Deyna Castellanos


Deyna Cristina Castellanos Naujenis is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a forward for Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League and the Venezuela national team.
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Early life

Deyna Cristina Castellanos Naujenis was born on 18 April 1999 in Maracay, on the Caribbean coast of Venezuela.

College career

Castellanos was awarded a scholarship to study journalism and play football at Florida State University, an experience she has described as life-changing. She spent three college years with the Florida State Seminoles, scoring 48 goals in 82 total appearances.

Club career

Atlético Madrid

After leaving Florida State, Castellanos elected not to enter her name into the NWSL College Draft due to the lack of player autonomy afforded to her by the Draft system. Instead, she signed her first professional contract with Spanish club Atlético Madrid on 2 January 2020, inking a two-year deal.

Manchester City

At the end of this contract, Castellanos moved to English club Manchester City, in the Women's Super League, where she signed a three-year contract on 3 June 2022; she was described as the marquee signing during a high-turnover summer for the club. She made her Manchester City debut on 18 August 2022, in a 6–0 Champions League win against Kazakhstani side Tomaris-Turan, scoring a penalty in the 89th minute. On 18 September 2022, she made her WSL debut, coming on in the 70th minute during a 4–3 defeat by Aston Villa.

Bay FC

On 26 January 2024, Castellanos was acquired by new NWSL expansion franchise Bay FC for a transfer fee. In the 2024 season, Castellanos appeared in 20 matches, starting 12, and scored 2 goals.

Portland Thorns

On 23 January 2025, Bay FC announced that they had bought out the remainder of her contract, making her a free agent. The next day, Castellanos was acquired by NWSL team Portland Thorns FC and signed to a two-year contract with a club option. She made her Thorns debut in the league's season-opener, starting and playing 87 minutes in a defeat to the Kansas City Current. Castellanos scored her first goal with her new club on 22 April, helping the Thorns beat NJ/NY Gotham FC, 4–1.

International career

Youth

In 2014, she was a member of the Venezuela national under-17 team who finished fourth in the 2014 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup and runners-up in the 2014 Women's Youth Olympic football. She won the Golden Boot of the 2014 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup with six goals, equalling her teammate Gabriela García and was also a goalscorer of the 2014 Women's Youth Olympic football with seven. She was also as a top scorer of the 2016 South American Under-17 Women's Football Championship with 12. Castellanos is the top goalscorer of the Venezuela U-17 women's team with 35. Castellanos is currently the all-time leading goalscorer of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup with 11.
Castellanos was called up to the Venezuela U-20 women's team in January 2018 for the 2018 South American Under-20 Women's Football Championship. She was the only player to score in the Group B matches with three, once against Uruguay, Bolivia and Chile. She was also the only player to score in the final stage, scoring once in a 3–1 defeat against Paraguay U-20 women's team.

Senior

In April 2018, Castellanos was part of the senior team in the 2018 Copa América Femenina. She scored on her debut against Ecuador on 5 April, and netted four times in an 8–0 win over Bolivia four days later. In 2021, at the age of 21, she was named captain of the team for the first time.

Off the pitch

Castellanos started a foundation that encourages gender equality and helps provide football scholarship for South American girls.
She has worked as a studio analyst for NBC and Telemundo at the 2018 and 2019 FIFA World Cups, and in Spain. She is a fan of tattoos and as of 2022 has over 30. In Venezuela, she is known as Reina Deyna. She learned English while at Florida State University, becoming quickly bilingual.
In The Best FIFA Football Awards 2017, Castellanos was named to the three-woman shortlist for The Best FIFA Women's Player while still playing in college. Her nomination created some controversy. Megan Rapinoe was outspoken about this nomination, complaining that Castellanos was an unknown player and had not played professionally, nor in a major senior national team tournament at the time of her nomination.

Career statistics

International

No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
15 April 2018Estadio Municipal Francisco Sánchez Rumoroso, Coquimbo, Chile1–01–02018 Copa América Femenina
29 April 2018Estadio Municipal Francisco Sánchez Rumoroso, Coquimbo, Chile1–08–02018 Copa América Femenina
39 April 2018Estadio Municipal Francisco Sánchez Rumoroso, Coquimbo, Chile2–08–02018 Copa América Femenina
49 April 2018Estadio Municipal Francisco Sánchez Rumoroso, Coquimbo, Chile3–08–02018 Copa América Femenina
59 April 2018Estadio Municipal Francisco Sánchez Rumoroso, Coquimbo, Chile8–08–02018 Copa América Femenina
619 July 2018Estadio Moderno Julio Torres, Barranquilla, Colombia2–12–12018 Central American and Caribbean Games
723 October 2021Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha, Guayaquil, Ecuador3–14–1Friendly
823 October 2021Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha, Guayaquil, Ecuador4–14–1Friendly
926 October 2021Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha, Guayaquil, Ecuador2–04–1Friendly
1026 October 2021Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha, Guayaquil, Ecuador3–14–1Friendly
119 April 2022Estadio Olímpico Pascual Guerrero, Cali, Colombia1–02–2Friendly
129 April 2022Estadio Olímpico Pascual Guerrero, Cali, Colombia2–02–2Friendly
139 July 2022Estadio Centenario, Armenia, Colombia1–01–02022 Copa América Femenina
1415 July 2022Estadio Centenario, Armenia, Colombia1–02–02022 Copa América Femenina
1524 July 2022Estadio Centenario, Armenia, Colombia1–11–1 2022 Copa América Femenina
1614 November 2022Estadio Municipal Los Arcos, Orihuela, Spain1–21–2Friendly
1729 June 2023Estadio Las Delicias, Santa Tecla, El Salvador3–04–02023 Central American and Caribbean Games
181 July 2023Estadio Las Delicias, Santa Tecla, El Salvador1–14–12023 Central American and Caribbean Games
191 July 2023Estadio Las Delicias, Santa Tecla, El Salvador4–14–12023 Central American and Caribbean Games
203 July 2023Estadio Las Delicias, Santa Tecla, El Salvador2–02–02023 Central American and Caribbean Games
215 July 2023Estadio Las Delicias, Santa Tecla, El Salvador2–02–12023 Central American and Caribbean Games
2226 September 2023Estadio Olímpico de la UCV, Caracas, Venezuela1–01–0Friendly

Honors

Team

Florida State Seminoles
Atlético Madrid

Personal