She wasn’t supposed to play football. Her family said no, so she went anyway, sneaking off to training at her local club in Muri until a coach stepped in and changed everything. From that moment, Alayah Pilgrim has never stopped moving forward: from the boys’ pitches of a small Swiss town, to Serie A, to the Swiss national team. At just 22, she’s already won titles in two countries and made a choice that defined her entire career.
Swipe through for the most stunning photos and moments that made her who she is today.
Alayah Pilgrim
A Girl From Muri, Switzerland
Born April 29, 2003, in Muri, a small town in the canton of Aargau, Alayah Pilgrim grew up in a place nobody would have predicted would produce one of Europe’s most exciting young footballers. Her father is Moroccan and her mother is Swiss, giving her a dual cultural identity that would later shape one of the biggest decisions of her career. She grew up speaking multiple languages and navigating two worlds at once. That ability to adapt and move between cultures is written into everything she does on and off the pitch.
The Girl Who Had to Sneak Onto the Pitch
As a young girl, Alayah was not allowed to play football. Her family was against it, so she did what any kid with a burning passion would do: she started going to training in secret. A coach at her local club FC Muri eventually stepped in and convinced her family to let her play. That single conversation changed the entire trajectory of her life. Without it, one of the most exciting forwards in women’s football today might never have kicked a ball competitively.
Playing With the Boys
Once her family came around, Alayah threw herself into football completely. Since Muri had no women’s section, she played alongside boys for the entirety of her junior career. Far from holding her back, competing against boys sharpened her technically and physically from a very young age. By the time she entered the women’s game, she already had qualities most players her age simply didn’t have. The boys’ pitches of Muri quietly built a future professional.
A Senior Pro at 15
Most 15-year-olds are still figuring out high school. In 2017, Alayah began her senior career with Aarau in the Ligue Nationale B at the age of 15. It was an early sign that she wasn’t going to follow the conventional path or timeline. Competing against fully grown adult players as a teenager, she held her own and kept developing at a pace that caught the attention of bigger clubs. The clock was already ticking fast on her rise.
From Aarau to Basel to Zürich
In 2020, at just 17, she moved to Basel on a two-year contract. Then in October 2022, she made the move to Zürich, where she would take the biggest step of her career so far. Each transfer was a level up: bigger clubs, bigger expectations, bigger stages. She wasn’t climbing the ladder slowly — she was taking the stairs two at a time.
Champions League Debut and a League Title
With Zürich, Alayah played in the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time. It was a significant milestone for a player still in her early twenties. Better was still to come that season: she helped Zürich win the 2022–23 Swiss Women’s Super League, scoring in the final, a 3–0 win over Servette FC. Scoring in a title-winning final is the kind of moment players remember for the rest of their careers. For Alayah, it was just the warm-up act.
Roma Comes Calling
In January 2024, Alayah signed for AS Roma. When she explained the decision she was direct about it: “Roma is a club with a really big history. I think this is the best opportunity for me, the best next step in my career to develop and get better.” Moving to Serie A meant competing in one of the most watched women’s leagues in Europe, in one of the world’s most iconic football cities. She’d earned it the hard way.
Double Winner in Her First Season in Italy
In her first season at Roma, Alayah won both the Serie A and the Coppa Italia. Winning a domestic double in your debut season at a new club, in a new country, in a new league, is not something many players manage at any age. She did it at 20. The trophies were piling up, and she was only just getting started in Italy.
The Footballer Who Studied Healthcare
Off the pitch, Alayah has never been a one-dimensional person. She studied as a health professional and completed an internship at Muri Hospital in the summer of 2021, right in the middle of her football career. It says a lot about her that while most players her age were focused entirely on football, she was also qualifying in healthcare. Whether she ever uses that qualification professionally or not, it reflects a curiosity and discipline that goes well beyond the game.
Building an Audience Off the Pitch
Alongside her football career, Alayah works as a social media influencer. She is the second most followed player on Instagram in the Swiss women’s national team, with more than 600,000 subscribers, just behind Alisha Lehmann. For a 22-year-old still early in her career, that kind of following reflects genuine star power. She clearly understands that modern athletes build brands as well as careers, and she’s doing both at the same time.
Love in Football
Alayah began dating fellow footballer Elijah Okafor in 2020. Elijah is the brother of Noah Okafor, the Switzerland international who plays for AC Milan. Two footballers, two families deeply embedded in the game, both navigating professional careers in European football. They’ve been together through club changes, international call-ups, and the kind of schedule that would test any relationship. It’s a football love story with real roots.
Morocco or Switzerland: The Decision That Defined Her
With a Moroccan father and a Swiss mother, Alayah had a genuine choice about which country to represent internationally. In August 2022, she was called up to the Morocco women’s national team for the first time but declined the invitation, as she received it last minute and didn’t have time to decide. A few months later Switzerland came calling, and she chose to commit to them. Just before the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, she formally opted to represent Switzerland and made her debut in September 2023. In June 2025, she was called up to the Switzerland squad for UEFA Women’s Euro 2025. It was a defining choice that said something about who she is and where she sees herself, and Switzerland hasn’t looked back since.
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