Danelle Tan is the fifth-youngest goal scorer in women’s football history. A debutant with Singapore at just 14, the young striker tells aleagues.com.au what inspired her move to Brisbane Roar after a dream experience at a European giant.
Imagine being just 20 years old, and having to cast your mind back more than half a decade to the day your senior football career began.
Danelle Tan, aged six, beginning her football journey. Image credit: danelletan.com
“In 2019, I made a trip to Ajax in Holland and trained with the Ajax team there,” Tan told aleagues.com.au.
“That was my first taste of professional women’s football. I watched Ajax play PSV; I think that was their first Dutch women’s game streamed on live TV. So it was very good to be a part of that, and to be able to sit in the stands with over 5,000 people. I think that was probably the moment that it clicked for me, that it could be something possible.
“2019 was a crazy year. In March, I was still playing with the Singapore Under-15s national team in a tournament back home, and I was the top scorer for that tournament. At that point, it felt like the pinnacle. Playing for your youth national team, top scorer in front of friends and family. That’s the top.
“Then, the year went by and more and more things happened. I made my debut for the Under-19s. I still remember at that tournament I turned 14, so I had my birthday there. So I played for the Under-19s at 13. And then, I made my debut for the national team. That year was really like, bang, bang, bang.
“It was a rollercoaster of a year. But I also feel like it was the year that made me take my football more seriously, and think it could be really something I could pursue.”
Tan was just 14 when she played her first senior international for Singapore. She scored on debut against Timor Leste on that day in August 2019, becoming the fifth-youngest goalscorer in the history of women’s international football.
“A lot of people ask me about that goal and its history,” Tan said. “But what I remember is that we actually lost that game, so in the moment I was thinking of getting another goal back, to try and salvage the game. I wasn’t really that happy, I was just trying to win the game.
“But when I look back, I’m really proud of that goal. I was a 14-year-old stepping up to take the penalty in the last minute of the game.
“I still remember, my legs were shaking so much before the referee blew the whistle. You can imagine the fatigue from the game in the last minute. It was a really special goal in hindsight.
“It’s crazy how far I’ve been through the journey, because it started really early. I just look back at how far I’ve come, about how much has happened, and I really just like to take one step at a time because you never know what’s going to happen. That’s the thing with football, things change so quickly and I’m just trying to soak it all in.”
Tan (#9) celebrating the winning goal against Cambodia for Singapore Under-15s. Image credit: danelletan.com
Six years later Tan calls Australia home, having signed for Brisbane Roar ahead of the 2024-25 Ninja A-League season.
It’s her first stint at a professional club following a journey through Europe that began in London at London Bees before a move to Germany, where she spent one unforgettable season at Borussia Dortmund – one of Europe’s most illustrious clubs.
Dortmund’s women’s team was formed less than five years ago, and Tan joined the club in 2023 to help the club on its journey up the divisions in Germany; Tan helped Dortmund secure promotion from the fifth tier to the fourth, and ensconced herself in the life of a European footballer.
“I think Dortmund presented a very unique opportunity,” Tan said. “It’s such a massive club, and the fans there are amazing. My dad and I made a trip to Dortmund in February 2023 just to check it out, to speak with the people there, to see what it’s like.
“I fell in love with the city and their football culture. People always say football is a religion in Europe, but you never really understand that until you’re there.
“Every Sunday, 80,000 people pack out the stadiums and everything about the city just bleeds black and yellow. You see it all over the city, there are stickers on signs, jerseys are hung all over the walls at restaurants. It was amazing to be in the city and be a part of that.”
View this post on Instagram
“In Dortmund, you could see their investment in the women’s team,” Tan added. “They were committed and ambitious which was something that really attracted me when I was making my decision. Yes, they were in the fifth tier, but they had ambitions and plans to move every single year. So that was the project I was very keen to be a part of.
“When the men’s team made the Champions League final, they took the whole youth academy and women’s team players to watch the final. You felt like a part of the family at the club.
“And the fans, they’re just amazing. We had an away game, it was a cup game and it was -1 degrees. Icicles were all over the field. And these fans still travelled to come and watch us play. When we won the game and moved on to the next round they lit flares and celebrated together with us. It wasn’t a final, it wasn’t even a semi-final. The passion of the fans made it feel like you’re playing for so much more.”
View this post on Instagram
Tan’s decision to join Dortmund was significant in the fact that it put the then-teenager’s studies on hold. Prior to signing with the German club, Tan had committed to the College of William & Mary in the United States, where she was set to play football while continuing her academic pursuits.
But her initial agreement to join W&M came with a catch.
