Sonia Bompastor, France football coach: Profile, Career, News & Videos

Sonia Bompastor is a French football manager and former player who manages Chelsea of the English Women's Super League. She is the first person to win the UEFA Women's Champions League as both a player and a manager, and is widely considered to be one of the best women's players in French history.

Bompastor was a midfielder, preferably on the left side; she also played at left back. She was a two-time winner of the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Female Player of the Year, and following a move to the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league in the United States, earned Player of the Month and All-Star honors.

Bompastor began her football career joining US Mer in 1988. In 1992, she joined US Thoury. In the same year, she earned selection to nationally recognized Clairefontaine academy joining alongside a select group of female players. After her stint at Clairefontaine, she joined Tours EC, now the women's section of professional club Tours FC. In 2000, she joined Division 1 Féminine club ESOF Vendée La Roche-sur-Yon and performed well enough to earn a move to Montpellier. At Montpellier, Bompastor earned domestic and individual honors, which resulted in a move to champions Lyon. In 2008, she joined the new United States-based women's soccer league, Women's Professional Soccer, after her American playing rights were chosen by Washington Freedom in the 2008 WPS International Draft. After helping the Freedom reached the playoffs, Bompastor returned to France where she played for Paris Saint-Germain on loan. In 2010, she announced that she would be returned to Lyon for the 2010–11 season and, subsequently, was a part of the team that won the 2010–11 UEFA Women's Champions League.

Bompastor is also a French international. Prior to playing for the senior team, she played at youth level representing the under-18 team at the 1998 UEFA Women's Under-18 Championship. She made her senior international debut in February 2000 in a friendly match against Scotland. From 2004 to 2006, she served as the national team's captain. Bompastor has played in numerous tournaments for her nation beginning with UEFA Women's Euro 2001.

In June 2013, Bompastor chose to end her career after the French Women's Cup final. She became the academy director of Olympique Lyonnais Féminin after retirement. In April 2021, she took over as manager of Lyon's first team, where she managed the team for four seasons. In 2024, Bompastor was appointed by English club Chelsea, from which she managed to win the domestic treble in her first season.