Chelsea defender Lucy Bronze has been named in The Best FIFA Women's XI for 2024, and it was also a special night for our former manager Emma Hayes.
There were 13 Chelsea players included in the 77-player shortlist for the The Best FIFA Women’s XI, with 11 goalkeepers plus 22 defenders, midfielders and forwards listed.
Fans had the chance to pick their favourite XI players from the last 12 months and votes were weighted equally between supporters and an expert panel.
Bronze, who won The Best FIFA Women’s Player award in 2020 and was nominated this year, was the only English player to make The Best FIFA Women’s XI for 2024.
Goalkeeper: Alyssa Naeher
Defenders: Irene Paredes, Ona Batlle, Lucy Bronze, Naomi Girma
Midfielders: Aitana Bonmati, Lindsey Horan, Gabi Portilho, Patri Guijarro
Forwards: Caroline Graham Hansen, Salma Paralluelo
The other Chelsea players nominated were: Hannah Hampton, Zecira Musovic, Lucy Bronze, Millie Bright, Nathalie Bjorn, Kadeisha Buchanan, Niamh Charles, Ashley Lawrence, Sjoeke Nusken, Erin Cuthbert, Guro Reiten, Lauren James and Mayra Ramirez.
Those players played their part in helping our former manager Emma Hayes win The Best FIFA Women’s Coach award for the second time, having also claimed the crown in 2021. Our current head coach Sonia Bompastor had been among the nominees.
The Best FIFA Men’s Coach for 2024 was also awarded to another former Blues boss, Carlo Ancelotti while The Best FIFA Men’s Player went to Vinicius Junior, with Rodri second and Jude Bellingham third.
The Best FIFA Women’s Player award was retained by Aitana Bonmati, with Barbra Banda and Caroline Graham Hansen second and third respectively.
The FIFA Best Goalkeeper awards were won by Emiliano Martinez and Alyssa Naeher, with the Puskas Award for the standout goal going to Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho.
The Best FIFA Men’s XI – for which Cole Palmer was one of the 77 nominees – included: Emiliano Martinez, Ruben Dias, Dani Carvajal, Antonio Rudiger, William Saliba, Jude Bellingham, Rodri, Toni Kroos, Erling Haaland, Lamine Yamal and Vinicius Junior.
