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Roster cuts, rivalries and the long road to the World Cup.
25 verified sapphic soccer romances · 7 rivals or enemies · 7 teammates · 12 explicit (L4–L5) · 11 with a confirmed HEA or HFN · the 6 Girls of Summer books are one series
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Soccer is the clearest single-sport request in sapphic sports romance. Readers want national-team players fighting for the same roster spot, club teammates who can’t keep it professional, college keepers and strikers, and stars who fall for someone who has never kicked a ball.
Every one of the 25 books here has a central romance between two women, and soccer shapes the leads, the plot or the relationship. A former player, a team jersey or a match on TV in the background isn’t enough. Six of the 25 are Kate Christie’s Girls of Summer series, which follows one couple, Jamie and Emma, across six books. So when this page recommends reads, the series counts as one recommendation, with a reading order.
Endings are recorded separately. 11 books have a confirmed HEA or HFN; the rest are marked ending unverified until a source confirms how they end. That doesn’t mean they end unhappily.
Start Here: 8 Sapphic Soccer Romances
Eight different ways in, not a ranking: national team and club, college and high school, rivals and teammates, athletes with staff and outsiders, and one six-book series about a single couple.
SoccerProHEAL3 · Open door
First row: sport, level, ending and heat. Second row: pairing and the dynamics a source supports. Unknown stays unknown.
Many of these books use fictional clubs and leagues. We name a real team or tournament only when the book does.
Every card names its source: an LRR review, the publisher or author, a specialist review, or a structured listing such as I Heart SapphFic.
Cleat Cute
Meryl Wilsner · St. Martin's Griffin, 2023
A USWNT veteran sidelined by injury clashes with, then falls for, the young player who replaces her as the World Cup nears.
Why start here: The benchmark soccer romance: national-team teammates, a warm tone and an LRR-confirmed HEA.
Score to Love
Johana Gavez · Self-published, 2022
A Brazilian striker and her attractive, annoying Houston teammate compete for playing time while sleeping together.
Why start here: Pro club teammates who start as enemies: the clearest rivals-to-lovers pick at club level, with explicit heat and a confirmed HEA.
Take Her On
Emily Wright · Purple Clouds Press, 2024
A university football captain must play alongside her loudmouthed rival, who has transferred onto her team for a fresh start.
Why start here: College teammates and rivals, and the spiciest book on this page (L5), with a confirmed HEA.
You Don't Have a Shot
Racquel Marie · Feiwel & Friends, 2023
After a playoff meltdown, a teen soccer player is forced to co-captain at soccer camp with her rival, and antagonism turns to romance.
Why start here: The YA pick: high-school soccer rivals turned co-captains, closed door, happy ending.
Hotshot
Clare Lydon · Custard Books, 2023
An American soccer star moves to an English club, her life unravels, and the club's new hire helps her rebuild as feelings grow.
Why start here: A US star and her new team’s performance coach: an athlete/staff romance with explicit heat and a confirmed HEA.
Never Mine
Bryce Oakley · Self-published, 2021
A rebellious soccer star needs a respectable girlfriend for an endorsement; an old classmate needs a date for her ex's wedding.
Why start here: Fake dating with a soccer celebrity, for readers who want the sport around the romance rather than on every page.
Loser of the Year
Carrie Byrd · Ylva Publishing, 2024
A divorced ex-actress teaching high school theater wars with the school's arrogant soccer coach, then falls for her.
Why start here: A high-school soccer coach and a theater teacher: adult enemies to lovers with explicit heat and a confirmed HEA.
The Girls of Summer series
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2016–2021 · 6 books
Reading order:
- Training Ground (2016): High school / YA, L1 · No on-page sex, ending unverified
- Game Time (2016): Pro, L1 · No on-page sex, ending unverified
- Outside the Lines (2018): Pro, L2 · Fade to black, ending unverified
- The Road to Canada (2019): Olympic / international, L2 · Fade to black, ending unverified
- Girls of Summer (2019): Olympic / international, L2 · Fade to black, ending unverified
- Under the Lights (2021): Pro, L2 · Fade to black, HFN
Why start here: The longest soccer love story on LRR: two players growing up inside the sport, with the lowest heat on this page.
National Team and World Cup Romance
6 books are set on national teams or at a World Cup or Olympics. The stakes are roster spots, public scrutiny and the question of what happens to a relationship when both women are chasing the same shirt. Cleat Cute is the Start Here pick; two more stand alone:
Onside Play
Liz Rain · Ylva Publishing, 2023
At the Women's World Cup, an Australian player faces the American striker who dumped her in college and old feelings reignite.
