The Women's World Cup is finally here! And to help you get into the spirit, I've created a list of fantastic football books. From picture books to nonfiction and graphic novels, there's truly something for every football fan.

For ages 0 and up

Soccer Baby by Diane Adams

The youngest of readers and the sports-loving grown-ups in their lives can now enjoy the world’s most popular sports – soccer – before going to bed a winner.

After putting on their gear and warming up, the Dolphins are ready for kick off! When the opposing team scores in the first half, a young girl and her teammates take an orange-slice break before getting back out there. This young girl scores the tying goal in the second half just before the final whistle and goes to sleep a winner.

For ages 3 and up

We Are Matildas by Shelley Ware

From Shelley Ware and Serena Geddes comes an energetic picture book celebrating football and the team spirit of the CommBank Matildas, which will have you cheering from the sidelines.

Jazzy dreams of being a football star and playing for the CommBank Matildas one day. She has a plan to get there . . . now all she needs is a team. This determined leader soon realises that being on the field with her friends is one of the best parts of the game.

For ages 5 and up

The Soccer Star by Sally Rippin

Billie B Brown is brave, brilliant and bold, and the star of her very own super-dooper early-reader series.

In The Soccer Star, Billie wants to play soccer, but the boys at school won’t let her. How can Billie prove that girls can play soccer, too?

Fun and feisty Billie B Brown always has a creative way to save the day.

For ages 7 and up

The Flipout by Sam Kerr and Fiona Harris

Sam Kerr is an Aussie Rules fan through and through. 

When she’s excluded from her team she doesn’t know what to do. Netball? No thanks. Chess? Bleugh. Her best friends Dylan and Indi think she should flip from Aussie Rules to soccer – and it doesn’t seem so bad at first. The coach is OK. The team seems nice enough…

But with Chelsea the school bully on her case and the pressure of learning new rules weighing her down, will it all be too much? Will Sam give up – or will she make the flip?    

For ages 9 and up

The Breakaways by Cathy G. Johnson

Faith, an introverted fifth grader with a vivid imagination, starts middle school worrying about how she will fit in. To her surprise, Amanda, a popular eighth grader, convinces her to join the school soccer team, the Bloodhounds. Having never played soccer in her life, Faith ends up on the C team, a ragtag group with a tendency for drama over teamwork. Despite their losing streak, Faith and her fellow teammates form strong bonds both on and off the soccer field, which challenge their notions of loyalty, identity, friendship, and unity.

The Breakaways is a positive exploration of the complexity of female friendships, as well as the ups and downs of middle school life. Cathy G. Johnson brings this diverse and spirited group of girls to life with her joyful art style and honest, thoughtful writing.

For ages 12 and up

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The Life and Times of Gracie Faltrain by Cath Crowley

Goal-kicking, super-girl, soccer star. Gracie Faltrain is on her way. To the National Championships. To Nick. To everything she's ever wanted. Or so she thinks. Gracie's about to find out that life is messy. And hard. And beautiful.

There's a shadow falling across her mum and dad. Her best friend is about to leave town. She's trying desperately to be with the right boy, on the edge of falling in love with the wrong boy. She's rushing headlong into screwing up, making up, trying to keep it all together. Welcome to the life and times of Gracie Faltrain.

For ages 14 and up

Belle of the Ball by Mari Costa

High school senior and notorious wallflower Hawkins finally works up the courage to ask out her longtime crush: Regina Moreno. There’s only one teensy little problem: Regina is already dating Chloe Kitagawa, athletic all-star…and middling English student. Regina sees a perfectly self-serving opportunity here, and asks the smitten Hawkins to tutor Chloe free of charge, knowing Hawkins will do anything to get closer to her.

And while Regina’s plan works at first, she doesn’t realize that Hawkins and Chloe knew each other as kids, when Hawkins went by Belle and wore princess dresses to school every single day. Before long, romance does start to blossom…but not between who you might expect.

For older readers

My Journey to the World Cup by Sam Kerr

Sam Kerr is widely considered to be one of the best female footballers of all time. She is famous worldwide for her skills on the soccer pitch – but before she was the Matildas captain and the leading goal scorer for Chelsea, she was just an average Aussie kid who wanted to play AFL.

This is her incredible football journey to the FIFA World Cup, from making the switch to soccer to becoming one of the best female strikers in the world. Sam gives us insights into what keeps her motivated, how she handles the pressures of life as a professional athlete and what she believes is really important in life.