Evdokiya Popadinova

Evdokiya Popadiynova
Евдокия Попадинова
Popadinova in 2020
Personal information
Full name Evdokiya Dimitrova Popadiynova[1][2]
Date of birth (1996-10-26) 26 October 1996 (age 29)
Place of birth Hadzhidimovo, Bulgaria
Height 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)
Position Forward
Team information
Current team
 AEK Athens F.C.
Number 11
Youth career
Sportika Blagoevgrad
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2017 UNOH Racers 44 (36)
2018–2019 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles 33 (22)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2015 Sportika Blagoevgrad
2015 Bristol Academy 4 (0)
2016 London Bees 13 (3)
2017 Detroit Sun
2018–2020 Santa Clarita Blue Heat
2020 AaB 4 (1)
2020–2022 Napoli 23 (4)
2022–2023 Sassuolo 6 (1)
2023–2024 Lazio 23 (7)
2024–2025 Brisbane Roar 18 (1)
2025 Beşiktaş 5 (0)
2026– AEK
International career
2011 Bulgaria U17 3 (2)
2012–2014 Bulgaria U19 10 (5)
2014– Bulgaria 18 (8)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17 January 2026

Evdokiya Dimitrova Popadiynova (Bulgarian: Евдокия Димитрова Попадинова,[1] born 26 October 1996 in Hadzhidimovo, Bulgaria[3]) is a Bulgarian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Greek A Division club AEK Athens.[4]

Club career

Early years

Popadinova (L) playing for London Bees

Popadinova played for Sportika Blagoevgrad in her home country before moving to England to sign with Bristol Academy.[5] In doing so, she was the first Bulgarian to make an appearance in the FA WSL.[6] In March 2016, Popadinova signed with FA WSL 2 team London Bees.[7]

College

In 2016, Popadinova enrolled at the University of Northwestern Ohio to play for the Racers in the Division II National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics program. After two years in June 2018, Popadinova transferred to play with the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles in NCAA Division I.[8] Ahead of her senior season, Popadinova was named on the MAC Hermann Trophy watchlist, one of only two players from her conference.[9]

AaB

In August 2020, Popadinova signed a professional contract with Danish club AaB.[10] She scored one goal in the four matches she played for the club.[11]

Italy

In November 2020, Popadinova moved to Italy, signing with Napoli.[12] A couple of days later, she made her debut in a 2–1 loss to AC Milan.[13] After scoring four goals in 13 matches during her first season, she signed a one-year contract extension with Napoli in July 2021.[14]

In July 2022, Popadinova signed for Sassuolo.[15]

After one season, in August 2023, Popadinova joined Lazio.[16] She scored four goals for the club in 14 matches, helping them win the Serie B title and earn promotion to the 2024–25 Serie A.[17]

Brisbane Roar

In August 2024, Popadinova joined Australian club Brisbane Roar.[18] In November, in her first match for the club, she scored her first goal during a 3–2 loss to Canberra United.[19] In May 2025, the club announced Popadinova would leave at the expiration of her contract.[20]

Beşiktaş J.K.

On August 16, 2025, Popadinova signed to the Turkish club Beşiktaş J.K..[21]

International career

At age 16, Popadinova made her senior debut for Bulgaria on 20 August 2013, coming on as a substitute to score in the 4–2 away win over Macedonia in a friendly match.[22]

International goals

No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 14 June 2021 TFF Riva Facility, Istanbul, Turkey  Turkey 1–3 1–3 Friendly
2. 15 February 2023 Gold City Sports Complex, Alanya, Turkey  Hong Kong 1–0 2–0 2023 Turkish Women's Cup
3. 18 February 2023  North Macedonia 2–1 2–1
4. 21 February 2023  Kosovo 1–1 1–2
5. 9 April 2024 Stadion Aleksandar Shalamanov, Sofia, Bulgaria  Armenia 2–2 2–3 UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying

Honours

Club

Lazio

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b "Състав на женския национален отбор за приятелските срещи с Босна и Херцеговина и Турция". Bulgaria Football Union (in Bulgarian). 28 May 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  2. ^ "Evdokiya Popadiynova |". UEFA. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  3. ^ "Evdokia Popadinova". University of Northwestern Ohio. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  4. ^ "Στην ΑΕΚ η Ευδοκία Ποπαντίνοβα!". aek.gr. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  5. ^ "Exclusive: Bristol Academy Make Seven New Signings". Bristol City. 9 July 2015.
  6. ^ "Номинации за жена на годината в категория "Спорт" (in Bulgarian). graziaonline.bg. 2015. Archived from the original on 2 November 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  7. ^ "Seven players join the Bees!". London Bees. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  8. ^ "@FGCU_WSoccer Adds High-Scoring Bulgarian Evdokia Popadinova As Transfer". FGCU Athletics. 27 June 2018.
  9. ^ "Popadinova garners MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List honors". FGCU Athletics. August 2019.
  10. ^ "Popadinova Inks Professional Contract with AaB Denmark". Florida Gulf Coast Eagles. 7 August 2020.
  11. ^ "Наполи привлече Евдокия Попадинова" [Napoli signs Evdokia Popadinova]. Dsport.bg (in Bulgarian). 5 November 2020. За последно родната състезателка носи екипа на датския Олборг, като записа един гол в 4 мача за тима. [The native player most recently played for Danish side Aalborg, scoring one goal in 4 games for the team.]
  12. ^ "È ufficiale l'ingaggio della bulgara Evdokia Popadinova, attaccante nata a Hadzhidimovo il 26 ottobre 1996" [The signing of Bulgarian forward Evdokia Popadinova, born in Hadzhidimovo on 26 October 1996, is official.] (in Italian). Napoli Femminile. 5 November 2020 – via Facebook.
  13. ^ "I'm so happy I made my debut for Napoli. Unfortunately we lost 2:1 against Milan but it was an awesome team performance considering the fact that our team didn't practice for 15 days due to the many Covid-19 cases". Evdokiya Popadinova. 7 November 2020 – via Facebook.
  14. ^ Cardinale, Miriana (5 July 2021). "Evdokia Popadinova rinnova con il Napoli Femminile" [Evdokia Popadinova renews with Napoli Women]. L Football (in Italian).
  15. ^ Guarino, Giuseppe (27 July 2022). "UFFICIALE: Evdokia Popadinova è una nuova calciatrice del Sassuolo" [OFFICIAL: Evdokia Popadinova is a new Sassuolo player]. Canale Sassuolo (in Italian).
  16. ^ Cozzi, Martino (10 August 2023). "UFFICIALE – Anche Popadinova lascia il Sassuolo Femminile: ha firmato con la Lazio" [OFFICIAL – Popadinova also leaves Sassuolo Women: she has signed with Lazio]. Canale Sassuolo (in Italian).
  17. ^ Comito, Matt (20 August 2024). "Six-time Bulgaria Footballer of the Year joins Brisbane Roar after promotion season with Lazio". A-Leagues. The 27-year-old joins the Roar having helped steer Lazio to the Serie B Feminine title in 2023-24 and promotion to the Italian top flight. Popadinova scored four goals for Lazio in 14 appearances.
  18. ^ "Bulgarian international striker Evdokia Popadinova joins Brisbane Roar". Brisbane Roar. 20 August 2024.
  19. ^ "ALW RD1 Match Wrap: Canberra United 3-2 Brisbane Roar". Brisbane Roar. 2 November 2024.
  20. ^ "ALW squad update: Brisbane Roar confirm Ninja A-League departures". Brisbane Roar. 28 May 2025.
  21. ^ "The most successful Bulgarian footballer has joined Besiktas". Fakti.bg - Да извадим фактите наяве (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  22. ^ "Жените победиха Македония с 4:2 насред Скопие" (in Bulgarian). Bulgarian Football Union. 20 August 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  23. ^ "Евдокия Попадинова най-добра сред жените в България" (in Bulgarian). sportal.bg. 7 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
  24. ^ Yotova, Ralitsa (7 January 2018). "Ивелин Попов е "Футболист на годината" за трети пореден път!" (in Bulgarian). topsport.bg. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
  25. ^ Petkov, Georgi (5 January 2020). "Димитър Илиев е "Футболист на годината", получи наградата си лично от Бербатов". topsport.bg. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  26. ^ Kichukov, Simeon (18 March 2024). "Три зад Бербатов, една зад Стоичков: Кирил Десподов e Футболист №1 за четвърти път". dnevnik.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  27. ^ NAIA Archive
  28. ^ "ASUN Conference Women's Soccer 2010-19 All-Decade Team". ASUN Conference. 9 July 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evdokiya_Popadinova