Pairing: Australian national team player / US star striker (ex-girlfriends)
Evidence: LRR review
“second-chance lesbian romance… Two soccer stars share a secret” Source → Heat: LRR review. Ending: LRR review.
The Princess Match
Clare Lydon · Custard Books, 2025
England's football captain and a closeted princess connect at an honours ceremony; their secret romance becomes tabloid news.
Pairing: England football captain / future queen
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“England's football captain… winning Victoria's heart? That's the match of her life.” Source → Heat: iheartsapphfic heat: 'Medium (sex scenes are included and may use mildly graphic description)'. StoryGraph users tag graphic sexual content; sequel The Forever Match (2026)
The Girls of Summer series, in reading order
Kate Christie follows Jamie and Emma from the US youth pool through club soccer to the 2015 World Cup. Read it in order; each book picks up where the last one stops.
Training Ground
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2016
A fifteen-year-old soccer hopeful chasing the US youth national pool meets someone who changes everything; opens the Jamie/Emma series.
Pairing: 15-year-old youth national pool hopeful / older soccer player
⚑ Series: Girls of Summer #1.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“make the United States youth national soccer pool… kiss a girl” Source → Heat: iHSF “Sweet”. Ending: readers warn the ending is bleak and unresolved; the story continues in Game Time (our review).
Game Time
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2016
Jamie plays for Arsenal while Emma stars in the NWSL as both push toward the 2015 World Cup and their relationship.
Pairing: Arsenal Ladies player / NWSL national team player
⚑ Series: Girls of Summer #2.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“Emma Blakeley's and Jamie Maxwell's futures are upon them” Source → Heat: iHSF “Sweet”. Readers describe it as very PG with an extremely slow burn; the story continues in Outside the Lines (our review).
Outside the Lines
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2018
Emma and Jamie juggle NWSL clubs, national team camps and their relationship while chasing 2015 World Cup roster spots.
Pairing: USWNT/NWSL players
⚑ Series: Girls of Summer #3.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“Who will make the 2015 World Cup roster?” Source → Heat: iHSF “Fade to Black”.
The Road to Canada
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2019
A coaching change throws the 2015 US World Cup roster into doubt for Emma and Jamie.
Pairing: USWNT players
⚑ Series: Girls of Summer #4.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“a chance to stand on top of the winner's podium in Vancouver” Source → Heat: iHSF “Fade to Black”. Readers note the book ends before the 2015 World Cup begins; the tournament comes in book five (our review).
Girls of Summer
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2019
At the 2015 World Cup, Jamie fights for a roster spot and Emma for redemption under public scrutiny of their relationship.
Pairing: USWNT players
⚑ Series: Girls of Summer #5. Part of a six-book series that follows the same team.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“two athletes with bright soccer futures” Source → Heat: iHSF “Fade to Black”. Book 5 of 6 — the 2015 World Cup; continues in Under the Lights
Under the Lights
Kate Christie · Second Growth Books, 2021
After the World Cup, Jamie and Emma face club and national-team demands, an equal-pay fight, and long-distance strain.
Pairing: USWNT/NWSL players in long-distance relationship
⚑ Series: Girls of Summer #6.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“Soccer brought them together, but now the brutal pace of NWSL playoffs” Source → Heat: iHSF “Fade to Black”. Readers say several threads are left open; a book 6.5 follows
Filter by national team and international play →
Pro Club Romance
11 books are set in professional club soccer, from the NWSL to English clubs, real and fictional. Score to Love and Hotshot are in Start Here; these are the other club-level picks with two players at the center:
Magnetic Rivals
Isla Brinn · Alembee Services, 2026
An Australian star who signs with an American club fights a comeback captain for the starting lineup and the armband, then faces her on opposing national teams at the Olympics.
Pairing: Nic Davis: Australian soccer star · Morgan Sullivan: club captain returning from a knee injury
⚑ Series: Green and Gold Hearts #1.
Evidence: LRR review
“A Sapphic Soccer Sports Romance (Green and Gold Hearts book 1)” Source → Heat: LRR review. Ending: LRR review. Setup: publisher blurb (club rivals, then opposing national teams).
She's a Keeper
Liz Lincoln · 2023
A soccer player long in love with her divorced goalkeeper friend invites her to room together; platonic dates become benefits.
