England captain and former Sunderland player Steph Houghton has been crowned the most inspirational and influential female footballer, a study has revealed.
Durham -born Steph topped the table scoring 420 points out of a possible 500 based on things like the number of caps and goals, media appearances, charity work and digital presence.
Steph bagged a number of points in the survery which was run by Online Casinos scoring big across all criteria, including career, wealth, media, charity, and digital.
She was closely followed by England teammates Toni Duggan with 340 points and Jill Scott with 310.
A representative at Online Casinos, commented on the results of the study: “It’s no surprise to us that Steph Houghton is the most inspirational women’s footballer. Houghton scored first place across several of our categories - media, social media, and charity - with high results across the rest too.
“Her influence as a player is huge, extending well beyond Manchester City. She’s the player that everyone on the planet would know.
“The study has highlighted that in 2020, there’s much more to being a footballer than you might think. Players at such a high level have a huge amount of pressure and more goals to score than just on the pitch.”
The footballing star first rose to fame at the 2012 London Olympics scoring three goals in Great Britain's four games.
She kick-started her club career at Sunderland , before moving on to Leeds United, Arsenal Ladies and her current team Manchester City.
In 2016, Steph, who grew up in South Hetton, was even made an MBE in the New Year Honours services to football after she became captain of both England and Manchester City.
The 23 footballers included in the study make up the current England National team, playing in March’s SheBelievesCup.
Players were scored individually out of 50 points - with higher points awarded incrementally for higher numbers - with a total overall score available of 500 points.
