Canadian soccer player (born 1995)
Kadeisha Buchanan (/kəˈdiːʃə ˈbjuːkənən/ ;[ 3] born November 5, 1995) is a Canadian professionalsoccer player who plays as acentre-back for EnglishWomen's Super League clubChelsea and theCanada women's national team . Born inToronto and raised inBrampton, Ontario , she is the youngest of seven girls in a single-parent home. Buchanan was only 17 when she made her debut for the national team on January 13, 2013.[ 4]
Buchanan is a three-timeCanadian Player of the Year , winning the award in the years of 2015, 2017, and 2020.[ 5] At the2015 Women's World Cup , she won theFIFA Young Player Award .[ 6]
Born inToronto and raised inBrampton, Ontario , Buchanan is the youngest of seven girls (ten siblings total) in a single-parent home. Buchanan's parents are originally from Jamaica; her father was born inSaint Thomas Parish and her mother inMontego Bay . Kadeisha grew up in the greater Toronto area, specifically Brampton and Mississauga. Buchanan attendedCardinal Leger Secondary School , where she played flag football, volleyball, basketball, and soccer.[ 7] She was enrolled in general studies and earned a place on the Garret Ford Academic Honor Roll.[ 8]
Buchanan played college soccer atWest Virginia University , for theMountaineers , where she co-captained the team, qualified for the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll,[ 8] and won numerous more accolades.[ 9]
In 2013, Buchanan played four games for theToronto Lady Lynx , aUSL W-League team. In 2014, she played a game for theOttawa Fury Women , also in the W-League, right before they folded. In June 2016, Buchanan signed withVaughan Azzurri ofLeague1 Ontario to get game action prior to the2016 Rio Olympics .[ 10] [ 11] She only played one game, however––a 9–0 win over Darby.
Upon graduating from West Virginia University, Buchanan was a highly rated prospect prior to the2017 NWSL College Draft . In December 2016, she was being linked with a move to Europe, along with fellow Canadian team memberAshley Lawrence .[ 12] In January 2017, it was announced that Buchanan had signed withOlympique Lyonnais ofDivision 1 .[ 13] In June 2018, Buchanan would sign a three-year contract extension which would keep her with Lyon until 2022.[ 14]
On June 10, 2022,Chelsea confirmed the signing of Buchanan on a three-year deal.[ 15]
On 16 November 2024, it was confirmed Buchanan had suffered an ACL injury, during a game against Liverpool on 10 November.[ 16]
International career [ edit ] Buchanan was 14 years old when she was recruited to the Canadian youth program in 2010. She won a silver medal at the2012 CONCACAF W U-17 Championship in Guatemala.[ 17] When she was called up to the Canadian women's national team on January 12, 2013, againstChina while still in high school, Buchanan became one of the youngest players on any women's national team.[ 18]
Buchanan scored her first international goal against theUnited States on May 8, 2014, inWinnipeg ,Manitoba , in front of the second largest crowd to ever watch awomen's soccer game inCanada .[ 19] The game ended in a 1–1 draw. Buchanan was also named Canada's Under-20 Women's Player of the Year in 2013, and anchored the host nation's defence at the 2014 Women's U-20 World Cup Canada in 2014.[ 20]
In 2015, Buchanan established herself as one of the best defenders in the world, winning the Young Player Award in the2015 FIFA World Cup ,[ 21] as well as being named Canadian Women's Player of the Year,[ 22] and being nominated for the2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or .[ 23]
On May 25, 2019, she was named to the roster for the2019 FIFA World Cup .[ 24]
On February 9, 2020, Buchanan played her 100th match for Canada in a 0–3 loss against the United States.[ 25]
Buchanan was called up to the Canada squad for the delayed2020 Summer Olympics .[ 26]
Buchanan was called up to the Canada squad for the2022 CONCACAF W Championship , where Canada finished as runners-up.[ 27]
Buchanan was called up to the 23-player Canada squad for the2023 FIFA Women's World Cup .[ 28]
Buchanan was called up to the Canada squad for the2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup , which Canada finished as semifinalists.[ 29]
Buchanan was called up to the Canada squad for the2024 Summer Olympics .[ 30]
As of match played November 10, 2024 [ 31] [ 32] As of match played October 25, 2024 [ 33] Appearances and goals by national team and year National team Year Apps Goals Canada 2013 15 0 2014 11 1 2015 18 1 2016 19 1 2017 9 0 2018 9 0 2019 14 1 2020 6 0 2021 12 0 2022 15 0 2023 12 0 2024 14 2 Total 154 6
Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Buchanan goal. List of international goals scored by Kadeisha Buchanan No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1 May 8, 2014 Investors Group Field ,Winnipeg ,Canada United States 1–1 1–1 Friendly 2 January 11, 2015 Shenzhen Bay Sports Center ,Shenzhen ,China South Korea 2–1 2–1 2015 Four Nations Tournament 3 February 14, 2016 BBVA Compass Stadium ,Houston ,United States Trinidad and Tobago 3–0 6–0 2016 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship 4 June 10, 2019 Stade de la Mosson ,Montpellier ,France Cameroon 1–0 1–0 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup 5 February 22, 2024 Shell Energy Stadium ,Houston ,United States El Salvador 5–0 6–0 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup 6 June 4, 2024 BMO Field ,Toronto ,Canada Mexico 1–0 1–1 Friendly
West Virginia Mountaineers
Olympique Lyonnais
Division 1 Féminine :2016–17 ,2017–18 ,2018–19 ,2019–20 ,2021–22 Coupe de France : 2016–17, 2018–19, 2019–20UEFA Women's Champions League :2016–17 ,[ 34] 2017–18 ,[ 35] 2018–19 ,[ 36] 2019–20 ,[ 37] 2021–22 [ 38] Chelsea
Canada U17
Canada
Individual
^ "Women's Olympic Football Tournament Tokyo 2020 – List of Players: Canada" (PDF) .FIFA . August 5, 2021. p. 3.Archived (PDF) from the original on October 15, 2021. RetrievedJune 26, 2022 .^ "Pro: First Youth Registration List" (PDF) .Archived (PDF) from the original on April 4, 2023. RetrievedOctober 26, 2020 .^ "Chelsea player pronunciations 😅 🗣️" .Instagram .Chelsea F.C. Women . August 27, 2025.^ Kadeisha Buchanan atCanada Soccer . Retrieved February 12, 2016.^ "Kadeisha Buchanan named Canada's top women's soccer player" .CBC . December 4, 2020.Archived from the original on December 4, 2020. RetrievedDecember 4, 2020 .^ "Buchanan named Hyundai Best Young Player" .FIFA .com . July 6, 2015. Archived fromthe original on July 7, 2015. RetrievedJuly 6, 2015 .^ "West Virginia Mountaineer Player Profiles" .West Virginia Mountaineers .Archived from the original on February 17, 2015. RetrievedFebruary 16, 2015 .^a b "Canada Soccer profile" . Canada Soccer. RetrievedMay 10, 2014 .^ "Ashley Lawrence profile" . West Virginia University.Archived from the original on March 19, 2017. RetrievedDecember 31, 2016 .^ "Vaughan Features Canada WNT Players In 9–0 Win Over Darby" . League1 Ontario. June 27, 2016.Archived from the original on August 26, 2017. RetrievedJuly 1, 2016 .^ "Kadeisha Buchanan profile" . League1 Ontario. Archived fromthe original on March 22, 2020. RetrievedJune 30, 2016 .^ Neil Davidson (December 30, 2016)."Canadian soccer stars Kadeisha Buchanan, Ashley Lawrence mull over club futures" .Vancouver Sun .Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. RetrievedJanuary 27, 2019 . ^ Neil Davidson (January 8, 2017)."Canadian soccer star Kadeisha Buchanan joins French powerhouse Olympique Lyonnais" .Ottawa Citizen . Archived fromthe original on January 9, 2017. RetrievedJanuary 27, 2019 . ^ "La-Canadienne-Buchanan-Prolonge-Pour-Trois-Ans-a-Lyon" .Le Figaro . June 2, 2018.Archived from the original on April 21, 2019. RetrievedJune 2, 2018 .^ "Chelsea sign Canada's Olympic champion Buchanan" .BBC Sport .Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. RetrievedJune 10, 2022 .^ "Kadeisha Buchanan: Chelsea defender suffers ACL injury" .BBC Sport . November 16, 2024. RetrievedOctober 21, 2025 .^ "News & Stories | U.S. Soccer Official Website" .Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. RetrievedJune 6, 2015 .^a b "Women's World Cup's Youngest Player Winner's Roots Stretch To Jamaica | Caribbean and Latin America News and Lifestyle Daily – News Americas Now" .www.newsamericasnow.com . July 6, 2015.Archived from the original on April 17, 2021. RetrievedFebruary 12, 2016 .^ Ed Tait (May 9, 2014)."World's best can't beat Canada" .Winnipeg Free Press .Archived from the original on April 16, 2021. RetrievedMay 10, 2014 . ^ "Three Named to Canadian World Cup Team - WVU Athletics" .www.wvusports.com . Archived fromthe original on March 4, 2016.^ FIFA (July 6, 2015)."Buchanan receives Hyundai Young Player Award" . FIFA. Archived fromthe original on July 7, 2015. RetrievedDecember 31, 2016 . ^ Neil Davidson (December 17, 2015)."Kadeisha Buchanan named Canadian women's soccer player of the year" . CBC.Archived from the original on April 22, 2019. RetrievedDecember 31, 2016 . ^ Laura Armstrong (October 19, 2015)."Canada's Kadeisha Buchanan on FIFA Ballon d'Or award shortlist" .Toronto Star .Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. RetrievedDecember 31, 2016 . ^ "Together We Rise: Canada Soccer announces squad for the FIFA Women's World Cup France 2019" . Archived fromthe original on October 16, 2022. RetrievedMay 25, 2019 .^ "U.S. defeats Canada in CONCACAF Women's Olympic Championship final" .Airdrie Today . February 9, 2020.Archived from the original on February 10, 2020. RetrievedFebruary 10, 2020 .^ "Canada Soccer unveils Women's National Team roster for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games" .Canadian Soccer Association . June 23, 2021. RetrievedJune 23, 2021 .^ "CANADA ANNOUNCE SQUAD FOR THE 2022 CONCACAF W CHAMPIONSHIP" .canadasoccer.com . June 24, 2022.^ "Canada Soccer unveils FIFA Women's World Cup squad for Australia & New Zealand 2023" .Canadian Soccer Association . July 9, 2023.Archived from the original on July 9, 2023.^ "Canada Soccer Unveils 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup Roster" .Canadian Soccer Association .Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. RetrievedFebruary 7, 2024 .^ "Canada Soccer and Canadian Olympic Committee unveil Women's National Team roster for Paris Olympic Games" .www.canadasoccer.com .Canada Soccer . July 1, 2024. RetrievedJuly 1, 2024 .^ "Kadeisha Buchanan Profile" .Archived from the original on July 12, 2019. RetrievedJanuary 31, 2017 .^ "Kadeisha Buchanan" . statsfootofeminin.fr.Archived from the original on September 21, 2020. RetrievedMay 20, 2017 .^ Kadeisha Buchanan atCanada Soccer ^ "Women's Champions League final: Lyon 0-0 Paris St-Germain (7-6 pens)" .BBC Sport . June 1, 2017.Archived from the original on June 5, 2023. RetrievedNovember 4, 2024 .^ UEFA.com."History: Wolfsburg 1-4 Lyon" .UEFA .Archived from the original on August 3, 2024. RetrievedNovember 4, 2024 . ^ UEFA.com."History: Lyon 4-1 Barcelona" .UEFA . RetrievedNovember 4, 2024 . ^ Smyth, Rob (August 30, 2020)."Women's Champions League final: Wolfsburg 1-3 Lyon – as it happened" .the Guardian .ISSN 0261-3077 . RetrievedNovember 5, 2024 . ^ Smyth, Rob; Magee, Will (May 21, 2022)."Barcelona 1-3 Lyon: Women's Champions League final 2022 – as it happened" .the Guardian .ISSN 0261-3077 . RetrievedNovember 5, 2024 . ^ "Buchanan Named Hermann Trophy Finalist" .Big12Sports.com . December 11, 2015. RetrievedFebruary 12, 2016 .^ Post, Todd Murray The Dominion (February 7, 2016)."WVU soccer standout Buchanan wins Hardman Award" .Charleston Gazette-Mail .Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. RetrievedJune 19, 2021 . ^ "Buchanan Named Honda Sport Award Winner" .West Virginia University Athletics . December 13, 2016.Archived from the original on March 20, 2020. RetrievedMarch 20, 2020 .^ "Buchanan of West Virginia University Named the Honda Sport Award Winner for Soccer" .CWSA . December 13, 2016.Archived from the original on March 29, 2017. RetrievedMarch 31, 2020 .^ "Canada's Kadeisha Buchanan gets ESPY nomination for best female college athlete" .CBC . June 21, 2017.Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. RetrievedDecember 4, 2020 .^ Lowenthal, Abraham (January 1, 1987),"ESTADOS UNIDOS Y MÉXICO" ,Mexico-Estados Unidos , Colegio de Mexico, pp. 41– 76,ISBN 978-607-628-976-1 , retrievedAugust 19, 2025 ^ Ngimbi Muasya, Mathew; Wangai Kabata, James; Oduori Makokha, Kenneth (2025)."A Comparative Study Between the Socratic Method and the CBC Curriculum: Towards a CBC Philosophical Theory" .International Journal of Applied Science and Research .08 (03):139– 151.doi :10.56293/ijasr.2025.6514 .ISSN 2581-7876 . ^ "2015 FIFPro Award" . Archived fromthe original on July 28, 2017. RetrievedMarch 9, 2017 .^ "Lyon defender Kadeisha Buchanan named Canadian Women's Player of the Year" .Yahoo! Sports . December 4, 2020. Archived fromthe original on January 27, 2021. RetrievedDecember 4, 2020 .^ "Lloyd, Solo and Sasic lead the way" . FIFA.com. July 6, 2015. Archived fromthe original on July 7, 2015.^ "IFFHS WOMAN TEAM - CONCACAF - OF THE DECADE 2011-2020" .IFFHS . January 29, 2021.Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. RetrievedJune 12, 2021 .
Awards
Young Player of the Year
U20 Player of the Year
U17 Player of the Year
Division I
Basketball Cross country Field hockey Golf Gymnastics Lacrosse Soccer Softball Swimming & diving Tennis Track & field Volleyball
Honda Cup Inspiration Div II Div III