More Than An Armband

Listen to this bonus segment of rapid fire questions with Celia Jiménez.

In this episode of More Than an Armband, Anja sits down with Celia Jiménez — former Spanish national team captain, two-time World Cup veteran, NWSL champion with the Atlanta Pride, and now Founder and CEO of Nebula. Celia shares her remarkable journey from a small town in southern Spain where she fought for the right to compete at just six years old, all the way to the world's biggest stages in women's soccer. She opens up about what it truly means to wear the armband, how she navigated divided teams at the highest level, and why she believes peak performance is always a collective achievement — never an individual one. She also shares the leadership lessons that shaped her, from a veteran captain's pre-game pep talk before defending Marta at her first World Cup, to running fitness tests alongside a struggling teammate just to show her she wasn't alone. Now channeling everything she learned on the field into Nebula, Celia is on a mission to build better environments for women athletes everywhere. 
Key Takeaways:
Leadership is about filling gaps, not having all the answers
Checking in on a teammate takes seconds and can change everything
Great teams acknowledge adversity together rather than pointing fingers
Speaking different languages as a leader is the key to reaching every player
Collective growth is the foundation of peak performance

Listen to this bonus segment with Michelle Voiland as she shares her favorite soccer memory and why she loves coaching. 

In this episode, Anja sits down with Michelle Voiland — University of Portland goalkeeper, Bundesliga veteran, and head women's soccer coach at Whitman College — for a conversation that goes way deeper than the X's and O's.
Michelle shares what it was like playing four years at the University of Portland under the legendary Clive Charles, graduating as the program's all-time leader in saves, and then packing her bags for Germany with almost no plan and no German. What followed was eight seasons in the Bundesliga, three seasons coaching the same club, and a masterclass in learning to perform under pressure far from home.
From there, Michelle spent 11 seasons at Division I Oregon State before landing her the head coaching role at Whitman College in 2020 — where she's been building not just a soccer program, but a culture rooted in authentic leadership and genuine human connection.
We get into the 10-minute rule, why being captain doesn't mean being "team police", the difference between a good leader and a transformational one, and why the most important conversation you'll ever have is the one you're having with yourself.
If you work with athletes, lead a team, or are stepping into a leadership role for the first time, this episode is for you!

Listen to this bonus segment where Madison Fisher shares more about her collegiate experience and leadership advice that has stuck with her beyond the game.

In this episode of More Than an Armband, host Anja Koehler sits down with Madison Fisher, a former midfielder and two-year captain at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. 
Madison shares her soccer journey growing up in Pomfret, Connecticut in a family of athletes and coaches, and how a multi-sport high school experience shaped her as a competitor. She reflects on what drew her to Colby — a place where she felt she could make a real difference — and how leadership became just as important to her as performance on the field.
Madison opens up about stepping into her captain role after being voted in by her teammates, navigating imposter syndrome, and the pod leader structure at Colby that gave every player — regardless of year or position — a chance to lead. She discusses how her natural communication style as a midfielder, combined with genuine care for her teammates, helped her earn trust early in her career.
The conversation digs into some of the harder parts of leadership: having difficult conversations, walking the line between teammate confidant and coach communicator, and leading through adversity after tearing her ACL during her junior year. Madison reflects on how that injury forced her to redefine what showing up as a leader looked like.
She also speaks warmly about her relationship with head coach Tracy Leone (a previous guest on the pod), describing how honest, consistent communication and shared vision created a foundation where Madison could lead with confidence and instinct rather than waiting to be told what to do.
Madison's core message: real leadership doesn't live in a title or an armband. It lives in the daily check-ins, the intentional listening, the willingness to have hard conversations, and the authenticity you bring whether or not anyone is watching. Those are the skills she's carried into her graduate studies in social work, trauma, and neuroscience - and into life beyond the game.

Listen as Tracey shares how coaches can incorporate learning opportunities into practice to support student-athlete confidence in leading. 

In this episode, Anja sits down with former US Women's National Team player and collegiate coach Tracey Leone to talk about what leadership truly looks like — on the field and off it. Tracey takes us back to the early days of women's soccer in America, sharing what it was like to be part of a pioneering generation that built the sport from the ground up. From playing under Anson Dorrance at UNC to coaching at the collegiate and national youth level, Tracey unpacks the leadership habits that shaped her career — including the one she struggled with most. She shares her philosophy on building trust, holding teammates accountable, and why the best leaders never take a moment off. Whether you're a first-time captain or a seasoned coach, this conversation is packed with lessons you can take straight to your team.

Listen to Grace describe the process of song writing and how it relates to leadership in sport. 

In this episode of More Than an Armband, Anja sits down with Grace Leer (Cal soccer alum turned Nashville singer-songwriter) to unpack what leadership looks like when your “team” is your dream. Grace shares how growing up with the “three S’s” (school, soccer, singing) shaped her identity, and how the habits she built as an athlete still drive her as an independent artist today.From being voted captain at UC Berkeley after battling injury, self-doubt, and time on the bench, to navigating rejection on The Voice, Grace breaks down how resilience is built: start somewhere, learn fast, and keep moving. She walks through the behind-the-scenes reality of American Idol (90-second performances, exhaustion, pressure, and fan voting you can’t control) and explains how she relied on athlete mindset: control the controllables, stay prepared, and perform when it’s game time.Grace also opens up about what it means to lead creatively in Nashville writing rooms, how she protects her artistic vision with confidence and respect, and why her most defining leadership moment is happening right now: leaving a label to build her career independently, CEO-style. The conversation closes with grounding reminders Grace lives by, you’re right where you’re supposed to be, and your younger self would be proud.