Raised in Studio City, California in the Los Angeles area, Alyssa attended The Wesley School in North Hollywood. At age 8, she raced against the fastest boy at the school and won.[3]
Thompson's parents Karen and Mario[4] signed Alyssa and her sister Gisele up to Total Futbol Academy (TFA) in 2013, when Alyssa Thompson was 9 years old, for them to compete on boys' teams. After two years, they transferred to Elite Clubs National League club Real So Cal, where they played until the COVID-19 pandemic.[5][6] By the age of 13, Thompson was playing with players four years older than her.[7] Thompson returned to TFA in 2020 and played for its under-19 team in the MLS Next league at the age of 17, and was the only female player in the league.[7][5][6][8]
Thompson attended and played for Harvard-Westlake School during her freshman and sophomore years of high school[9] and scored 48 goals in 18 games.[7][8] National team and club soccer prevented her from playing during her junior season. She was drafted to professional play as a high school senior.[8][10]
On January 12, 2023, Angel City FC selected Thompson as the first overall pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft.[15][8][10] As part of a three-team trade, Angel City had sent a total of $450,000 to Portland Thorns and Gotham FC to secure the No. 1 pick.[16] At the time, this trade made Thompson "essentially the most expensive player in league history," which was a record previously set by Alex Morgan.[17] Thompson signed a three-year deal with the club.[17]
While still attending her senior year of high school at Westlake,[18][19] Thompson scored five minutes into her professional debut with Angel City FC, in a friendly match against Club América of Liga MX Femenil.[8] Thompson scored a goal 11 minutes into her NWSL regular-season debut on March 26, 2023, in a 1–2 loss against NJ/NY Gotham FC.[20] On April 11, she scored the game-opener against Portland Thorns FC.[21] She was named NWSL Rookie of the Month for her performance during March–April 2023.[22] Thompson's third regular season goal was the opening goal in the team's 3–2 win against Kansas City Current.[23][24] On June 5, she provided the assist for Sydney Leroux's first goal and game of the season (after returning from an ankle injury in the previous season).[25] Thompson finished her first season for Angel City with four goals and two assists in regular-season games on the way to the clubs first playoffs appearance, and was also named as one of the nominees for Rookie of the Year at the conclusion of the season.[26]
Thompson playing for Angel City in 2024
On May 3, 2024, in Angel City's first game against the Utah Royals, Thompson made her third assist of the season, and became the youngest player in NWSL history and the first player for Angel City to record assists in three consecutive matches.[27] On May 18, 2024, in an away match against Washington Spirit, Thompson started alongside her younger sister Gisele, which marked the first time in NWSL history that two sisters had been named to the starting lineup of the same team.[28] Thompson converted her first penalty kick for Angel City on August 1, 2024, in a shootout against San Diego Wave FC during the 2024 NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup to ensure a spot in the knockout stage of the tournament.[29] Thompson also convereted her first non-shootout penalty for Angel City a few weeks later in a friendly against Liga MX Femenil team FC Juárez on August 18, 2024, her first goal of the 2024 season.[30]
Thompson scored her first career brace and her first regular-season goals of the 2024 season on August 24, 2024, in an away match against San Diego Wave FC to secure a 1–2 victory. Thompson became the second teenager after Mallory Swanson to score multiple goals in a regular-season NWSL match.[31] On September 6, 2024, Thompson was named to the NWSL Team of the Month for the first time for the month of August 2024, playing in three games throughout August, Thompson registered 11 tackles won and six shots, three on target.[32] Thompson notched three goals and one assist throughout September to make the Best XI in back-to-back months.[33] Thompson concluded her sophomore season with a record of 5 goals and 7 assists, securing the second-highest assist total in the league, while also leading Angel City FC in total goal contributions.[34]
Thompson was called up to the senior national team in September 2022 and was the youngest player since Sophia Smith in 2017.[38][39][12] On October 7, 2022, she made her senior national team debut at Wembley Stadium during a friendly against England in front of 90,000 fans.[8][40]
Thompson in 2023
On April 9, 2023, Thompson was called up to the senior team to replace an injured Mallory Swanson in a friendly scheduled for April 11 against Ireland.[41] In June of the same year, she was named to the U.S. squad for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.[42] She made her debut during the team's first group stage match, a 3–0 win against Vietnam.[43]
Thompson recorded her first assist for the senior national team on October 29, 2023, setting up Jaedyn Shaw's goal in a 3–0 win in a friendly against Colombia.[44] After missing the 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup due to a minor back injury,[45] Thompson was called back into the national team in October 2024 for the teams Olympic gold medal victory tour. In what was her tenth cap, Thompson scored her first international goal against Iceland, the first goal in the match to secure a 3–1 victory.[46]
Playing style
In July 2023 the BBC said that her "pace and tenacity are stand-out features".[47]
Thompson also runs track, and in April 2022, ran 100m in 11.74 seconds, which was the second fastest 100m sprint in 2022 up to that date in California.[8][53]
Endorsements
In May 2022, Thompson and her sister Gisele signed a name, image, and likeness deal with Nike at ages 17 and 16 respectively, becoming the first high school athletes to do so.[54] In July 2023, she appeared in a commercial for Volkswagen.[55]
Television and film
Thompson was featured in episode 3 of the documentary series Angel City in 2023.[56]
Thompson appeared in the Netflix documentary series, Under Pressure: The U.S. Women's World Cup Team, which followed the U.S. women's national team as they competed in the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.[57] She also appeared alongside her sister Gisele as cameos in the Netflix film Family Switch.[58]
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