West Ham United sign Kinga Szemik and Shekiera Martinez

West Ham United have announced the signings of Poland international goalkeeper Kinga Szemik and Germany U19 international forward Shekiera Martinez. Both players have signed three-year contracts with the club.

Kinga Szemik, a 27-year-old goalkeeper, joins from French Division 1 Féminine club Stade de Reims. She is the women's team’s first signing of the summer.

Szemik had an impressive season with Reims, topping the charts for clean sheets in the top division, keeping nine from her 22 matches played.

Szemik began her career at TS Mitech Żywiec before moving to the USA to play college football for the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros.

She signed her first professional contract with FC Nantes in 2020 before joining Reims in 2022.

Szemik has 17 caps for Poland and was part of the squad that won the 2013 UEFA Women’s Under-17 European Championship.

“I’m so happy to be signing for West Ham United,” Szemik said. “West Ham is one of the biggest clubs in England with a rich history. The WSL is also the best league in the world, which has evolved so much over the years. I think this is the best place for me to progress as a player and evolve as a person as well.”

Women’s team manager Rehanne Skinner praised Szemik’s qualities, saying, “I’m delighted to be bringing Kinga to the club, especially after such an impressive season in France. Kinga has a real drive and ambition, with a strong work ethic - all are attributes that I admire in my players.”

Shekiera Martinez, a 22-year-old forward, joins from Frauen-Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt. Martinez will spend the 2024/25 season on loan at SC Freiburg.

Born in Fulda, Germany, Martinez began her career with SV Gläserzell and FV Horas before joining Frankfurt in 2016.

She has played over 110 times for Frankfurt, scoring 24 goals, and has featured in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.

Internationally, Martinez has been capped at U15, U16, U17, and U19 levels for Germany.

“I’m really happy to be joining West Ham United,” Martinez said. “The Women's Super League is an incredible league and I want to challenge myself in England against the best teams. I hope to gain some invaluable experience on loan at SC Freiburg and return to east London ready to hit the ground running.”

Manager Rehanne Skinner expressed her excitement about Martinez’s signing, stating, “Shekiera is a young forward that we have been watching for some time. Her creativity, quality on the ball and goal threat are huge strengths to her game. She is also quick, hard-working and technically astute with a real positivity to her attacking play.”