'Next Sam Kerr' aiming to join her idol at Olympics

Preparations are already underway for the Brisbane Olympics and Isabela Hoyos plans to be front and centre when the Matildas hit the pitch in 2032.

At just 16, she's already one of the youngest members of the CommBank Young Matildas, Australia's women's national under-20 football team, and recently represented Australia in the 2024 under 17 Women's Asian Cup in Indonesia.

Now she's set her sights on the Olympics and representing Australia alongside her hero Sam Kerr.

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"This is my first Young Matildas season but I'm really loving it and the intensity is so good," she told Wide World of Sports.

"It's just another step to getting to where my long term goals are; making the Matildas and playing overseas."

Like many of Australia's best female footballers, Hoyos got her start on a field full of boys and grew up idolising Sam Kerr.

In what felt like a stroke of fate, she made her national debut with the Junior Matildas in May 2023 – just three months before the FIFA Women's World Cup kicked off on Australian soil.

Every match the Matildas won buoyed Hoyos, especially when she witnessed Kerr's incredible equalizer during the semi-final against England.

Though Australia wasn't victorious that day, Hoyos left the stadium determined to one day make the squad herself.

The very next year she signed to the Brisbane Roar Ninja A-league women's team and in 2025, she was called up for the Young Matildas - the under 20s - team.

As one of the youngest women in the cohort, it's hard to believe how far she's come in such a short time.

"I was always playing with the boys at my childhood clubs," she said, adding she couldn't have pictured herself wearing the Australian national jersey at such a young age.

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She plans to use this head start to her advantage and spend the next few years learning from her more experienced teammates and racking up game time.

The hope is to be selected in the Matildas squad by 2028, so she can make her Olympics debut in Los Angeles in preparation for Brisbane 2032.

But Hoyos is in no rush – after all, her aspirations extend beyond Australia's borders.

"For now it's about just getting consistent minutes in the A-league and performing well, learning from the experienced players," she says.

"And showing teams overseas what I'm capable of."

The 16-year-old already has her sights set on playing for Arsenal in the Women's Super League, where she'd be in good company.

Several high-profile Matildas are already on the London-based club's roster, including defender Steph Catley, midfielder Kyra Cooney-Cross and forward Caitlin Foord.

Leaving home to play internationally doesn't scare Hoyos either, as she's certain her family would jump at the opportunity to follow her abroad.

They've already started travelling for her matches, jetting to Bali to watch her play in the Under 17 Women's Asian Cup Indonesia last year when she was still with the Junior Matildas.

The team didn't win but Hoyos won't let setbacks stunt her development.

"We didn't get the result we wanted there but I'm hoping for this next maturity cycle to make a difference," she said.

"I'm hoping to get to the World Cup and even win it, that's what we're striving for ... we're just hoping to make our mark."

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Hoyos is already making her own mark on the game.

Though she blended in with the young female crowd that flocked to Allianz Stadium last Friday to watch the Matildas play Korea Republic, one young fan recognised her.

A little girl stopped the 16-year-old for a photo and a chat outside the stadium, where her mum revealed to Hoyos that the youngster is about to start playing football herself.

The brief interaction left Hoyos with goosebumps, and a taste of what's to come if she continued on the upward trajectory she's established over the last few years.

"Imagine if I'm the next Sam Kerr and they look up to me," she said of all the little girls who already look up to the Matildas.

"All I want to do is inspire them."

To celebrate the Matildas playing on Australian soil this month Allianz Australia launched a new digital Fan Hub to bring fans together for the love of the sport.

Hoyos said it's exactly the kind of thing that she would have loved as a little girl watching from the sidelines, years before she stepped onto the pitch herself.