FIFPRO Women's World 11 for 2026 revealed — Lucy Bronze makes a record ninth team and Barbra Banda a third straight
FIFPRO revealed its 2026 Women's World 11 on Monday, chosen by 6,511 professional women's footballers in 64 countries for performances between August 2025 and August 2026. Lucy Bronze of Chelsea and England was selected for a record ninth time. Barbra Banda of Orlando Pride and Zambia was selected for a third straight year — the first African woman to earn three consecutive selections. The team in full: Hannah Hampton; Lucy Bronze, Alex Greenwood, Mapi León and Irene Paredes; Aitana Bonmatí, Alexia Putellas and Ella Toone; Barbra Banda, Claudia Pina and Alessia Russo.
Key points
- The 2026 Women's World 11 was chosen by 6,511 professional players in 64 countries — the only global football award voted for exclusively by players.
- Lucy Bronze makes the team for a record ninth time; no woman had reached nine before.
- Barbra Banda is in for a third straight year — a first for an African woman — and is the team's only player based outside England and Spain.
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- England and Spain provide five players each; Zambia's Banda completes the eleven.
What happened
The FIFPRO World 11 is football's players'-union award: the team is picked entirely by professional footballers voting on the season just gone, with no journalists, coaches or public vote involved. Voters name a goalkeeper and the outfield players in each line, and the highest-polling players form the team. This year's women's vote covered performances from 4 August 2025 to 16 August 2026 and drew 6,511 voters in 64 countries.
Match facts — all verified
- ✓ VerifiedThe 2026 FIFPRO Women's World 11 is: Hannah Hampton (Chelsea, England); Lucy Bronze (Chelsea, England), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City, England), Mapi León (Barcelona, Spain) and Irene Paredes (Barcelona, Spain); Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona, Spain), Alexia Putellas (Barcelona, Spain) and Ella Toone (Manchester United, England); Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride, Zambia), Claudia Pina (Barcelona, Spain) and Alessia Russo (Arsenal, England). The team was chosen by 6,511 professional women's footballers in 64 countries, for performances from 4 August 2025 to 16 August 2026.FIFPRO — Who is in the running for the 2026 FIFPRO Women's World 11 (fifpro.org) · BBC Sport — FIFPRO Women's World 11: Lucy Bronze selected for record ninth time (9 Nov 2026) · Reuters — FIFPRO World 11 (9 Nov 2026)
- ✓ VerifiedLucy Bronze's selection is her ninth — a record. Reuters reports she became the first woman to earn nine selections, extending the record eighth mark she set in 2025.Reuters — FIFPRO World 11 (9 Nov 2026) · BBC Sport — FIFPRO Women's World 11: Lucy Bronze selected for record ninth time (9 Nov 2026)
- ✓ VerifiedBarbra Banda's selection is her third in a row, after 2024 and 2025 — the first African woman to earn three consecutive World 11 selections, and the African woman with the most selections, according to FIFPRO. She is the only player in the team based outside England and Spain, playing for Orlando Pride in the United States.ZamFoot — Barbra Banda makes history with third consecutive FIFPRO Women's World 11 selection (9 Nov 2026) · BBC Sport — FIFPRO Women's World 11: Lucy Bronze selected for record ninth time (9 Nov 2026)
What we know / what we don't know yet
What we know
- The full team, the voting numbers and both records, from FIFPRO's announcement as reported identically by BBC Sport and Reuters.
- That Banda is the only African in the team and the only player based outside England and Spain.
What we don't know yet
- The vote count for each player — FIFPRO publishes the team, not the individual tallies.