Nati coach Pia Sundhage celebrates her 65th birthday today. The Swede spoke to blue Sport about her plans as a pensioner, her childhood as Pia and Pelle, music and her greatest passion, football.
Cornerstones of Pia Sundhage's career
- National team coach Pia Sundhage is a legend of the sport. She celebrates her 65th birthday on February 13, 2025.
- Between 1975 and 1996, Sundhage played 146 international matches for Sweden, scoring 71 goals.
- In 1984, she scored Sweden to win the title at the first ever Women's European Championship. At club level, she won the Swedish championship and the cup four times.
- As a coach, Sundhage led the USA to Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012 and finished runner-up at the 2011 World Championships. After her second Olympic triumph, she was named the best female coach in the world.
- She also enjoyed success as Sweden's national coach, leading the team to the semi-finals at the 2013 European Championships on home soil and to Olympic silver at the 2016 Olympic Games.
- She was Brazil's national coach from July 2019 to summer 2023. In 2022, her team were crowned South American champions. At the 2023 World Cup, the group stage was the final stop.
- Sundhage has been Switzerland's national coach since January 2024. The big highlight is still to come with the home European Championships in the summer.
On February 13, you will be 65 years old. How does that sound?
It's great every year. You get a bit older and wiser, but I feel really young. And as long as I'm surrounded by female soccer players and have matches, it's all good.
Where are you celebrating? And with whom?
I'll be in the office working. And I think I have an interview. It's a great celebration (smiles).
What was the best birthday present you ever received?
I don't think I received THE present. Because we don't celebrate birthdays that big in our family. For me, being with people I like is more important than receiving presents. Being with my family was a good present.
Will there at least be a Swedish cake?
(Laughs) I don't think so. In any case, I'm not going to bake anything.
In Switzerland, 65 is the retirement age. You definitely don't want to sit back yet. When the time comes, what plans do you have? Form a band? Gardening?...
... that's interesting, I recently spoke to my mentor about it. And she told me how important it is to prepare for it. At the moment I'm on a special journey with the European Championships, but every now and then I think about the fact that at some point I won't be on the pitch anymore. I've started learning to ride and my little sister is trying to teach me. So when I retire, I think I'll spend a lot of time with animals and music.
When will that be?
(Laughs) That could be any time.
Football is your great passion. What do you love so much about the game?
I've always loved kicking a ball and trying things out with it. And I'm fascinated by how you can achieve so many things together. And I like the competition. You can win, but you also learn how to deal with defeat. I was just lucky that I was able to do what I love. Even though I wasn't actually allowed to play ball as a little girl.
Because it was forbidden for girls to play football in Sweden back then. But you did it anyway. How did you do that?
That's a story where I have to go back 60 years. We often played in the garden and very often I was first and last on the pitch. But in real games with referees, goals with nets, games where you wear the same jersey, I wasn't allowed to play because I was a girl. But I was lucky because one of my neighbors coached a boys' team and asked me if I wanted to play.
What did you obviously want?
And how I wanted to. And then he said we had to cheat a bit. But my parents taught me that you're not allowed to do that. But he said we just had to cheat a little. So we changed my first name. Instead of Pia, they called me Pelle. And so I played with the boys and no one noticed or simply didn't care. So I became part of this boys' team and that was my lucky day.
It was a crazy story.
It taught me that there is always a way around obstacles. And in women's sport, there were lots of obstacles everywhere. Here it was a neighbor who helped me. And I'm very grateful for that.
When did you actually change back into Pia?
(Laughs) Well, I think it took about two years. Then we moved to a slightly larger village and there was a women's team there. A teacher had noticed that I was always passionate about playing football with the boys during the breaks and he asked me if I wanted to play in a real team. They then helped me to find the right place.
If you hadn't become a footballer and coach, would you have become a musician?
(Laughs) I would probably have become a teacher and my hobby would have been music. What fascinates me about music is the harmony. The more people playing, the better it sounds. If someone plays bass, someone is on the drums ... I would definitely play in a band.
Together with your sisters and brothers?
No, they're not good enough. It would have to be other friends. Or maybe my nephews.
Do you have a favorite band or a favorite song?
I grew up listening to Simon & Garfunkel and the song I really tried to learn was "The Sound of Silence". I think that's a brilliant song and after that comes "Bridge over Troubled Water". I could also list many songs by Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteen. There are a lot of songs that I like.
