Ellie Carpenter makes history by winning Asian Football Confederation’s Asian international player of the year

A Matildas star has been recognised for her brilliant year for club and country with a major new international award.

Australia’s Ellie Carpenter has made history by becoming the inaugural recipient of the Asian Football Confederation’s Asian international women’s player of the year award.

It came a day after no Matildas finished in the top 30 of voting for the women’s Ballon d’Or, awarded to the best player in the world. Injured Matildas captain Sam Kerr was runner-up in 2022, with Hayley Raso also in the top 20 that year.

Carpenter, 24, who played a leading role in Australia’s 2-1 win over Germany on Tuesday morning. won the award after helping her club side, Olympique Lyonnais, to the UEFA Women’s Champions League final and a record-breaking 17th Division 1 F’minine title.

🇦🇺 Matildas’ Ellie Carpenter is the inaugural winner of the AFC Asian International Women’s Player of the Year!#AFCAwards2023pic.twitter.com/ikOiUn0pC4

— AFC (@theafcdotcom) October 29, 2024

Cortnee Vine, the former Sydney FC winger who now plays for North Carolina Courage, missed out narrowly on succeeding fellow Matilda Sam Kerr as the AFC’s women’s player of the year.

Vine didn’t played in the Matildas win over Germany that interim coach Tom Sermanni said was a confidence builder for all players, including Carpenter, as the team continues to recover from a poor Paris Olympics.

“It restores confidence in individual players, it restores confidence in the team, and it brings that belief back,” he said.

“It wasn’t so much about the result of it, because Germany are a fantastic side – and we were under some considerable pressure.

“But I think the great thing tonight is that we showed that character and determination.

“We’ve got footballers who can play good football. Tonight, we didn’t get an opportunity to play an awful lot of good football, but we hung in and showed a great deal of determination and drive.”

Carpenter will be back in action for the Matildas against Brazil in November.

Originally published as Ellie Carpenter makes history by winning Asian Football Confederation’s Asian international player of the year