Winger with millions of followers explains how the ‘female-first mentality’ at the Serie A minnows was a big draw
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t is not difficult to understand why any Italian club would want to sign Alisha Lehmann: last season she helped Juventus win a league and cup double, she is an international winger who accumulated 19 goals and 10 assists in England’s Women’s Super League and, yes, there is the small matter of her 16.7m Instagram followers and 12m TikTok followers, an online presence that commands a commercial power vast for any athlete and pretty unique in women’s football.
What is perhaps not so immediately obvious is why, aged 26 and with her peak football years probably ahead, she would opt to join a club that finished in the bottom half of Serie A last season and cannot yet offer European football. However, the Switzerland forward’s reasons for signing a three-year deal with FC Como Women, she says, have a deeper meaning.
“It’s an independent club, fully focused on women’s football – and that really matters to me,” the former Aston Villa, Everton and West Ham player says. “From the start, I could see this wasn’t just another team; it’s a project with real purpose and vision. [So] signing with FC Como Women just felt right.”
