoting sport and gender equality, her contribution to the Organization's educational action prioritizing young people and advocacy for girls and women's education at an international scale, among others.[58][59]
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