De Vanna was born in Perth, Western Australia[3][4][5] to a Portuguese mother and an Italian father.[6] She was born and raised in the small port city of Fremantle, located about 30 minutes southwest of Perth.[7] De Vanna developed her love for the game of football at a young age and has said that she slept with her soccer ball and spent much of her time as a youth playing soccer in the street with her brother.[8][9]
De Vanna played for Swedish club AIK for the 2008 Damallsvenskan season. De Vanna had a very successful season, being the 5th highest goalscorer with 15 goals, helping AIK to their most successful season.[citation needed]
Perth Glory, 2008–09
In November 2008, De Vanna was signed to Perth Glory in the Australian W-League and made her first appearance for the club on 8 November 2008 against the Melbourne Victory.[13]
After the WPS suspended operations, De Vanna signed for Damallsvenskan club Linköpings FC.[17][18] She scored five goals in her first eight games including a hat trick against Piteå IF on 3 June 2012.[19] During a match against Kopparberg/Göteborg FC on 14 October 2012, she scored the game-winning goal in the 82nd minute helping her team win 3–2.[20] Linköping finished third during the regular season with an 11–6–5 record.[21] De Vanna finished the 2012 season having started in 18 of the 22 matches in which she played and scored seven goals.[22]
Sky Blue FC, 2013
On 1 February 2013, it was announced that De Vanna signed with Sky Blue FC for the inaugural season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division in the United States.[23][24] In June 2013, De Vanna scored a bicycle kick goal and was named the league's Player of the Week.[25] Her goal garnered international attention and went viral on websites like YouTube and soccer-related websites.[26][27] She was also voted NWSL Fans' Choice MVP for Week 8.[28] During a game against the Western New York Flash on 21 July 2013, De Vanna was sidelined with a hamstring injury.[29] De Vanna started in 16 of the 17 games in which she played and scored five goals.[22] Sky Blue finished in fourth during the regular season with a 10–6–6 record.[30]
Melbourne Victory, 2013–14
In October 2013, it was confirmed that De Vanna had signed for Melbourne Victory for the 2013–14 W League season.[31]
Boston Breakers, 2014
On 3 March 2014, Sky Blue FC traded De Vanna to the Boston Breakers in exchange for a 2014 international roster spot and the Breakers' first-round 2015 college draft pick, which became Sarah Killion.[32]
Washington Spirit, 2014
On 18 June 2014, the Boston Breakers traded De Vanna to Washington Spirit in exchange for defender and Mexican international Bianca Sierra and the Spirit's fourth and fifth round 2015 college draft picks.[33]
De Vanna in action for Melbourne City against Brisbane Roar, 2015.
Melbourne Victory, 2014–15
In September 2014 it was confirmed that De Vanna signed to play with Melbourne Victory again.[34]
Melbourne City, 2015–16
Having played a season with the Victory, De Vanna was lured across the city to Victory's A-League rivals, Melbourne City, becoming the brand new W-League side's very first signing.[35]
A couple of months after announcing her international retirement,[46] De Vanna decided to return to the game, re-joining her former club Perth Glory. The decision was in part related to the efforts of coach Alex Epakis and chairman Tony Sage to foster a safe, supportive, and respectful environment at the club.[47]
She scored four goals for Australia in the 2007 World Cup — one in a 1–1 draw against Norway, two in a 4–1 victory against Ghana, and one against Brazil in her team's 2–3 loss in the quarterfinals.[49] Each goal she scored at the World Cup was dedicated to her father, who died three months before the tournament began.[50]
In May 2011 De Vanna was sent home from a training camp held to prepare the national team for the World Cup. Australian coach Tom Sermanni stated that the expulsion was for an unacceptable standard of behaviour.[55] The previous September, De Vanna had been subject to a complaint after photographs involving a large inflatable penis were posted to her Facebook page. She was censured by Football Federation Australia and instructed to remove the offending pictures. De Vanna moved to Sweden for the 2012–13 season, but discussed that her desire to play for The Matildas was then stronger than ever.[56][57]
On 8 June 2015 De Vanna captained the Matilda's in her 100th game, scoring their only goal in a 3–1 defeat to the United States in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. During a match against Brazil in the 2016 Olympics, a moment of De Vanna and teammate Elise Kellond-Knight went viral when during a short break, De Vanna absentmindedly tried to drink from the wrong end of a water bottle, prompting Kellond-Knight to quickly flip it in her hand.[58]
Leading up to the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, De Vanna was the focus of an ESPN documentary, Unstoppable, directed by award-winning filmmaker, Safina Uberoi.[60] In 2013, she was featured in an hour-long episode of ESPN's Aussies Abroad entitled, The Matildas, which profiled four Australian national team players (De Vanna, Samantha Kerr, Kyah Simon, and Caitlin Foord) and their experience playing internationally.[61][62]
Career statistics
International goals
Key (expand for notes on "international goals" and sorting)
Location
Geographic location of the venue where the competition occurred Sorted by country name first, then by city name
Lineup
Start – played entire match onminute (offplayer) – substituted on at the minute indicated, and player was substituted off at the same time
offminute (onplayer) – substituted off at the minute indicated, and player was substituted on at the same time
(c) – captain Sorted by minutes played
#
NumberOfGoals.goalNumber scored by the player in the match (alternate notation to Goal in match)
Min
The minute in the match the goal was scored. For list that include caps, blank indicates played in the match but did not score a goal.
Assist/pass
The ball was passed by the player, which assisted in scoring the goal. This column depends on the availability and source of this information.
penalty or pk
Goal scored on penalty-kick which was awarded due to foul by opponent. (Goals scored in penalty-shoot-out, at the end of a tied match after extra-time, are not included.)
Score
The match score after the goal was scored. Sorted by goal difference, then by goal scored by the player's team
Result
The final score.
Sorted by goal difference in the match, then by goal difference in penalty-shoot-out if it is taken, followed by goal scored by the player's team in the match, then by goal scored in the penalty-shoot-out. For matches with identical final scores, match ending in extra-time without penalty-shoot-out is a tougher match, therefore precede matches that ended in regulation
aet
The score at the end of extra-time; the match was tied at the end of 90' regulation
pso
Penalty-shoot-out score shown in parentheses; the match was tied at the end of extra-time
Light-purple background color – exhibition or closed door international friendly match
Light-yellow background color – match at an invitational tournament
Light-orange background color – Olympic women's football qualification match
Light-blue background color – FIFA women's world cup qualification match
Orange background color – Olympic women's football tournament
Blue background color – FIFA women's world cup final tournament
NOTE: some keys may not apply for a particular football player
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