Pairing: soccer player / divorced goalkeeper (roommates)
⚑ Series: Milwaukee Wolfpack #2.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“Soccer player Rose Olivieri has been in love with goalkeeper Cassie Dickinson” Source → Heat: iheartsapphfic heat: 'Hot & Steamy (full, graphic description of sexual acts)'. Now sold on Amazon as Loving a Keeper
Top of Her Game
M. Ullrich · Bold Strokes Books, 2019
The league's most sought-after rookie is drafted to New Jersey and falls for her teammate, idol and long-time crush.
Pairing: top rookie draftee / veteran idol teammate
⚑ Readers report a third-act breakup.
Evidence: Publisher
“the most sought-after rookie in women's major league soccer” Source → Readers report a breakup around 80% followed by a reconciliation
College, High School and YA Soccer
6 books are set in college programs or high school. Take Her On (college) and You Don't Have a Shot (YA) are in Start Here, and Training Ground opens the Girls of Summer series. Two more college romances:
Finding a Keeper
Nicole Pyland · Pyland Publishing, 2020
A freshman college player and the team's junior keeper, rivals for one position, fall for each other over two seasons.
Pairing: freshman scholarship player / junior goalkeeper
⚑ Series: Sports #4. Butch/masc: Butch/Stud (iheartsapphfic tag).
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“College soccer stars… can't stop their growing feelings for one another” Source → Heat: iheartsapphfic heat: 'Hot & Steamy (full, graphic description of sexual acts)'. Heat: romance.io readers rate it 4/5, explicit. Ending: readers describe a long separation before an epilogue; one says it does not feel like a full HEA, so we leave the ending unverified (our review).
Say Yes to the Soccer Player
Abby Crofton · Warm Flannel Reads, 2016
A first-year college student settles into dorm life and a relationship with the university soccer team's star forward.
Pairing: college freshman / star forward of university soccer team
⚑ Series: Say Yes #2.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“The narrative follows Jenny's journey with Beth Kirkland, a soccer player” Source → Heat: iHSF “Fade to Black”. Readers describe it as PG — kissing only
Rivals and Teammates
We tag these separately. Rivals compete for something real, a starting spot, a title or a national-team place, and they don’t have to hate each other. Teammates share a team, which doesn’t make them friends to lovers. A book can be both.
Rivals or enemies (7): Magnetic Rivals, Onside Play, Loser of the Year, Take Her On, Score to Love, Cleat Cute and You Don't Have a Shot.
Teammates (7): Magnetic Rivals, Take Her On, She's a Keeper, Score to Love, Finding a Keeper, Top of Her Game and Cleat Cute.
Filter the collection by rivals →
Beyond Athlete/Athlete
Not every soccer romance pairs two players. 6 books pair a player with someone outside the sport, and others involve coaches, team staff and owners. Hotshot, Never Mine and Loser of the Year are in Start Here. The rest:
Game Changers
Jane Cuthbertson · Launch Point Press, 2019
A younger soccer player pursues a reclusive older woman; a tragic accident tests whether their love can survive.
Pairing: younger soccer player / solitary older writer
⚑ Butch/masc: Butch/Stud (iheartsapphfic tag).
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“unexpected encounter with soccer player Jaye Stokes” Source → Heat: iheartsapphfic heat: 'Medium (sex scenes are included and may use mildly graphic description)'.
Last Chance
Claire Highton-Stevenson · QF Books, 2024
A footballer coming back from a second ACL injury joins a women's club and falls for its career-driven owner.
Pairing: injured footballer / club owner
⚑ Series: Chances Collection #1.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“An injured athlete desperate for a comeback. A career-driven team owner” Source → Heat: iheartsapphfic heat: 'Hot & Steamy (full, graphic description of sexual acts)'. Readers report no third-act breakup
Playing For Her Heart
Melissa Tereze · GPC Publishing, 2020
A commitment-shy footballer backs into a divorced mother's car and has to decide whether she can give her heart as well as her game.
Pairing: footballer / divorced single mother
Third-act breakup: None reported
⚑ Series: Ashforth #1.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“Dom Simmons is the talk of the town when it comes to football” Source → Heat: romance.io 4/5 “Explicit open door” (8 ratings).
The Game Changer
Finley Chuva · 2022
A divorced Denver soccer star, newly diagnosed autistic, falls for her best friend's younger sister when she returns home.
