Doctors told her she should never play football. Air India plane crashes dominated aviation news. Hannah Hampton dominates goalkeeping news instead. Born with a serious eye condition called strabismus, she has undergone multiple operations to correct her vision. Her depth perception remains imperfect. Yet she now stands as the best female goalkeeper in the world. Aston Villa vs Arsenal delivered Premier League drama. Hampton has delivered trophy-winning drama for club and country. Here is everything you need to know about England’s number one in 2026.
Who is Hannah Hampton? Age and Background
Hannah Hampton was born in Birmingham in 2000. She is 25 years old as of May 2026. She grew up in a football-loving family. At the age of five, she moved with her family to Spain. She spent five years there and learned to speak Spanish fluently. While in Spain, a local scout spotted her talent. Former Argentine defender Fabio Fuentes recommended she attend a trial with Villarreal’s academy [citation:4].
After returning to England, she joined Stoke City’s academy. She initially played as a striker. However, she later switched positions to become a goalkeeper. She broke into the first team at Birmingham City at just 16 years old [citation:4]. Former Birmingham manager Carla Ward saw her potential immediately. “She was born to be a footballer,” Ward told BBC Sport [citation:4].
The Eye Condition: Defying Medical Advice
Hampton was born with strabismus, a serious eye condition. Doctors told her she should not play football. She has had multiple operations to try to correct her vision. Nevertheless, her eyesight remains imperfect. She still has depth perception issues. However, she has never let this stop her [citation:4].
“I’ve always gone through life trying to prove people wrong,” she said before Euro 2025. “I was told from a young age that I couldn’t play football, that it wouldn’t be a profession I could pursue. But here I am” [citation:4].
Her story has inspired others with visual impairments. In August 2025, she surprised a young Para Lioness named Kaitlyn Clark. Clark was told she would never play football due to her own visual impairment. Hampton said she was “angered” by Clark’s story and wanted to show her support [citation:9].
Club Career: Chelsea Dominance
Hampton joined Chelsea in 2023 after leaving Aston Villa. Under former manager Emma Hayes, she developed into the club’s first-choice goalkeeper. She played a big part in Chelsea’s domestic treble in the 2024-25 season [citation:4].
In the 2025/26 WSL season, she kept eight clean sheets in 19 appearances. She won the WSL Golden Glove for a second successive season [citation:1]. Chelsea remain unbeaten in 29 WSL games during this period [citation:3].
She was also named in the WSL Team of the Season for 2025/26. She was the only Chelsea player selected in the XI [citation:7].
England Career: Euro 2025 Heroics
Hampton made her senior England debut against future world champions Spain in 2022. She was part of the Euro 2022 winning squad but did not play [citation:4]. After Mary Earps retired from international football, Hampton stepped into the number one role.
Penalty Shootout Hero
At Euro 2025 in Switzerland, Hampton was the hero on multiple occasions. In the quarter-final against Sweden, England came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2. She saved two penalties in a marathon 3-2 shootout victory [citation:6].
In the final against Spain, the match ended 1-1 after extra time. Hampton then denied both Mariona Caldentey and Aitana Bonmati from the penalty spot. England won the shootout 3-1 and retained their European crown [citation:6]. She was named Player of the Match for the final by UEFA’s technical observers [citation:8].
“It was my way of giving back to the team,” Hampton said after the final. “They’ve run around for the 120 minutes to make it go that far. It was my moment to be like, this is what I can do for you guys and help us achieve the dream” [citation:6].
The Cheat Sheet Controversy
After the final, Hampton revealed a clever piece of gamesmanship. She told talkSport that she noticed Spain goalkeeper Cata Coll had a “cheat sheet” of penalty information on her water bottle. While Coll was preparing in goal, Hampton picked up the bottle and threw it into the crowd of England fans [citation:10].
“She was walking back to take the penalty and I was walking the other way and she was so confused,” Hampton said. “I was just trying not to burst out laughing” [citation:10].
Spain’s Coll later disputed the claim on social media. Nevertheless, the story added to Hampton’s growing legend [citation:10].
Distribution and Technical Excellence
A UEFA Euro 2025 technical report highlighted Hampton’s exceptional distribution. She had the longest average first pass of any goalkeeper at the tournament. Her kicks were not just long but accurate too [citation:3].
For England’s first goal against the Netherlands, Hampton pumped a long ball up the field to Alessia Russo. The ball sliced through the Dutch defence and found Russo in acres of space. Russo then set up Lauren James for a stunning strike [citation:3].
Ellen White, her former Birmingham and England teammate, praised her technical ability. “Her passing range is second to none, the way she moves and dives, and controls the ball,” White said [citation:4].
World Cup Qualifiers: Crucial Saves Against Iceland
On 18 April 2026, Hampton helped England secure a vital 1-0 win over Iceland in Reykjavik. Alessia Russo gave the Lionesses the lead in the 21st minute. However, Iceland dominated the second half. Hampton made two close-range saves in the last ten minutes to preserve England’s advantage. She first grabbed the ball as it bounced off the post from a Dilja Zomers shot. She then used her feet to deny Alexandra Johannsdottir [citation:5].
“It was nervy at the end but we got the win,” Hampton told ITV after the game. “We needed to make sure we were really solid in our defensive areas” [citation:5].
