Anouk Dekker is ending her career after two decades of professional football. The 38-year-old defender was part of the Dutch national team that became European champions in their own country in 2017.
Dekker played an important role eight years ago in Oranje’s European title. The 87-time international played all matches at the European Championship under national coach Sarina Wiegman and was part of the tournament team.
Dekker has been active for the German club FC Viktoria Berlin in recent years. She will work there as an assistant coach. Dekker played for FC Twente from 2007 to 2015 and also played for the German FFC Heike Rheine, Montpellier (France) and Braga (Portugal).
“What a player. And what a person. Dekker is one of the greatest players of her generation,” FC Viktoria Berlin writes on Instagram. “Thank you for your warmth, empathy and your passion to help the next generation. Our captain will be missed.”
Dekker, who has not been in the picture with Oranje for years, finished second at the 2019 World Cup in France. She scored in that tournament in the group match against Canada.