She’s one of the most powerful women in football after cracking one of sports’ most notorious glass ceilings, but even Mia Hamm is not immune from the demands of domestic drudgery.
“Sorry for all of the noise,” she says as the clatter of workmen and screaming kids crackles down the phone line. “The people who were supposed to be here 30 minutes ago to fix our carpets have just shown up!”
A proud mother of seven-year-old twin girls and a baby boy, Hamm was for the best part of two decades America’s foremost footballer.
Though the World Cup winner and double Olympic gold medalist — described as “the biggest U.S.-born soccer star of all time” — is swift to laugh off such lofty titles.
“I’m just a former player that every day has to wake up, get her kids to school and figure out what I’m making them for lunch and dinner,” the 42-year-old Hamm, who played for the U.S. women’s team on over 200 occasions between 1987 and 2004, told CNN.
However, it’s not just the school run and her kids’ packed lunches that Hamm has on her mind these days. Appointed to the board of directors at major Italian club Roma, she occupies a position within the sport that few other women can match.
As well as her role in the “Eternal City,” the Alabama native is a minority owner of the newly-formed Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) — which will join Major League Soccer (MLS) in 2017.
“I never stand up there and say ‘I’m doing this to get more women in football,'” says Hamm of her appointment at Roma, which is owned by Italian American investor James Pallotta.
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“The success of the MLS will help the NWSL,” insists Hamm. “The success of the U.S. national teams will help the NWSL.
“There are several teams that are tied to MLS clubs and that could be the potential for the future where we’re able to share facilities, share infrastructure.”
So when LAFC enters the league, will it also boast a women’s team?
“Don’t know yet,” says a candid Hamm. “For me, it just makes sense, in one of the largest hotbed of girls’ club soccer in the country, if not the world.
“Being a part of the ownership group, we have a lot of work ahead of us. The women’s team isn’t their first priority, but I want it to be in the conversation.
“I’m going to make sure it’s something that’s discussed consistently because it’s the right thing to do and this area will support it. There are so many talented players in this area, up and down the coast.”
As far as Hamm is concerned, the future of U.S. soccer is bright — regardless of gender.
“I’m always hopeful, I love the game too much,” she says. “It doesn’t mean I’m naive, but I want the game to succeed in this country and the women’s side is a huge part of that.”
