Alanna Kennedy is an Australian professional football player. At the moment she plays for the women’s national team of Australia and plays club football for Tottenham Women as a defender. She has played in several football clubs within and outside her home country of Australia.
She has also featured for her country’s under-17 and under-20 teams before she was called upon to join the senior women’s national team. Alenna has won several accolades and silverware for her clubs and for herself, famous among is when she got shortlisted in the FIFPro 2017 women’s world Xl as a defender.
Alanna Kennedy Biography
Alanna Kennedy was born Alanna Stephanie Kennedy on the 21st January 1995 in Australia’s Campbelltown. She was brought up in a family of six alongside her sister Kayla by her mother Stephanie and a father whose name has not been revealed.
As per her racial background and status, she is Australian by nationality and belongs to the white ethnic group. Nothing is known about her educational background.
Alanna Kennedy began playing football at a young age. Although it’s not exactly clear at what age she began, she began playing club football at the age of 16.
Football Career
Alanna Kennedy began her soccer career in 2010. She joined Sydney FC in the W-League during the 2010/11 season, featuring in only 3 games, before moving to Newcastle Jets at the beginning of the 2011/12 season. The 2012/13 season saw her returning back to Sydney FC.
The following season, she decided to move to city rivals Western Sydney Wanderers for a year. The 2014/15 season saw her join Perth Glory. And in 2015, she returned back to her old club Sydney FC where she stayed for 2 seasons, before signing a deal with NWSL side Western New York Flash in 2016, featuring in 17 games for the club and subsequently winning the 2016 NWSL championship.
In January of 2017, Alanna Kennedy was exchanged for midfielder Sam Witteman in a trade to the Orlando Pride, where she featured in every single game for the club in the 2017 season, and scoring the only winning goal in the team’s last game of the season.
The club loaned Kennedy to Melbourne City of the W-League for the 2017/18 season, where she was named to the Westfield W-League’s Team of the Decade which was made up of 11 best players who have ever played in the league.
She featured in 20 games, netting 2 goals in the 2018 NWSL for Orlando Pride, but unfortunately, the team could replicate their 2017 success, ending the season with a disappointing 7th place.
Kenney was sent on loan to Sydney FC for the 2018/19 W-league, making a come back to the very club where she had first began her club football. In February 2019, she won her 3rd W-League championship title in a 4-2 win over Perth Glory in the final.
In 2020, she was sent on another loan to Tottenham Hotspur but by 2021, the club signed her on a permanent deal.
A Look At Her International Career
Internationally, Kennedy was not left on the sidelines, her discipline, skill, and talent on and off the pitch gave her an advantage over her contemporaries. She’s been privileged to feature for her country’s under-17, under-20, and the women’s senior national team. Her first game in national colors was against New Zealand in 2012. Two years later when she was 19, she was invited to join the squad for the 2014 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, featuring in 3 games and Australia finishing as runner-up to Japan.
Kennedy’s dedication to her national team made her be called again to international duties in 2015 as she was named in the country’s 23-player list for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World, breaking the record of being the 2nd youngest player on the list. She played in all 5 matches, although the team made it to the knockout stage as 2nd from their group, they were eliminated from the tournament by Japan in the quarter-finals after defeating Brazil in the round of 16.
She also was part of the squad that represented Australia in the 2016 Rio Olympics where the team lost to Brazil in the quarter-finals after she missed the final penalty.
In 2017, she was also in the squad that won the 2017 Tournament of Nations, defeating the US for the time. And in 2018, she netted 2 equalizing goals against Thailand in the 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup semi-final game which they won on penalties. However, they lost to Japan in the final which ended 1 nil.
Alanna Kennedy has accomplished so much from her soccer career, she’s still very young and in her prime. If she continues at this rate, she would in no time become one of the highly-rated women defenders in women’s football, who not only defend but also scores when they have the chance.
Thus far, she has represented her country in other competitions including the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup and also the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
See Also: Elise Kellond-Knight Biography, Career Stats, Boyfriend, Net Worth, Other Facts
Salary/Net worth
Although Kennedy’s exact salary is still under review, according to celebstrendnow.com, she has an estimated net worth of $1.5 million as of 2021. She has earned this huge net worth from her football career.
Other things that have added to her incredible net worth are the endorsement deals and sponsorships that she has got with brands such as Nike and Cadbury among others.
Other facts about Alanna Kennedy
1. Kennedy is pretty much very tall
She stands at a height of 5 feet 10 inches (177cm). For a central defender, this height is very useful. No wonder she has been able to score goals for both club and country.
2. She is in a lesbian relationship
Alanna has never made a secret of her sexual orientation. The footballer was previously rumored to be involved with a fellow Australian teammate Kyah Simon before they later went their separate ways. Currently, she is dating Mummy blogger, Sophie Cachia.
3. Sophie Cachia was previously married to a man
Before Alanna and Sophie met and started their relationship, the blogger was previously married to a man who happened to be an Australian rules footballer, Jaryd Cachia. The two got married in 2016 and after having 2 kids, they divorced in 2019.
According to Sophie, it was after the birth of her second child that she came to the realization that she wanted more than her marriage was offering. She met Alanna through work and before long, they started dating.
4. She describes her father as her number 1 fan
The Tottenham defender shares a special bond with her mum and her siblings most especially her sister Kayla. However, she has made it known that since day one, her number 1 fan has been her father.
5. She has won some trophies
Alanna Kennedy’s career has been decorated with various awards and trophies for her various clubs and country, as well as at an individul level. Here are some of the trophies she has won thus far:
Sydney FC
- W-League Premiership (2010/11)
- W-League Championship (2012/13, 2018/19)
Perth Glory
- W-League Premiership (2014/15)
Western New York Flash
- National Women’s Soccer League Championship (2016)
Melbourne City
- W-League Championship (2017/18)
International
- AFF U-16 Women’s Championship (2009)
- AFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament (2016)
- Tournament of Nations (2017)
- FFA Cup of Nations (2019)
Discussion about this post