Was young Pia a nerd at school? Or just the opposite?
I think a lot of people thought I was a bit weird, strange, until the 9th grade. But it was fun, because that was okay. Playing with the ball gave me so much confidence that I always felt comfortable. And I made a lot of friends just by playing the ball and getting it back.
You have experienced so much. Are there things you are particularly proud of?
Oh, there are so many things I'm proud of. I'm proud of my mother and father for allowing me to be Pia and Pelle. And I'm also proud of all the teams I've played for. We had good and bad coaches, but they were all passionate about it. I'm also proud that I've played football for so many years, that I've coached for so many years. And I am very grateful to have been part of the development of women's football and to have celebrated so many successes.
Are there also things you regret?
I'm not the type to regret anything. Of course I've made a few mistakes, but you can learn from mistakes.
Do you remember a particularly big mistake?
Yes, I do. In 2003, I won the championship with the Boston Breakers and was named coach of the year. I then moved to Kolbotn in Norway. But I didn't reach the group there. After half a season, we decided it was better to go our separate ways.
And what did you learn from that?
I learned the hard way that I'm useless as an individual coach. But if I have a team by my side, a staff, then they make me look good. Then I can give my best. Back in Norway, it was really tough. I was really sad. That's why today I pay a lot of attention to who I work with, because it only works together.
Switzerland are playing Norway in the Nations League and at the European Championships, now you can repay them...
(laughs) It's about time, yes.
You've been Switzerland's national team coach for a year now. What kind of team did you find?
I came across a team that plays quite technically, with some very experienced players and a lot of young talent. When I look at the GPS data we've collected on the national team, I can see that the intensity - or rather, the speed of play - needs to be improved. Switzerland played at the World Cup and maintained a high level. But if you want to reach the absolute top, there is still room for improvement.
There is hardly any time to work on your fitness during a national team match. Can you make any difference at all in this respect?
The biggest challenge for me is getting a player to feel comfortable, to feel uncomfortable. To try things she has never done before. Reaching for the moon, pushing boundaries instead of saying, "Okay, I'm happy to be here and I'll try to do my best." Also, making mistakes is okay as long as you come back and try to correct your mistakes. When you're curious, there's so much energy in you and it takes a lot of courage to be curious. I think they did a great job.
They know the feeling of a home European Championship from 2013 with Sweden. You also know the feeling of winning titles. What's possible with Switzerland?
When I look at our group, I think everyone has a chance of advancing to the quarter-finals. And if you get to the quarter-finals, anything is possible. Of course we're all positive and believe it's possible, otherwise we wouldn't be playing football, you want to win games.
Is it actually true that you were considered as a possible candidate for the position of men's national team coach in Sweden in 2009?
Since winning the Olympic gold medal in 2008, or even before that, there was a lot of talk about whether I would be good enough to coach a men's team. After winning gold in 2012, the discussion came up again. But I don't think I was close. At least there was no offer.
Could you have imagined coaching a men's team or are the differences too great?
If you look at the game and the leadership today, I don't think it's rocket science whether you coach women or men. Are there differences? Absolutely. But I would be smart enough to get the coaches who have been involved in men's football for a long time at my side so that I am prepared. Football is football. There are small differences on the pitch, but probably bigger differences in leadership.
As a footballer, you didn't earn enough to live on. When did you first earn real money from football?
When I went to the USA as a coach, I was 48 years old. Before that, however, I had put in countless hours, experienced so many great situations and learned through experience. Passion was and is what drives me.
Money doesn't seem to be that important to you ...
Yes, and I have enough money in the bank so I don't have to constantly look at the amount. I'm not really interested in that. It's more about making a difference, learning and working with other people.
You have inspired many people with your career. Are there also people who have inspired you?
Yes, it actually started with Cruyff, Pelé and Beckenbauer (laughs). I don't know why, but I was simply fascinated by them. And then there was a teacher I had at grammar school when I was 15 or 16 years old. She taught PE and didn't say much. But her body language and her presence were simply phenomenal. She had excellent control of the class and I was impressed by the way she taught and trained us. She is my role model.
Do people actually talk to you on the street?
Sometimes and that's really cool. Because that also means that these people are interested in women's football.
