Women’s football first featured at the Olympic Games at Atlanta 1996, with USA becoming its maiden champions. While many fans will no doubt remember the Stars and Stripes battling their way to victory over China PR in the final in front of a record-breaking crowd, fewer will recall who scored the first goal at a Women’s Olympic Football Tournament: Germany’s Bettina Wiegmann against Japan 25 years ago today. "I think it was after the tournament that someone told me I’d scored the first Olympic goal and that it was a historic one," Wiegmann told FIFA.com. "For me, that was outweighed at the time by the fact that we had gone out of the competition and didn’t get to stay in the Olympic Village, and that was a bitter disappointment. "I wouldn’t say that this Olympic goal is particularly important to me, but it put me in the history books and it will be there forever. It does make me a little proud to think that I made women’s football history." Wiegmann and her team-mates played the opening match against Japan on 21 July 1996 and ultimately recorded a narrow 3-2 win. "Back then it was a dream for me to go to the Olympics as a footballer," said the woman who began her professional career at FFC Brauweiler Pulheim in 1988 before going on to be capped 154 times by Germany. "It was the first edition where women’s football teams could compete for Olympic gold. That made it a very special tournament for us, and we were very happy to be there. "I remember that we stayed in Birmingham rather than Atlanta. We played our first match against Japan at two o’clock in the afternoon. It was oppressively humid and so hot, around 45 degrees Celsius. We won the game 3-2 and I scored a goal."

Germany were defeated by Norway in their second match before a 1-1 draw against Brazil brought their dreams of a medal to an end and left them with no choice but to head home. "Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough in the end, so we weren’t able to move into the Olympic Village," Wiegmann recalled. "That was very sad for all of us. We were disappointed because we were obviously looking forward to being part of the Olympic Village, but unfortunately we didn’t get the chance to do that the first time. "We made up for it in Sydney in 2000 – that was a fantastic experience. The Olympics is just completely different and something really special. "The team that travels there is entirely made up of German players. You meet other athletes there from every kind of sport. All sports come together there. "For me the Olympics had a very special atmosphere because we were in the Olympic Village with athletes from around the world and not just in our 'football bubble'. We got together for training sessions and team meetings, but otherwise we were free to soak up this Olympic atmosphere. It was just wonderful for us. I wish every athlete could experience it once in their lives."

As well as winning three DFB Cups and one German league title during her club career, Wiegmann won four UEFA Women’s EURO titles and an Olympic bronze medal with Germany, before crowning her playing career with victory at the FIFA Women’s World Cup USA 2003™. Since 2007, the 49-year-old has been devoted to developing young talent at the German Football Association (DFB), where she coaches the U-15 girls team and serves as assistant coach for the U-19 and U-20 women’s national sides. "To be completely honest, I feel so comfortable working with my age group," Wiegmann said. "There is no other age at which players undergo such tremendous development, not just in a sporting sense but also in terms of character. "That’s the great thing about it – you’re working with kids who are becoming young adults. You don’t just have a sporting influence on these players, and that’s what working with children and young people is all about. "You have to be versatile and you get the opportunity to help the players develop not only their sporting abilities, but also their personalities. It’s great fun because the players give you so much in return."

Since taking up her post 14 years ago, the affable honorary captain of the women’s national team has made a major impact on the women’s game in Germany by helping to develop its structures and improve the overall athleticism of the sport. "We’re moving in the right direction," said Wiegmann. "At the DFB, we’re working closely with various departments to push ahead with changes and, above all, improvements in women’s and girls’ football. "We need to put professional structures and conditions in place for our players. I can’t keep doing my normal job during the week, attend a certain number of training sessions and then expect to be a successful professional athlete – it just doesn’t work. That’s why we also need to give our players the scope to pursue a professional career in the sport so that we can adjust the performance level of their training sessions and thus raise the level of the league. "The DFB is working with clubs and regional and state associations at various levels to think about how the structures within the women’s game can be professionalised even further. We definitely haven’t found the right solution yet, but we’re on the right track. That’s important if we’re going to be able to keep up with other countries in the future.”