European Champion Celia Sasic has retired from all football. The 27-year-old announced today on her Facebook page that she was calling time on her career. “Football has been a part of my entire life and will continue to be,” she explained. “I was allowed to play in the Women’s Bundesliga for eleven years, experienced unforgettable moments with the Women’s national team for ten and a half years and was part of an unbelievable development. And that makes me proud. Nevertheless, I’ve decided to begin a new chapter in my life and call time on my professional football career.”
Celia Sasic began her career in the Women’s Bundesliga in 2005, but at that time went under her maiden name of Okoyino da Mbabi. On 28th January she played her first full international match against Australia, beginning a career that would see her appear 111 times for the national side and score 63 times. These statistics include her most recent outings at the Women’s World Cup in Canada where she scorer six times and was awarded the Golden Boot.
Neid: "Celia leaves big boots to fill"
National team coach Silvia Neid, who won the U19s World Cup in 2004 with Sasic in Thailand, shows her understanding of the decision: “I regret Celia’s decision, but she also understands that football is not everything in life and there always comes a moment in life when you need to focus on other priorities. It’s a real loss for us because Celia is major character who leaves big boots to fill. She was always a role model, on and off the pitch. We won important games because of her; she took on responsibility and completely fulfilled her role as a leading figure. From the bottom of my heart, I wish her all the best for the next step in her life.”
Alongside European Championship titles in 2009 and 2013, Sasic also won the U19 World Cup in 2004 and a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing as part of the Germany national team. With her club, 1. FFC Frankfurt, the striker won the 2014 DFB Women’s cup and the 2015 Women’s Champions League. New challenges now await Celia Sasic, who explicitly thanks her family, her husband and her friends for their support: “I’m now looking forward to a range of new things in my life,” she says, “I want to finish my studies, sort out my career path, start a family and a lot more.”
European Champion Celia Sasic has retired from all football. The 27-year-old announced today on her Facebook page that she was calling time on her career. “Football has been a part of my entire life and will continue to be,” she explained. “I was allowed to play in the Women’s Bundesliga for eleven years, experienced unforgettable moments with the Women’s national team for ten and a half years and was part of an unbelievable development. And that makes me proud. Nevertheless, I’ve decided to begin a new chapter in my life and call time on my professional football career.”
Celia Sasic began her career in the Women’s Bundesliga in 2005, but at that time went under her maiden name of Okoyino da Mbabi. On 28th January she played her first full international match against Australia, beginning a career that would see her appear 111 times for the national side and score 63 times. These statistics include her most recent outings at the Women’s World Cup in Canada where she scorer six times and was awarded the Golden Boot.
Neid: "Celia leaves big boots to fill"
National team coach Silvia Neid, who won the U19s World Cup in 2004 with Sasic in Thailand, shows her understanding of the decision: “I regret Celia’s decision, but she also understands that football is not everything in life and there always comes a moment in life when you need to focus on other priorities. It’s a real loss for us because Celia is major character who leaves big boots to fill. She was always a role model, on and off the pitch. We won important games because of her; she took on responsibility and completely fulfilled her role as a leading figure. From the bottom of my heart, I wish her all the best for the next step in her life.”
Alongside European Championship titles in 2009 and 2013, Sasic also won the U19 World Cup in 2004 and a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing as part of the Germany national team. With her club, 1. FFC Frankfurt, the striker won the 2014 DFB Women’s cup and the 2015 Women’s Champions League. New challenges now await Celia Sasic, who explicitly thanks her family, her husband and her friends for their support: “I’m now looking forward to a range of new things in my life,” she says, “I want to finish my studies, sort out my career path, start a family and a lot more.”
