1 Melchie Dumornay (OL Lyonnes/Haiti) Yes, Dumornay was part of a team that lost 4-0 to Barcelona in last season’s Champions League final, but her influence in the OL Lyonnes midfield as they cruised to a domestic treble stepped up a gear. The technically brilliant 23-year-old midfielder was named player of the year by the French players’ union, and her importance to Lyonnes was most clearly demonstrated by her absence through injury for their 2-1 loss to Arsenal in their Champions League semi-final first leg. She returned for the second leg and produced a player-of-the-match performance in a 3-1 win. Dumornay scored five goals in Lyonnes’ Champions League run and was named in the team of the tournament.
2 Ewa Pajor (Barcelona/Poland) After losing five Champions League finals, Pajor shook off her ‘always the bridesmaid, never the bride’ mantle in style with two goals as Barcelona thrashed Lyonnes in Oslo. The 29-year-old’s 11 goals in European competition last season matched Alexia Putella’s 2021-22 tally, which has not been bettered since Ada Hegerberg’s record-breaking 15 in 2017-18. Pajor also scored 16 goals in Liga F, behind only her Barcelona teammate Claudia Pina who scored 21.
3 Khadija Shaw (Manchester City/Jamaica) Shaw is the only player to win three Women’s Super League golden boots and she won them consecutively. The 29-year-old was back to her unplayable best last season, scoring 21 goals in 22 games as Manchester City swept to a league and FA Cup double and, much to the club’s relief, signing a new contract. It is not just Shaw’s numbers that are impressive; her hold-up play, defensive work and vision are also deeply impressive. All that helped her to the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) and Football Writers’ Association (FWA) player of the year awards. She scored nine goals and was named in the Best XI in this year’s Concacaf Women’s Championship qualification, helping Jamaica make the tournament proper.
4 Alexia Putellas (London City Lionesses/Spain) Putellas was in stunning form in her final season at Barcelona before she moved to London City Lionesses in July. Having sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in 2022 that ruled her out of that summer’s Euros, the two-time Ballon d’Or winner’s return to action, and best form, took some time. She scored seven goals in the Champions League last season and nine goals and seven assists in Liga F, as Barcelona won a stunning quadruple. The 32-year-old also scored the second and third goals in a 4-0 defeat of England to secure Spain’s World Cup qualification at their opponent’s expense.
5 Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City/Japan) Hasegawa makes a third appearance on the Ballon d’Or longlist having missed out last year. The 29-year-old was a critical component in City’s double, the conductor of Andrée Jeglertz’s midfield. She was named in the PFA team of the year and also helped Japan to a third AFC Women’s Asian Cup win, eight years after their last, earning World Cup qualification in the process.
6 Alessia Russo (Arsenal/England) It was a disappointing season for Arsenal, with only the Fifa Champions Cup trophy secured, but Russo stepped up a level for club as well as country. Switching between the No 9 and No 10 roles, it was the 27-year-old’s all-round game that impressed the most and not surprisingly was named in the PFA team of the year. Her goal against Iceland in England’s World Cup qualifying campaign in April moved her into Lionesses’ top-10 goalscorers.
7 Temwa Chawinga (Kansas City Current/Malawi) The National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) top scorer and most valuable player for a second season running, Chawinga scored 15 goals as Kansas City Current finished top in the regular season, winning the NWSL Shield. The 28-year-old also scored five goals to take Malawi – who had never previously qualified – to the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final, making her the joint-highest goalscorer, and helping her country reach their first World Cup.
8 Claudia Pina (Barcelona/Spain) It was a quiet Champions League season for Pina, with the 25-year-old scoring two goals, neither in the knockouts. However, she more than produced in Liga F, scoring 21 goals and providing five assists. The forward also scored twice in Spain’s World Cup qualifying campaign, including the fourth against England to secure their place in Brazil.
9 Patri Guijarro (Barcelona/Spain) Patri makes everything tick for Barcelona, providing the platform in midfield that allows Aitana Bonmatí and, last season, Putellas to flourish. The 28-year-old was critical to the quadruple, including playing a key role in keeping Lyonnes at bay in the Champions League final. The midfielder, handed her club’s captaincy after Putellas’s exit, plays a similarly important role for Spain.
