32-year-old Dutch icon Lieke Martens retires from women’s football

1st September 2025 Oliver Taliku
Lieke Martens will be remembered as one of Dutch football’s most iconic stars

One of the most iconic stars in Dutch football has retired, with Lieke Martens calling time on her career at 32-years-old.

Martens played 160 times for the Netherlands and goes down as one of their best players in history.

Lieke Martens retires

Throughout her career Lieke Martens played for various clubs including SC Heerenveen, VVV-Venlo, Standard Liège, FCR Duisburg, Kopparbergs/Göteborg FC and FC Rosengard.

However it was her time with Barcelona that the Dutch icon will be most fondly remembered for.

With Barca, Martens won the Champions League in 2021 and three consecutive league titles with the Spanish club.

The 32-year-old finished her career with PSG where she played 57 games and scored 10 goals.

Martens announced her retirement on Instagram where she admitted that she is prioritising being a mother to her son who was born at the beginning of 2025.

“As a little girl, I dreamed of becoming a professional footballer, something that barely existed back then,” Martens wrote.

“I could never have imagined how far that dream would take me. Last year, I retired from the national team, and now I’ve decided to retire from club football as well. Despite having several great opportunities to continue, I’ve chosen to step away from the game I love so much and close this chapter of my career.”

Martens on the international stage

In 2017 the Ballon d’Or Feminin didn’t exist with the award first introduced in 2018.

One year before the coveted prize was introduced, Martens was named the best women’s footballer in the world by FIFA.

The accolade was given to Martens as a result of the Dutch national team’s success at Euro 2017.

Martens herself was unstoppable in the Euros hosted by her home nation, recording three goals and two assists on her way to being crowned player of the tournament.

The forward announced her retirement from international football in 2024.

Martens earned 160 caps for Oranje, scoring 62 goals and becoming one of her nation’s most iconic stars.

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About Oliver Taliku 173 Articles
Olly Taliku has worked with highly respected sports and gambling websites where he has produced hundreds of articles, as well as being published with Burton Albion and Chesterfield FC. At Burton Olly worked closely alongside the women's team, producing mainly matchday content including reports and interviews. He also has experience as an accredited Premier League and EFL writer for Prost International where he worked during the 2021/22 season to produce matchday content as an on location reporter. Olly specialises in women's football as well as long form SEO content plus news and tips. While he enjoys writing about all football, Olly supports Arsenal passionately as a lifelong fan of the club.