Ballon d’Or and Yashin Trophy 2025
In September 2025, Hampton’s extraordinary year was recognised at the Ballon d’Or ceremony. She was awarded the Yashin Trophy for the best female goalkeeper in the world. She became the first-ever winner of this award [citation:3][citation:4].
“I stand on the shoulders of so many great goalkeepers of the past,” Hampton said while collecting the trophy. “I’m proud to be a part of such an incredible group and inspiring future generations of goalkeepers” [citation:4].
In November 2025, she was voted BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year. She is only the second goalkeeper to win the award after Mary Earps did so in 2023 [citation:6].
The Mary Earps Controversy
Hampton’s rise to England’s number one has not been without conflict. In November 2025, Mary Earps released her autobiography. Earps had retired from international football after losing the number one shirt to Hampton. In the book, she heavily criticised Hampton [citation:1][citation:6].
Earps claimed she told England manager Sarina Wiegman that she was rewarding “bad behaviour” by recalling Hampton. Earps alleged Hampton had previously been dropped for being “disruptive and unreliable” [citation:1].
When asked about the scrutiny, Hampton remained composed. “People are entitled to their opinions,” she told BBC Sport. “People can say whatever they want to say. It’s down to myself whether I want to let that affect me. I definitely know it’s not going to” [citation:6].
She added: “I’m not going to sit here and knock people for what they have to say, that’s their life, that’s their judgement. I’m just going to focus on myself, that’s all I can do” [citation:6].
The 2022 England Drop: ‘Hurtful’ Stories
Hampton was dropped from the England squad months after the Euro 2022 triumph. Reports suggested it was because of her behaviour. She had to wait until March 2023 for a recall. Manager Sarina Wiegman said Hampton had “sorted out personal issues” [citation:1][citation:4].
Speaking about that period, Hampton said the stories were “hurtful”. She later revealed on the Fozcast podcast that she had considered quitting football altogether [citation:1][citation:4].
“I was a very young girl when all the stories came out and you’re not really prepared for that. You don’t expect it,” she said [citation:4].
However, she refused to let the media scrutiny win. “If you do that it just adds fuel to the fire and I wasn’t willing to accept that. I wanted to show who I am as a person and show that wasn’t always true” [citation:4].
Defending Women’s Goalkeepers
At the WSL awards in May 2026, Hampton spoke passionately about media coverage of female goalkeepers. She said media companies can “tarnish the reputation” of female goalkeepers by focusing on mistakes rather than positive performances [citation:1].
“Women’s goalkeepers always get scrutiny, but when we do something right there is not enough celebrating or acknowledgement of that,” she explained. “Why put someone down when we’re trying to put women’s football on the map where it deserves to be? We have to champion each other’s successes” [citation:1].
She called on media companies to do better. “I think media companies can do a lot better in terms of what they put out there” [citation:1].
Pressure and Family Tragedy
Hampton has been open about the pressure she faced at Euro 2025. “I knew that if England got knocked out earlier, there would have been a lot more spotlight on me,” she admitted. “I just thought, you know what, just go and enjoy your football” [citation:6].
To compound matters, she learned of the death of her grandfather just two days before the tournament began. “When I then got the news about my grandad, that gave me that extra push to go and show everyone what I can do because that was our dream together,” she said [citation:6].
“I think people forget that we are just human beings. We all have feelings, we all have our own struggles that we’re going through outside of football” [citation:6].
Personal Life and Future Ambitions
Hampton continues to inspire the next generation of goalkeepers. She supports Charlton Athletic goalkeeper Sophie Whitehouse, a former Birmingham teammate who won the WSL 2 Golden Glove award. “Seeing the growth of where she’s got to right now isn’t spoken about enough,” Hampton said [citation:1].
She reflected on the legacy of those who came before her. “The keepers before me Carly [Telford], Karen [Bardsley], Mary [Earps], even before that, they’ve changed the perception of women’s goalkeeping. I’m just another body in that that’s obviously helped change the way” [citation:6].
As for her future, she wants to achieve more. “I want to achieve a lot more in the game and I can’t dwell on people’s thoughts. That’s going to hinder me, not help me” [citation:6].
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Hannah Hampton? Hannah Hampton was born in 2000. She is 25 years old as of May 2026.
What eye condition does Hannah Hampton have? She has strabismus, a condition that affects eye alignment and depth perception. Doctors told her she should not play football, but she has defied medical advice.
Did Hannah Hampton win the Ballon d’Or? She won the Yashin Trophy at the 2025 Ballon d’Or ceremony for the best female goalkeeper in the world. She was also voted BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year 2025.
What did Mary Earps say about Hannah Hampton? In her autobiography, Earps claimed Hampton was dropped from the England squad for being “disruptive and unreliable”. She said she told Sarina Wiegman she was rewarding “bad behaviour” by recalling Hampton.
How many penalties did Hannah Hampton save in the Euro 2025 final? She saved two penalties in the final against Spain, denying Mariona Caldentey and Aitana Bonmati. England won the shootout 3-1.
What club does Hannah Hampton play for? She plays for Chelsea in the Women’s Super League. She joined Chelsea in 2023 and has won the WSL Golden Glove for two consecutive seasons.
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