San Diego Wave sign former Club América, FC Barcelona goalkeeper to 3-year deal
The San Diego Wave made the first big strike of the National Women's Soccer League's international break, signing Club América goalkeeper and longtime Spanish national team fixture Sandra Paños to a three-year contract.
Paños, who signed on Wednesday, joins a Wave club that sits first in the NWSL standings with an 8-4-1 record.
Despite their success, the club has struggled to replace longtime fixture Kailen Sheridan in goal. While veteran Didi Haračić and rookie Leah Freeman are each allowing an average of one goal per match, the Wave rank last in the NWSL with a 61.8% save rate. The Wave's plus-6 goal differential is the byproduct of scoring 19 goals, the second-highest total in the league.
The 33-year-old Paños brings some veteran leadership to a club that appears to be going for it following a chaotic 2024 and rebuilding 2025. The Wave signed U.S. Women's National Team forward Cat Macario to a record-breaking contract earlier this spring. Macario has yet to make her Wave debut but will likely return shortly after the international break ends.
"I'm excited to join San Diego and begin this new chapter of my career," said Paños. "The Wave has a talented group of players, and the club's strong foundation and ambition are what attracted me here. I'm looking forward to bringing my experience to the team and doing everything I can to help the Wave compete for championships."
Just last month, Paños led Club América to the Liga MX Femenil Clausura title and won "Portera de la Final" honors as the top goalkeeper of the championship match. During her third and final season with the Mexico City club, Paños recorded the league's second-best goals-against mark with 13.
Before that, Paños won three UEFA Champions League titles as a key member of FC Barcelona's women's team.
From 2015 to 2024, Paños played in 279 matches and recorded 171 shutouts; Barcelona won 23 titles across Champions League, Liga F, Copa de la Reina, Supercopa de España, and Copa Catalunya play during that time. Paños has also made 54 appearances for Spain's national team, and was a two-time Women's World Cup call-up (2015 and 2019). In 2019, she led Spain to the Round of 16, where the club fell 2-1 to the United States.
"She is a world-class goalkeeper with experience and leadership at the highest levels of the game, which will be a tremendous addition to our team," Wave general manager Camille Ashton said. "Bringing a player of her caliber to the Wave reflects the ambition of our Club as we continue working toward winning a championship, and we're thrilled to have her join this team."
The Wave return to action on July 4, hosting Gotham FC at Snapdragon Stadium. The holiday match starts at 5:45 p.m.
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This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 10:03 AM.