Ary Borges

She was born in São Luís, Maranhão.

She was raised by her grandmother and didn't see her parents much in the first few years.

She started playing football on the beach with her friends and cousins.

Her grandmother didn't believe Ary could make a career as a girl playing football.

At the age of 10, she moved to São Paulo to live with her parents.

At her first football academy, she was one of only three girls training among boys and had to face their skepticism head-on.

At 11 years old she switched to Centro Olímpico and played in the girls' under-15 team, since there was no under-13s.

She was the sole player chosen out of more than 90 girls during her tryouts at the Centro Olímpico.

Her dad had to sign a waiver for her to play with boys due to physical differences.

She proudly supports São Paulo FC and jumped at the chance to play for the club she’s always cheered for.

Her ultimate female football idol is herself—ten years in the future—because she’s confident in the amazing player she will become.

She admires Lionel Messi.

Her childhood love for football came from her family, with uncles who had once been talented local players but weren’t allowed to pursue professional careers.

She misses her family a lot and is working on getting them passports and visas to visit her in the U.S.

At first, group conversations in English gave her headaches, so she would go to her room to relax.

She loves visiting a Brazilian restaurant in Louisville where she can speak Portuguese and eat food that reminds her of home.

In her free time, she watches soccer matches, plays FIFA, and studies other teams to improve her skills.

She enjoys playing as herself in FIFA and also likes using teams like Brazil or Argentina to win matches.

She has a large social media presence with 355k followers on Instagram.

In 2024, she got engaged to her partner Gabi.