Pairing: pro soccer star / best friend's little sister (game-café owner)
⚑ Series: Denver Defiant #1. Butch/masc: Butch/Femme (iheartsapphfic tag). Neurodivergent rep: Autistic lead (blurb). Blurb advertises an #ownvoices autism portrayal.
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“a successful soccer star playing for the Denver Defiant” Source → Heat: iheartsapphfic heat: 'Hot & Steamy (full, graphic description of sexual acts)'. Ending: reader reviews describe a happy ending after a mild third-act breakup (our review).
The Rookie
S R Silcox · Juggernaut Books, 2025
A woman pulled back into soccer to mentor a young goalkeeper falls for her team's relentlessly charming operations manager.
Pairing: returning (goalkeeping) coach / team operations manager
Evidence: I Heart SapphFic listing
“pulled back to the sidelines… the team's brilliant and relentlessly charming Operations Manager” Source → Heat: iHSF “Fade to Black”.
Filter by athlete/non-athlete →
Spicy or Closed Door
Heat and sport intensity are separate. We use the heat level a trusted source gives, and when sources disagree we show the more conservative one.
Explicit, L4–L5 (12): Magnetic Rivals, Onside Play, Loser of the Year, Last Chance, Take Her On, Hotshot, She's a Keeper, Score to Love, The Game Changer, Finding a Keeper, Playing For Her Heart and Cleat Cute.
Open door, L3 (3): The Princess Match, Never Mine and Game Changers.
Closed door, fade to black or no on-page sex, L1–L2 (9): The Rookie, Under the Lights, Girls of Summer, The Road to Canada, Outside the Lines, Game Time, Say Yes to the Soccer Player, Training Ground and You Don't Have a Shot. Heat not yet rated: Top of Her Game.
Representation and Soccer
We never infer butch, masc, stud, disability or neurodivergence from athleticism, body type, haircut or position. Labels below come from a source.
Butch/masc, source-tagged (4): Loser of the Year, The Game Changer, Finding a Keeper and Game Changers. Neurodivergent lead (2): The Game Changer and Cleat Cute.
How LRR Verifies Soccer Romance
Soccer must be material to the story: a lead plays, coaches or works inside the sport, and it shapes the plot or the relationship. A former player, a jersey or a match in the background doesn’t count. The romance between two women must be the main story.
Each card names its source: an LRR review, the publisher or author, a specialist review, or a structured listing such as I Heart SapphFic. Endings and heat are verified separately and never inferred from tone. Unknown stays unknown.
Complete Collection
All 25 verified soccer romances, each listed once, including the six Girls of Summer books individually. Tap a filter to narrow the table.
25 of 25 books shown
| Book | Level | Pairing | Dynamics | Heat | Ending | LRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleat Cute Meryl Wilsner | Olympic / international | Athlete/athlete | Rivals, Teammates | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| Finding a Keeper Nicole Pyland | College | Athlete/athlete | Teammates, Friends to lovers, Slow burn, Forced proximity | L4 · Explicit | Ending unverified | Review |
| Game Changers Jane Cuthbertson | — | Athlete/non-athlete | Age gap | L3 · Open door | Ending unverified | New on LRR |
| Game Time Kate Christie | Pro | Athlete/athlete | Second chance, Friends to lovers, Slow burn | L1 · No on-page sex | Ending unverified | Review |
| Girls of Summer Kate Christie | Olympic / international | Athlete/athlete | — | L2 · Fade to black | Ending unverified | Review |
| Hotshot Clare Lydon | Pro | Team staff | Celebrity athlete, Slow burn | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| Last Chance Claire Highton-Stevenson | Pro | Team staff | Age gap | L4 · Explicit | Ending unverified | Review |
| Loser of the Year Carrie Byrd | High school / YA | Coach/non-athlete | Enemies to lovers, Forbidden, Grumpy/sunshine | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| Magnetic Rivals Isla Brinn | Pro / Olympic | Athlete/athlete | Rivals, Teammates | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| Never Mine Bryce Oakley | Pro | Athlete/non-athlete | Fake dating, Celebrity athlete, Slow burn | L3 · Open door | Ending unverified | Review |
| Onside Play Liz Rain | Olympic / international | Athlete/athlete | Rivals, Second chance | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| Outside the Lines Kate Christie | Pro | Athlete/athlete | Second chance | L2 · Fade to black | Ending unverified | Review |
