Hannah Hampton has proved doctors wrong, is starring for Aston Villa and England, and showcased an incredible secret weapon against Spain
Aston Villa goalkeeper Hannah Hampton loves proving people wrong. It’s what she’s being doing throughout her life.
If doctors and medical professionals had their way, the Villans’ number one wouldn’t be playing sport full stop, let alone be a shot-stopper.
Hampton was born with a squint and underwent numerous surgeries to try and correct her eyes.
On top of that, she also has no depth perception and her family were told by doctors after she underwent surgery that playing any form of sport was completely off the table when she was growing up.
But the England international wasn’t prepared to take no for an answer. If anything, that news made her even more determined to become a professional footballer and Hampton is now one of the rising stars in the Women’s Super League.
The 21-year-old has been superb for Aston Villa this season, with her excellent distribution and strong reflexes making her a perfect example of a modern day goalkeeper.
She is currently riding the crest of the wave having made her England debut against Spain – the country where she spent most of her childhood – last month and Hampton now wants to prove that, no matter what people say, anything is possible.
Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT, Hampton said: “My parents obviously knew straight away [that I had a squint]. I was told that I had operations when I was younger. I knew I had the operations but I didn’t know anything about the depth perception probably until when I came back to England from Spain so probably about 10 or 11.
“When I got told that and I understood what it meant I was like: ‘This makes so much sense.’ I couldn’t pour a glass of water without missing the glass if I didn’t hold the glass. If I was tired and I wanted to point at something or pick something up, I would miss the object. I was thinking: ‘Why am I doing this?’
“My parents were told that I wouldn’t be able to play sport pretty much straight away when I had the operations and they found out I had no depth perception. I couldn’t be a sports player, I couldn’t be a pilot, I couldn’t be a surgeon and I couldn’t be something else and my parents were just like: ‘No, she’s going to do what she wants,’ so never told me.
“I don’t think it’s held me back in any way. I just took it in my stride and wanted to prove people wrong.”
Hampton moved with her parents to Spain when she was five and it didn’t take long before she was scouted by Villarreal, where she initially played as a striker.
It was only when she returned to the UK with Stoke City that she spontaneously decided to go in goal for the first time after an injury to the team’s number one in the warm-up.
She certainly chose the right game to try the position out, impressing so much in front of an England scout that she decided to remain in goal permanently and Hampton revealed that she was something of a secret weapon when making her international debut against Spain in the Arnold Clark Cup.
“I’m fluent in Spanish so I could understand everything that they were saying,” she laughs.
“[I was] letting people know if they were going on the inside or outside or coming short or going over. It was quite funny I was able to translate all of that.
“Walking out and seeing all the fans cheering was incredible. Singing the national anthem to represent your country is not something many people get to experience and I’m truly grateful for that. I don’t think I took that smile off my face during the national anthem and I had tears in my eyes at one point. That was a huge honour.
“Of all the countries I could have made my debut against, for me to have it against Spain definitely meant a lot. To have the trust to play me in a game like that against a top nation, I can’t thank Sarina [Wiegman] enough and all the staff.
“I didn’t tell anyone I was starting! I didn’t know whether to say something or not but I then thought the more people that know, the more stress that I would put on myself so I just said nothing. My parents and everyone else found out through the line-up.
“My phone was going mental afterwards with them being like: ‘How come you didn’t tell us?’ or: ‘Why didn’t you want us to come?’ and I was like: ‘Well, I didn’t want to be stressed out!’ Luckily, my parents were able to come to the game and watch it, which was really nice.”
Hampton, though, is not resting on her laurels with England’s number one spot still firmly up for grabs ahead of this summer’s European Championship on home turf.
On current form, Hampton will certainly give Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman a selection headache and she credits Aston Villa manager Carla Ward for helping to turn her career around.
“Wardy has been so good for me at Birmingham and now at Villa. When she came in at Birmingham, I was definitely falling out of love with football and I didn’t want to continue,” she finished.
“I couldn’t really see a future and I couldn’t really picture where I could get to. I thought that was it and I didn’t think I was really good enough to do anything. Wardy came in and completely changed that around for me and helped me out a huge amount.
“For me to go on and make that debut and have Wardy watch it and be on the phone to her after, it was quite nice that I was able to do that.”
After a standout season with Aston Villa, Hannah Hampton made a high-profile move to Chelsea in 2023 — a transition that many saw as a bold step into the elite. Under the spotlight at Kingsmeadow, Hampton not only rose to the occasion but flourished. Her composure, precise distribution, and fearless command of the box earned her a regular starting role and, crucially, a permanent spot in Sarina Wiegman’s England squad heading into UEFA Women’s EURO 2025.
And what a tournament it turned out to be.
In the dramatic quarter-final on July 17, Hampton stood tall as England battled Sweden to a 2–2 draw after extra time. With nerves of steel, she helped guide the Lionesses through a tense penalty shootout, saving a crucial spot-kick to secure a 3–2 win. It was her poise under pressure that began to draw comparisons to some of the greatest goalkeepers in the game.
Just five days later, in the semi-final against Italy (July 22), Hampton again played a pivotal role. England edged past the Azzurre 2–1 after extra time, with Hampton pulling off a stunning reflex save in the 114th minute that preserved the lead — a moment that would later be replayed countless times in highlight reels.
But the crowning moment of her international career — and perhaps her life — came in the EURO 2025 final on July 27.
Facing powerhouse Spain in a tightly contested match that ended 1–1 after 120 grueling minutes, Hampton once again became England’s hero in the shootout. With the world watching, she saved two penalties — one of them from her childhood idol — and calmly organized her teammates under the unbearable weight of expectation.
England triumphed 3–1 in the shootout, clinching their second consecutive EURO title.
As the final whistle blew and fireworks lit up the stadium in Warsaw, Hampton sank to her knees — not just in celebration, but in silent defiance of every doctor who once said she’d never be an athlete. The little girl who couldn’t pour a glass of water without missing now stood atop Europe.
“It still doesn’t feel real,” she said, tearfully, in a post-match interview. “To do this with this group, after everything… it means the world.”
