Welcome to ‘Together We Rise’, a new editorial partnership from VERSUS and Nike exploring the women who are blazing a trail to shape the future of sport and culture. Nike’s Third Kits for the 24/25 season have turned the Swoosh vertical to mark the non-stop rise of women’s football – and this is where we celebrate the players and fans who have made this change possible.

Sam Kerr only knows greatness. This is a world class talent who’s made her mark all over the world. Having picked up Golden Boot awards in Australia, the United States and England, there’s no denying that her impact on the growth of the women’s game has been truly global. When you’re looking to celebrate the torchbearers who have blazed a trail for women in football and culture, don’t leave Sam’s name out of the conversation.

Sam spoke to us after wearing Chelsea’s new third shirt to discuss the power of community, the importance of having kits that empower women’s athletes, and her words of advice for the next wave of changemakers.

In what way do you think fashion can help push the women’s game forward?

I think women's players now are getting more into it, and I think it allows them to express themselves off the pitch. Fashion is a way to show who you are and a way for brands to show they are invested in women's football. I think it's all the “cool collabs” that catch everyone’s eyes. That's the way they can elevate the women's game. Having these sick collabs where fans and players feel awesome wearing their club’s kit. Sometimes it's seen as, “you don't wear your club kit out”, but you always see people nowadays repping their club as a result of football x fashion merging. 

You can’t rise to the top without overcoming barriers. Let’s talk about that a bit. How have you overcome some of your biggest barriers?

I think the biggest barriers for me are probably injuries. You lose touch with the game, you lose touch with the fans. You lose touch with your team when you're injured, so it can become quite a lonely place. I think every footballer will tell you that injuries are the worst part of football, but they're also part of the sport, you know? You get to do things off the pitch like this, though. You get to have some downtime. But yeah, I think the biggest barrier in sport, for me, is definitely injuries.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

I think the best piece of advice I try to always remember is: ‘you're only as good as your last game or your next game’. I'm not someone who looks at my stats or looks at what I've done. People will tell you that I always underestimate myself, but I think that's because of the mentality that's just been drilled into me from my family, especially my parents. That the history is “the history”, and you've always got more to achieve. It sounds weird, but I'm always quite a nervous person when it comes to thinking if I’ll ever get back to being in the starting team. And people always think that's crazy, but I think that's just something that's instilled in me: to always want to be better and strive for more.

What does it take to stay at the top?

It's interesting, I think staying at the top is harder than getting to the top, and I think you see that with lots of teams. I watched a documentary the other day on the New England Patriots and one of their players said something along the lines of, “getting there is the biggest euphoria feeling you can feel”, and then after that it's just relief. I think that just completely explains it. When you first win, it's amazing. And then after that, it's just the standard you set for yourself. Winning is the most important thing and anything other than winning is a failure. So it becomes this stressful life about wanting to win and wanting to stay at the top and be one of the best. It's very hard to stay there.

If you could give one piece of advice to the next generation on their journey to the top and ‘Together We Rise’, what would it be?

My biggest thing is always just to be yourself and believe in your journey. I think everyone has a different route to the top. I've never heard of anyone having it all smooth sailing, there's always different journeys. You know, some people are really great at a young age and then fade away. Or it takes some people until they're 30 to make the national team or play their first game for their “top” club. I think everyone's journey is just so different. So, just stay true to your journey and who you are and don't compare yourself to others. Everyone has a different story and path to follow, and that's what you should believe in and enjoy.

If you could link up with any artist or musician to pen a track for ‘Together We Rise’, who would it be and why?

I thought of this! So, two people I love: I thought of Dom Dolla, he's an Aussie. But, I also love Central Cee – I really do love him. They're two opposite genres, but yeah, Dom Dolla or Central Cee would be my two favourite artists.

Chelsea's 24/25 third kit is available to purchase now via Nike.com.

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Sam wears Nike, A-COLD-WALL*, Hey Harper, G H BASS and archive PRADA via PASTDOWN.

VERSUS: When you hear the phrase ‘Together We Rise’, what do you think?

It’s pretty straightforward and to the point. I think of the whole of women's football, all the women's clubs, all the women's fans, coaches – it's a massive collective effort. It's not just down to one team or one player to make sure the women’s game gets the recognition and respect it deserves. It's everyone’s responsibility to drive the game forward, and that includes fans and players at every level.

What role do you think Nike kits and apparel play in pushing the women’s game forward?

I think they're important. Historically, when you see a football kit, you normally think of men's teams, so having these women's-inspired kits helps a lot when wanting to showcase women’s football stories. Also having young girls grow up wearing their favourite players’ names on their kits means a whole lot too. So I think the more you see female footballers in club or national team kits, and being able to style it according to themselves, it’s only a good thing. It’s something I did as a kid but I had to do so with men’s players. I think it’s really important that young girls these days can wear their favourite kits with their favourite footballer on the back, and that person happened to be a woman. 

We speak a lot about how much women’s football has grown but talk to me about what you hope will come next.

I hope the game keeps growing! I think over the last five or so years the growth in the game has been incredible. I think there's still a fair way to go, but I think that the game's in a good place now. I hope in time we experience more developments, for example: I absolutely love playing in the Champions League but I hope in the near future we also have something like the Europa League. Having tiered competitions allows for other teams across Europe, not just at top five or so clubs, to develop and have a place in European football. 

Chelsea is a club that really values academy players. As someone who didn’t have all the resources that young ballers have now, how does it feel to see the likes of Aggie Beever-Jones reap the rewards of the foundations you’ve helped to establish?

It feels amazing. Aggie, she's come all the way through Chelsea, which has been incredible. But there is still a long way to go before other clubs and academies around the world have something similar to what Chelsea have. In my home country of Australia, we don’t really have systems in place like that for young girls and boys. So when they see someone like Aggie, achieving what she’s achieved having come through the academy, it’s inspirational. It’s inspiring for me too. I want to see more young players go onto play at the levels I have, and I’ll do what I can to ensure they have a path to follow – I want more players like myself to represent the national team and clubs like Chelsea for example. To see someone like Aggie and other academy players currently in the Women’s Super League, it’s great. It’s a testament to the league’s growth and the development of women’s football in England over the years. 

Let’s talk about the kit. What’s your favourite feature? How would you style this kit if you were to wear it off the pitch?

I love the black base – I think, honestly, black on any football pitch looks amazing. It looks clean. I saw the girls wear it the other day against Crystal Palace, and I thought they all looked very smart. To be honest, I love the pop of the pink, too. I'm not much of a pink person, but I think the pink and yellow fit awesome together. And I love the change up in the Swoosh. I think it's just a nice little detail. And especially on the socks, I think it looks epic with the Swoosh going upwards.

We’ve seen the worlds of football and fashion get closer over the years. Why do you think that is?

Personally, I love it. Playing in the USA for nine years, fashion and football were always intertwined. And I think, in my time there anyway, there were always the trailblazers, Héctor Bellerin and all of those guys, who pushed it forward. But I think now it's just becoming the norm. I always used to style a kit when I was a kid, but I don't think it was that cool back then – to wear a kit and your casual clothes. Whereas now, like whenever you go on holiday or to a festival in the summer, you see everyone wearing their favourite player’s shirt. So I think it's just kind of the norm now, but I think that's due to players and brands connecting and making it really cool.