10 Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride/Zambia) Banda scored eight goals as Orlando Pride earned a fourth-place finish in the NWSL last season, subsequently exiting the playoffs at the semi-final stage. Despite Zambia failing to reach the knockout stage of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, finishing third in Group C and missing out on goals scored in head-to-head matches, Banda had a good tournament, scoring five goals to finish as joint-top scorer alongside Chawinga and Cameroon’s Marie Ngah Manga. The 26-year-old was named in the Fifpro Women’s World XI.
11 Kerstin Casparij (Manchester City/Netherlands) Casparij provided the joint-most assists in the WSL last season, seven, as City secured a second WSL title and their first in 10 years. The 26-year-old full-back also captained the side when Alex Greenwood was out injured and has become a real leader in the team.
12 Mariona Caldentey (Arsenal/Spain) Caldentey had to play out of best position last season, a little bit deeper in midfield, which undermined the 30-year-old’s ability to make things happen further forward. However, she still delivered week-in week-out for Arsenal as well as regularly impressing for Spain.
13 Caroline Graham Hansen (Barcelona/Norway) The 31-year-old winger scored 10 goals and finished the joint-highest assist provider in Liga F, also with 10, as Barcelona won the quadruple. She also scored four times in the Champions League.
14 Selma Bacha (OL Lyonnes/France) Bacha was named in the Champions League team of the season for her impressive displays as an attacking left-back. The 25-year-old was also named in the Premiere Ligue team of the season fas Lyonnes went about winning a domestic treble.
15 Pernille Harder (Bayern Munich/Denmark) The 33-year-old striker scored a joint-second 16 goals in the Frauen Bundesliga last season, as well as eight in the Europe. She was named in the Champions League’s team of the season.
16 Vivianne Miedema (Manchester City/Netherlands) Miedema’s value to City was most evident in her absence, with the 30-year-old missing five games at the end of last season due to knee surgery. City won their first WSL title in 10 years, but were far less slick without the Dutch forward, who scored 10 league goals.
17 Mapi León (London City Lionesses/Spain) Named in the Champions League team of the season, León was a rock at the back for Barcelona. In addition to her defensive duties, the 31-year-old centre-back provided seven assists in the league and joined London City Lionesses in July.
18 Rose Lavelle (Gotham FC/United States) Lavelle was the hero of Gotham FC’s NWSL playoff run, scoring the winning goal in the 80th minute of the Championship final after the team had scraped into the playoffs with an eighth-place regular-season finish. The 31-year-old midfielder was named in the NWSL team of the month in September and October/November as Gotham started their title defence impressively.
19 Lorena (Kansas City Current/Brazil) The Brazilian kept an impressive 14 clean sheets in the NWSL last season to help Kansas City Current to the NWSL Shield. Despite the Current suffering a shock playoff exit to Gotham in the quarter-finals, the 29-year-old was named goalkeeper of the year and in the NWSL Best XI.
20 Manaka Matsukubo (Chelsea/Japan) Matsukubo scored 11 goals for North Carolina Courage in the NWSL, the third-most in the division last season. The 22-year-old was named the NWSL midfielder of the year and in the NWSL Best XI and helped Japan to the AFC Women’s Asian Cup title, scoring her first international goal during the tournament. She secured a move to Chelsea in July.
And the rest of the field …
21 Klara Bühl (Bayern Munich/Germany)
22 Cata Coll (Barcelona/Spain)
23 Alex Greenwood (Manchester City/England)
24 Wendie Renard (OL Lyonnes/France)
25 Esmee Brugts (Barcelona/Netherlands)
26 Momoko Tanikawa (Bayern Munich/Japan)
27 Caroline Weir (OL Lyonnes/Scotland)
28 Melvine Malard (Chelsea/France)
29 Scarlett Camberos (Club América/Mexico)
30 Tessa Wullaert (Como 1907/Belgium)
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