West Ham United Women’s German international defender Katharina Baunach has announced her retirement from football.
Baunach moved to the Hammers last summer from VfL Wolfsburg and made 17 appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals, including two from free-kicks in the last 10 minutes for a dramatic 3-2 win over against Manchester United.
The full-back, who has over 15 years experience at the top level, explained to whufc.com: “I have considered my decision long and hard and, having talked about it with family and close friends, I will be retiring from football this summer. The big thing for me is that I have been able to take this decision for myself and that it isn’t a choice that an injury or my body has made for me. I am glad to be retiring on my terms after a fantastic career.”
That career featured 11 years with Bayern Munich which yielded two Bundesliga titles, a League Cup and the DFB-Pokal, followed by back-to-back doubles for Wolfsburg, with whom she was a Champions League runner-up.
Internationally, she played for all five of Germany’s age-groups, winning the U-16 Nordic Cup, U-19 Euros and was third at the U-20 World Cup, before eventually being picked for the senior side.
Brittany Gropp: “I firmly believe girls and boys are equally powerful, smart, strong and bold.”
