Crystal Dunn, World Cup and Olympic champion, retires at 33 – Equalizer Soccer

Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Crystal Dunn announced her retirement from soccer on Thursday after over a decade of playing at the highest level and winning multiple trophies for club and country.

Dunn was a starting fullback for the United States in the team’s triumphs at both the 2019 World Cup and the 2024 Olympics. She appeared 160 times for the USWNT.

She also won three NWSL Championships and three NWSL Shields during her time in the league — two of each with the North Carolina Courage and one each with the Portland Thorns.

Dunn largely played as a central midfielder for her clubs while transitioning to fullback for international duty.

“This decision has not come easily, but I am at peace and deeply fulfilled with all that I have accomplished,” Dunn wrote in her announcement on Instagram. “I’ve achieved nearly everything I dreamed of in this sport and gave all I had to give.”

Dunn also won the 2015 NWSL MVP and Golden Boot awards, scoring 15 goals in a 20-game season for the Washington Spirit after narrowly missing out on the USWNT’s 2015 World Cup roster. She was the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NWSL Draft.

Dunn last played significant minutes at the 2024 Olympics, playing all but 75 minutes on the team’s run to its fifth gold medal.

That year, she missed significant time with Gotham FC due to an excused absence. In January 2025, the team announced they had agreed to mutually part ways with Dunn, who then signed for Paris Saint-Germain in France. She played only a handful of games for PSG in the spring and had not been on the team’s gameday roster since mid-October.

Dunn also played for Chelsea in 2017 and 2018 when the team was coached by Emma Hayes, who is now the USWNT coach.

Dunn also won an NCAA title and a MAC Hermann Trophy as college soccer’s best player during her time at the University of North Carolina.

She was one of the star players who helped win the 2012 U-20 World Cup for the United States, which is the last time the program won that trophy.