Women’s Soccer Player Will Soon Make Rams International History

Fresh off the heels of a historic season which saw the Jefferson Rams women’s soccer team make the national Sweet 16 for the first time in program history, one of its players will break even more new ground this spring.

Julia Benneckenstein, a junior studying management within the School of Business, will become what’s believed to be the first-ever Rams player to complete on the top-level national team in any sport next month. The story behind the Liechtenstein’s women’s national soccer team is equally as amazing, too.

Liechtenstein is a 15-mile-long principality of some 40,000 citizens located between Austria and Switzerland. Ten years ago, the Liechtenstein Football Association launched an effort to establish national youth teams and a senior women’s national team, on a football-crazed continent.

The strategy targeted 2026 as a time when efforts to improve talent identification, increase participation and develop clubs would bear fruit. That program paved Benneckenstein’s pathway toward landing a spot on a team that – formed in 2021 – will compete in UEFA’s women’s Nations League competition. When she and her team take the pitch versus Armenia on Feb. 21, it will mark their first-ever official competitive international tournament.

Benneckenstein started in the sport as a four-year-old girl playing “with the boys” but the national push brought about girls’ programs through which she landed a spot on the U16 national team.

“When it started, they were basically just trying to find enough players for one team and build from there,” she recalls. “We had a really strong year and from there, the same team stayed together through U16 through U19. Now that women’s soccer has grown more, we have a national team, some club teams and the youth teams. The goal was to real a level that we could compete internationally.”

In 2021, Benneckenstein and the team played their first-ever international friendly match against Luxembourg. Though they would lose 2-1, the message was clear: “Yeah, we can compete there. I wouldn’t say it was a shock, but we definitely felt really honored that they supported and trusted us and got us to that point.”

While those humble roots have borne fruit, challenges certainly remain in comparison to other national-team structures. Notably, like Benneckenstein, the players are scattered across the globe, only coming together seldomly to train and play.

“It was always a dream because women’s soccer here is way more developed than back in my country,” she said of the move. “I absolutely loved my two years there, it was a great experience. When I got in touch with Coach Kyle, he included the girls from the start. They gave me tours over the phone; they were great I just had a good feeling about Jefferson. I felt like it was the right place to be.

After her college career at another university, she transferred to Jefferson in 2024 and appeared in 13 matches on defense during the Rams’ best season ever. Coach Kyle Schumann says she fit right in.

"Julia's leadership on and off the field has been great,” he shared. “She has been a great addition to our program since she joined last fall.”

As she makes arrangements to make sure she doesn’t fall behind in classes when she leaves for Europe in mid-February, Benneckenstein shared that she’ll be taking lessons from the Rams season with her to the UEFA Nations League group-stage matches against Armenia, Luxembourg and Kazakhstan.

“With the national team, this is a new thing. We’ve never, ever done this, so it’s definitely going to be hard when you don’t know what’s coming. It’s still soccer, but it’s a lot more pressure on you as a player,” she said, noting that she’s played some 12 friendlies with the Liechtenstein team. “The biggest thing is being mentally prepared. Reaching the playoffs, the championships, knowing how to prepare for those kinds of games and be on-point ready, at Jefferson, that’s so big.”

She knows that it won’t be easy, but she’s up for the challenge.

“We’re definitely the underdogs,” she said, “but it’s still soccer and you never know what can happen! We’re used to being the underdog and we’re going to try and use that to our advantage. We play as a team, and we’re going to go out, give our all and fight, because we have nothing to lose.”

Benneckenstein will be making history both for her country and her University. In the past, men’s Rams soccer and basketball players have played professionally on the international level. While her teammate Liv Riddell was a goalkeeper for the U17 Australian national team – Rams athletics believe Benneckenstein is the first Rams player to compete on the first senior-national team in program history.

“It’s a huge honor,” she said. “I’ve been there since the start. It used to be a dream but look at where we are now. It’s literally coming true. When we had our first game against Luxembourg, it was such a huge milestone. Now, competing like this will be unbelievable. I am super excited.”

Both Coach Schumann and Corey Goff, Assistant Vice President for Athletics, are excited for Benneckenstein to represent the University at the highest level.

“We are thrilled about Julia’s selection for the senior national team from Liechtenstein, especially for the country’s first-ever international match,” Goff said. “This is an incredible opportunity for Julia and a proud moment for Jefferson to be represented on the international soccer stage. We wish Julia and her teammates all the best.”