“I had a couple of offers, and I had actually committed to a US university, the College of William and Mary. The coaches there are amazing and I met a few players on the team as well. It was a really nice environment,” Tan said.
“But the timelines didn’t really match, and the US offer came earlier, and if I was going to get an offer from Europe or any other clubs it would’ve come later.
“So I said: ‘We are committed to you, we won’t commit to another school, but if a club presented another option then it will be different’ and they were very supportive of it. They were absolutely lovely people.
“I think studies can always come later, you can always study when you’re 40 or 50 but the lifespan of a professional footballer is very short so when we were balancing up the options, that was what tipped it over the balance. I had no idea what to expect at Dortmund, but jumped in the deep end and went for it.”
In doing so, Tan became the first female Singaporean footballer to join a European club.
As a young player consistently breaking new ground for her country, Tan has become a role model for girls growing up in her homeland – and an official ambassador for women’s football in Singapore.
It’s a role she’s still adjusting to now as a young player with great responsibility resting on her shoulders.
“When I was young, there was nobody to look up to. There was nobody to look at and say: ‘She’s doing it, and I can too’,” Tan said.
“I play the sport because I love it but I think, along the way, I’ve started to become a bit more aware of this role.
“To really just see that all these young, aspiring girls are looking up to you, if I can help some of these girls realise that, if that’s really their dream, it’s possible, and my story can help inspire some of these girls who are still at the beginning of their journey, I think that would be so incredible.”
Tan attending a meet and greet with the Lion City Sailors girls academy in Singapore. Image credit: danelletan.com
Tan will get the opportunity to do exactly that when Brisbane Roar visit Singapore in April for a landmark exhibition match against a Women’s Premier League (WPL) All-Stars side.
The Ninja A-League club’s first-ever overseas tour, set to take place in the FIFA international window, has presented a surreal opportunity for Tan to return to Singapore and play in the kind of game she wishes she could have witnessed as a child.
“I’ve got a really funny story,” Tan began.
“When they announced it (the Singapore tour), they said we were flying on April 1st. I literally thought it was an April Fools’ joke! With the timing, I thought it was too coincidental to be real.
“But when they started sending through all the details, I was like: ‘Oh my goodness, this is actually happening!’
Read more: Brisbane Roar to make history with landmark exhibition match
View this post on Instagram
“I think it’s such an exciting opportunity,” Tan continued.
“I would’ve loved to watch a game like this growing up. To watch a football team come to Singapore and play against a Singaporean football team would have been so awesome.
“For all the young girls back home hoping to play football professionally, or maybe they don’t know it’s a possibility, I really hope this game will inspire some of them, and help to grow the game in Singapore – and maybe get more fans for Brisbane Roar as well, and more Singaporeans to know about the A-Leagues.”
But it’s not as if Tan hasn’t also felt the love from Singaporean fans while living in Brisbane; whether it be through social media, text messages or witnessing fans in the stands at Ninja A-League games, Tan has felt her presence in the competition generate interest from Singaporean fans in both Brisbane Roar and the league itself.
“The nice thing about Australia is there are so many Singaporeans,” Tan said.
“All the time I have Singaporeans messaging me saying they’re going to come to Brisbane Roar games. I’ve met a couple of Singaporeans in the stands at Brisbane showing their support for me and the team, which has been so nice. And also over Instagram, so many people watch and support Brisbane and the A-Leagues now because I’m playing which is really cool.
“It’s been incredible to see the support. And with Australia and the A-Leagues being a lot more accessible, people back home can follow the games as well. It’s been incredible to see the support.”
Tan played her first two games for Brisbane in January after a knee injury kept her sidelined through the first two months of the Ninja A-League season. The Roar sit fifth on the table, inside the finals positions and with seven regular season games left to play, Tan has ample time to get up to speed and make her first season in Australia a memorable one.
“I think the A-League presented a very unique opportunity,” Tan explained. “It was something that was very hard to pass up. It’s a professional league, and a breeding ground for a lot of young talent.
“You see a lot of young players, Young Matildas start in the A-League but then go on to bigger clubs. That was something I really wanted to experience. Even if you see the calibre of players at Brisbane Roar, we have three Matildas now.
“Tameka Yallop is a club legend, and having the opportunity to play and train alongside her, that was something that was really exciting and appealing when I was making my decision.
“The quality of the A-league is really high. It’s something I’ve had to adapt to, and try and get up to speed – especially with the injury as well. It’s been something that’s been really helpful in my development as a player, to be able to compete against some of the best players in the world.”
Tan and Brisbane Roar are next in action away to Sydney FC on Sunday, March 2 before returning home to take on league-leaders Melbourne City on Sunday, March 9.
