Some 4,600 miles from where she learned to play soccer, Laura Lamberth is in the sport’s most elite company.

More specifically, the 34-year-old White House native is with the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNST) at the 2024 Summer Olympics in France. Employed by the U.S. Soccer Federation, Laura serves as USWNST Team Administrator.

It’s a dream job for Laura, whose soccer career has taken her from being an All-State standout at Goodpasture Christian School (she was the female soccer player there to receive a Division I scholarship) to Middle Tennessee State University. Even after her collegiate playing days ended in 2012, Laura continued to be involved with women’s soccer, initially serving as a graduate assistant at East Tennessee State University before subsequent stops as Director of Operations at Louisiana State University (LSU) and Vanderbilt. She’s now based in Chicago, where she moved in 2022 to start her tenure with the U.S. Soccer Federation.

Stay Positive News (SPN) recently caught up with Laura, who was at the USWNST’s training location in Marseilles, France. Following is our conversation:

SPN: What are your responsibilities as USWNST Team Administrator?

Laura: My job as Team Administrator is to make sure everything runs as smoothly as possible. I plan, coordinate, and communicate with all facilities involved with the Women’s National Team Camp (travel agencies, hotels, training sites, stadiums, bus companies, charter flight coordinators). I am the point person for anything player related. In an average camp, we travel with 26 players, 40 staff members and two truck loads of gear, so it takes a lot of organization to make sure all departments can just focus on doing their jobs. We do not have a home base, so we try to make each city’s setup the same in every location so that the players are comfortable.

SPN: What are the keys to the USWNST bringing home a medal?

Laura: At this level, every team is talented and can win on any given day. From an administrative perspective, my goal is to make training camp as comfortable, stress free, and seamless as possible for everyone else. It’s how I can play my role in letting the team and staff focus on games/trainings. It’s incredible to work with such driven women every day.

SPN: What is it about soccer that makes you so passionate about the sport?

Laura: Like anyone my age, I grew up watching the 99ers (the 1999 USWNST) which had players like Mia Hamm and who inspired me as a young soccer player. I played college soccer at MTSU, so it was a natural move to get into working with women’s college teams. The sport has always been a major part of my life.

SPN: Talk about your memories of playing youth soccer in White House. What are some of your favorite?

Laura: I remember that the Saturday league was co-ed, so I was on a team with both boys and girls. I would be so competitive and never wanted to lose. A few of the boys I went to elementary school with were always on the opposite team, so I would want to win that much more.

SPN: Who are the people who have been most influential in your soccer career and why?

Laura: I would say my parents [Beverly and the late Barry Lamberth] 100 percent. Driving me from White House to Brentwood four days a week for soccer practice was a big sacrifice. Then, we would travel every weekend for [select] soccer tournaments all over the country. My mother and I spent 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. in a car together almost every day when she would pick me up from school [at Goodpasture] in Madison and head straight to [select team] soccer practice. Brentwood had the best select team and the sacrifices my parents took to ensure that I was set up for success is greatly appreciated.

SPN: What were your strengths as a player?

Laura: As a youth player, I was a defensive midfielder and I loved facilitating for everyone. Connecting passes, defending and ball in the air.

SPN: Did you have a soccer idol growing up? If so, who and why?

Laura: Mia Hamm was my idol – I even named my dog after her. I actually saw her again recently when the 99ers were in New Jersey for the USWNT game and thought of how cool 9- year-old me would think the things I get to experience are.

SPN: Describe what it was like to be Director of Soccer Operations at two Southeastern Conference (SEC) schools, LSU and Vanderbilt, that would seem on the surface to be vastly different from one another.

Laura: Both jobs taught me so much and prepared me for my job with the USWNT in different ways. LSU was my first real job out of college and my first time living outside of Tennessee. It was the first time I was responsible for other people and had to think outside of myself. I learned a lot about life during my time in Louisiana. Taking the job at Vanderbilt brought me back home at the right time and really helped me grow in other aspects. I stepped back and put more things in perspective as one does when you get older and go through change. Both jobs were great to really realize what I was passionate about and pushed me in different ways.

SPN: Your career has now taken you to Chicago? What has living in the “Windy City” been like?

Laura: I absolutely love Chicago. It’s been a great experience exploring and seeing everything that the city has to offer. There is always something going on, and I love that you can easily take walks along Lake Michigan or on the Chicago Riverwalk. I live right in The Loop” and walk everywhere, even to work.

SPN: How often are you able to get back to the White House/Nashville area?

Laura: My whole family is still in Tennessee, so I try to get back as often as I can. Since I travel so much for my job, it does make it difficult, but I try to get back at least every four months. I am on the road around 70 percent of the year.

SPN: What are your favorite things to do away from soccer?

Laura: I really like to shut off when I have the chance. I love going to the beach to relax and get some sun.

Follow Laura and the US Women's Soccer Team, including updated information on their Olympic run, here.