| Playing For Her Heart Melissa Tereze | — | Athlete/non-athlete | Age gap, Single parent | L4 · Explicit | Ending unverified | Review |
| Say Yes to the Soccer Player Abby Crofton | College | Athlete/non-athlete | — | L1 · No on-page sex | Ending unverified | Review |
| Score to Love Johana Gavez | Pro | Athlete/athlete | Rivals, Teammates, Enemies to lovers, Grumpy/sunshine | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| She's a Keeper Liz Lincoln | Pro | Athlete/athlete | Teammates, Friends to lovers, Forced proximity | L4 · Explicit | Ending unverified | Review |
| Take Her On Emily Wright | College | Athlete/athlete | Rivals, Teammates, Enemies to lovers, Grumpy/sunshine | L5 · Extra spicy | HEA | Review |
| The Game Changer Finley Chuva | Pro | Athlete/non-athlete | Friends to lovers, Slow burn | L4 · Explicit | HEA | Review |
| The Princess Match Clare Lydon | Olympic / international | Athlete/non-athlete | Forbidden, Celebrity athlete | L3 · Open door | HEA | Review |
| The Road to Canada Kate Christie | Olympic / international | Athlete/athlete | — | L2 · Fade to black | Ending unverified | Review |
| The Rookie S R Silcox | — | Team staff | Coach, Second chance, Grumpy/sunshine | L2 · Fade to black | Ending unverified | New on LRR |
| Top of Her Game M. Ullrich | Pro | Athlete/athlete | Teammates | Heat not rated | Ending unverified | Review |
| Training Ground Kate Christie | High school / YA | Athlete/athlete | Friends to lovers | L1 · No on-page sex | Ending unverified | Review |
| Under the Lights Kate Christie | Pro | Athlete/athlete | — | L2 · Fade to black | HFN | Review |
| You Don't Have a Shot Racquel Marie | High school / YA | Athlete/athlete | Rivals, Enemies to lovers | L2 · Closed door | HEA | Review |
Still Verifying and Not Included
Still verifying (4)
- Bound to Be (Lauren Hart): an injured pro soccer player and an actress, but so far only a structured listing places soccer in the story. We haven’t found an official or specialist source showing how much it shapes the romance.
- Guarding the Athlete (Reba Bale): a bodyguard protecting a pro soccer star. As with Bound to Be, only a structured listing confirms the sport so far.
- Silver Linings (R.B. Webb): we haven’t found an official description that confirms a romance between two women.
- The Set Piece (Catherine Lane): the romance between two women is confirmed, but neither is an athlete; soccer is the backdrop around a male player. We haven’t decided yet whether that counts.
Checked and not included (4)
- The Senator’s Wife (Jen Lyon): one lead is a pro soccer player, but Lesbrary calls her soccer career “peripheral to the main plot.”
- Girl Crushed (Katie Heaney): soccer is a character trait, not part of the plot or the romance.
- Beautiful Game (Kate Christie): published in 2011, before this guide’s 2015 start, and the love interest plays tennis.
- Kick Back (KJ): the sport is Australian rules football, not soccer. It’s on the Other Sports shelf of our hub instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as a sapphic soccer romance?
A book where the central romance is between two women and soccer meaningfully shapes a lead, the plot or the relationship. A former player or a match in the background isn’t enough.
How many sapphic soccer romances are there on LRR?
25 verified books. Six of them are Kate Christie’s Girls of Summer series about one couple, so they make up one series recommendation rather than six separate picks.
Does the soccer have to be professional?
No. 11 books are set in pro club soccer and 6 on national teams or at international tournaments, while 6 are set in college or high school. Some books fit more than one level.
Are there rivals-to-lovers soccer romances?
Yes. 7 books carry a rivals or enemies tag, verified book by book. Cleat Cute, Score to Love and Take Her On are good places to start.
Are teammates automatically friends to lovers?
No. We tag teammates and friends to lovers separately. 7 books have teammates as a central dynamic.
Are there spicy soccer romances?
Yes. 12 books are explicit (L4–L5), and 9 are closed door, fade to black or have no on-page sex.
Is there YA sapphic soccer romance?
Yes. You Don’t Have a Shot and Training Ground, the first Girls of Summer book, are both YA.
Do all of these books have happy endings?
11 have a confirmed HEA or HFN. The others are marked ending unverified until a source confirms the ending, which doesn’t mean they end unhappily.
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