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Gama was passionate about football since a young age, joining Zaule (Muggia) and playing in mixed youth teams for them, later moving to Polisportiva San Marco in Villaggio del Pescatore in the municipality of Duino-Aurisina, where she remained for six years, playing for the first time in an all-female team.
[2][3]
In a three-year period with UPC Tavagnacco,[4] she made 52 appearances and scored 4 goals.[5] With the yellow and blues, she finished third in Serie A Femminile in 2008-2009 season and reached the quarter-finals of the Italian Cup in her first two seasons there.
Subsequently, she moved to another Serie A club Chiasiellis where she collected 50 appearances and scored twice,[5] but during her third season there, suffered a serious knee injury while on international duty with Italy, keeping her out for most of the 2011-12 season, limiting her to seven club appearances out of 26 games played by the club.[5] In her debut year at Chiasiellis, she played in the semi-finals of the 2010 Italian Cup, and finished seventh in Serie A in 2011-12, under the management of Fabio Franti.[6]
During the summer break in 2010 she took the opportunity to play in a foreign championship for the first time, temporarily moving on loan to Pali Blues to play in the W-League.[7]
Gama played for PSG of Division 1 Féminine in between two spells with Brescia, where she won a Serie A championship and Coppa Italia double in 2015-2016, plus two consecutive Italian Super Cups in 2015 and 2016.[8]
Juventus signed Gama on the establishment of their women's team and appointed her captain straight away. With Juve, Gama won five consecutive league titles from 2017-2018 to 2021-2022, plus three more Italian Cups in 2019, 2022 and 2023.
Three consecutive Italian Super Cups from 2019 to 2021 were also claimed.[8]
Gama reached two European Championship quarter-finals for Italy, the first coming in her debut tournament in 2009,[12] and again in 2013 under national coachAntonio Cabrini.[13] Both tournaments ended in the last-eight at the hands of eventual winners Germany.
Under Milena Bertolini, Italy and Gama qualified for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup,[16] their first time in the tournament for twenty years, losing to the Netherlands in the quarter-finals, the Azzurri's joint best ever performance. Gama and Italy also finished runners-up at the Algarve Cup in Portugal in 2020 (withdrawing from the final due to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic) and 2022.[17][18]
Despite being captain, Gama was not called up to the Italy squad for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, with coach Bertolini wanting to include more younger players.[20]
Gama was recalled to the national squad after the World Cup by new coach Andrea Soncin, featuring in the 2023-24 UEFA Women's Nations League, her final competition before deciding to retire from international football at the age of 34. Her 140th and final appearance for the Azzurri was in a goalless draw against Ireland in Bagno a Ripoli on 23 February 2024.[1][21] At the time of retirement, she was the fourth-highest capped Italian women's player of all time.[1]
During her football career she was the victim of racist insults, which became more pronounced when she became captain of the Italian national team.[26] She publicly urged the Italian football authorities to take punitive action to combat the phenomenon of racism.[27][28]
She supported professional women's football before its introduction in Italy, calling for social and welfare protection for female footballers.
Since October 2018, she has been a councilor of the FIGC for the Italian Footballers' Association (AIC),[29] and on 30 November 2020 was elected vice president of the AIC, the first woman in history to hold the position.[30] With this role, on 9 June 2021 she joined the CONI National Athletes' Commission.[31]
A documentary on her career Numero 3, Sara Gama was broadcast in Italy on RAI in January 2023.
^"Sara Gama, da Trieste alla Champions" [Sara Gama, from Trieste to the Champions League]. il Piccolo (in Italian). 19 May 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
^"Sara Gama nella Commissione Nazionale Atleti del CONI" [Sara Gama in the CONI National Athletes Commission]. assocalciatori.it (in Italian). l'Associazione dei calciatori in Italia. 9 June 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2024.