It was on this day seven years ago, on 11 June 2018, that Rosie Kmita became the first female player to sign a professional contract in West Ham United history.
After playing collegiate soccer in the United States with the Saint Leo Lions in Florida, and appearing for Tottenham Hotspur in FA Women’s National League Premier Division South as a teenager, Kmita spent a year concentrating on her education.
During that time, the winger played for lower-division sides Gillingham and London Bees before joining West Ham, then of the FA Women’s National League Southern Premier Division, in October 2017.
Kmita made an immediate and positive impact, scoring ten goals in 19 appearances in all competitions and captaining the side as the Hammers ended the 2017/18 campaign by winning two trophies, the FA Women's Premier League Plate and Isthmian League Women's Cup.
That summer, West Ham were granted entry to the Women's Super League, the top-flight of women's domestic football in England, for the start of the 2018/19 season.
The Club set about building a squad of full-time professional players and the first to be signed was Kmita on 11 June 2018.