USWNT boss Hayes defends NWSL after Ballon d'Or snub

Emma Hayes believes the National Women's Soccer League did not get the recognition it deserved at the 2025 Ballon d’Or awards.

Aitana Bonmati won the women's Ballon d’Or ahead of Arsenal duo Mariona Caldentey and Alessia Russo, while the rest of the top 10 in the voting was also made up of European players from Barcelona, Chelsea and Arsenal.

It was a similar story in the rest of the awards as Arsenal won Women’s Club of the Year, Spain’s Vicky Lopez won the Women’s Kopa Trophy, England’s Hannah Hampton picked up the Women’s Yashin Trophy, and Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman received the Women’s Johan Cruyff Trophy.

It was a surprise for some onlookers that Caldentey and Russo finished behind the now three-time winner Bonmati, while Marta’s exclusion from the top 10 also caused some uproar.

And United States boss Hayes, who openly stated her dislike of individual awards, insisted that the NWSL is at the same level as the Women’s Super League.

“I think the reality is that the Champions League and the European Championships favour or edge forward players that are playing in those competitions because there's just more of them,” Hayes told Stats Perform.

“So, I think as the game develops in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, then hopefully that will change. But the NWSL is a fierce league, it really is. It's got top quality players playing in it and I do think that players are overlooked there.

“I know watching it first-hand, it's as good a league as the WSL.

“I mean, I've always said this, it's why I don't like individual awards. It's a team sport and all of them are champions in their own right.

“Same with coaching. It's always hard to pick one out. I look at the absence of American players in that. We've got some of the best players in the world and they're not in that.

“I wish they could all get one to be honest with you because they're all worthy of it.”