Dudinha

Dudinha
Dudinha with the San Diego Wave in 2025
Personal information
Full name Maria Eduarda Rodrigues Silva
Date of birth (2005-07-04) 4 July 2005
Place of birth São Paulo, Brazil
Height 1.58 m (5 ft 2 in)
Position(s)
Team information
Current team
San Diego Wave
Number 88
Youth career
2020–2023 São Paulo
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022–2025 São Paulo 76 (18)
2025– San Diego Wave 10 (5)
International career
2022 Brazil U17 10 (5)
2022–2024 Brazil U20 9 (2)
2024– Brazil 11 (4)
Medal record
Women's football
Representing  Brazil
Copa América Femenina
2025 Ecuador
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16 November 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of 25 October 2025

Maria Eduarda Rodrigues Silva (born 4 July 2005), known as Dudinha, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder for San Diego Wave FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the Brazil national team. She has previously played for São Paulo.

Club career

São Paulo

Dudinha grew up playing futsal before joining São Paulo's youth teams at the age of 14.[1] She contributed to several youth titles before moving to the senior team in 2023.[2][3] Dudinha became one of the team's key players in 2024[4] and was named one of the most promising players under 20 years of age in world football the same year.[5] In 2025, she was a standout player for São Paulo throughout the Campeonato Brasileiro[6] and helped her team win the 2025 Supercopa do Brasil for the first time in history.[7]

San Diego Wave

On 24 July 2025, American club San Diego Wave FC acquired Dudinha in exchange for an undisclosed fee and signed her to a three-year contract through 2027.[7] Dudinha made her NWSL debut on 16 August, coming on as a stoppage-time substitute for Delphine Cascarino in a 2–1 victory over Bay FC.[8] On 26 September, she scored her first goal for the Wave, chipping the ball over Orlando Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse to net the equalizing tally in an eventual loss to Orlando.[9] Two weeks later, Dudinha was one of four NWSL nominated for NWSL Player of the Week honors after she scored a goal in match against the Utah Royals.

On 18 October, Dudinha recorded a brace in a 6–1 victory over Chicago Stars FC that both clinched San Diego a spot in the 2025 playoffs and set a club record for goals scored in a single match.[10] Once in the playoffs, Dudinha started and played over 100 minutes of the Wave's quarterfinal match against the Portland Thorns; Portland secured victory with a goal by Reilyn Turner and eliminated San Diego from the postseason.[11] Dudinha's performances through the tail end of 2025 earned her a spot on the October NWSL Team of the Month.[12]

International career

Dudinha has represented the Brazil U17 and U20 teams on multiple occasions. She was called up to represent the U17 squad at the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup and the U20 squad at both the 2022 and 2024 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cups.[13] During the 2022 U-20 competition, she helped Brazil reach third place, its best finish in the tournament since 2006.[7] Dudinha made her debut for the main team on 26 October 2024, coming on as a substitute in a friendly against Colombia.[14] On 30 May 2025 she scored her first goals, against Japan, once again in a friendly match.[15]

Career statistics

Scores and results list Brazil's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Dudinha goal.
List of international goals scored by Dudinha
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 30 May 2025 Neo Química Arena, São Paulo, Brazil  Japan 1–0 3–1 Friendly
2 2–0
3 29 July 2025 Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado, Quito, Ecuador  Uruguay 5–1 5–1 2025 Copa América Femenina
4. 25 October 2025 City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester, England  England 2–0 2–1 Friendly
5. 2 December 2025 Estádio Municipal de Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal  Portugal 3–0 5–0

Honours

São Paulo

São Paulo (youth)

Brazil

Brazil U17

References

  1. ^ Ataque, No (30 May 2025). "Quem é Dudinha, destaque da Seleção Feminina contra o Japão". No Ataque (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 20 October 2025.
  2. ^ "Maria Eduarda Rodrigues Silva". São Paulo FC (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Heroína da seleção é joia do São Paulo e está em lista das mais valiosas". UOL Esporte (in Portuguese). 15 September 2024. Archived from the original on 19 February 2025. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  4. ^ "Dudinha marca e São Paulo empata na estreia do Brasileirão Feminino". Goal.com (in Portuguese). 17 March 2024. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Aline Gomes e Dudinha estão entre as dez jovens mais promissoras do mundo em ranking internacional". GloboEsporte (in Portuguese). 19 March 2024. Archived from the original on 28 April 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Dudinha, do São Paulo, entra na seleção do Bola de Ouro no ESPN Bola de Prata Feminino". ESPN (in Portuguese). 16 June 2025. Retrieved 20 October 2025.
  7. ^ a b c Grueskin, Birgen (24 July 2025). "San Diego Wave FC Acquires Brazilian Forward Dudinha". San Diego Wave Fútbol Club. Archived from the original on 25 July 2025. Retrieved 24 July 2025.
  8. ^ Grueskin, Birgen (17 August 2025). "San Diego Wave FC Defeats Bay FC 2-1 at PayPal Park". San Diego Wave FC. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  9. ^ Grueskin, Birgen (27 September 2025). "San Diego Wave FC Falls 2-1 to Orlando Pride at Snapdragon Stadium". San Diego Wave FC. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  10. ^ Grueskin, Birgen (19 October 2025). "San Diego Wave FC Clinch Playoff Spot with 6-1 Win Over Chicago Stars FC at Snapdragon Stadium". San Diego Wave FC. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  11. ^ Grueskin, Birgen (9 November 2025). "San Diego Wave FC Eliminated in Extra Time by Portland Thorns in NWSL Quarterfinals". San Diego Wave Fútbol Club. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
  12. ^ "NWSL Announces October/November Best XI of the Month, Presented by Amazon Prime". NWSL. 7 November 2025. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
  13. ^ "Heroína da seleção é joia do São Paulo e está em lista das mais valiosas". UOL (in Brazilian Portuguese). 15 September 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2025.
  14. ^ "Brasil tem atuação apagada e empata com a Colômbia em início de ciclo". GloboEsporte (in Portuguese). 26 October 2024. Archived from the original on 31 October 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  15. ^ "Elogiada por Marta e Formiga: conheça Dudinha, destaque do Brasil contra o Japão". GloboEsporte (in Portuguese). 31 May 2025. Archived from the original on 31 May 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.