Mélissa Bethi (; born 18 November 2005) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Washington Spirit of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Born in France, she plays for the Algeria national team. She has previously played for French clubs Lyon, Nantes, and Metz.
Club career Born in Firminy to Nasser and Sandra Bethi, Melissa is of Algerian descent. In 2013, at the age of 8, Bethi began playing football in her hometown with FCO Firminy Intersport and has been a key player, playing in the first team of the club's youth age categories from U9 to U15. after 7 years with the club, she joined the Olympique Lyonnais academy.
On 24 September 2023, Bethi made her debut for the reserve team in Division 3 Féminine in a 5–0 win over Arlac Mérignac. On 1 May 2024, she scored her first goal for the team to seal the win against Le Puy.
On 24 April 2024, Bethi made her debut for the first team of Lyon in a 2–1 win over Guingamp.
In July 2026, Bethi signed with the Washington Spirit through the 2029 NWSL season, with her official move to the Spirit's active roster slated to come after the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations.
International career Youth In 2020, Bethi was pre-selected for the French under-16 team.
On 10 April 2023, She scored her first goal for the under-20 team against Tanzania. In July 2023, she was called to the under-20 team to face Ivory Coast senior team. In September 2023, she was selected for the final squad to face Mali in the African qualifiers for the 2024 U-20 Women's World Cup.
Senior In April 2023, She got her official first call-up to the Algerian senior team to face Tanzania in two friendly matches. She played in the friendly match against ASE Alger Centre and scored a goal in a 2–0 win. On 4 April 2024, she officially debuted for the team in a 1–2 loss against Tunisia, entering the game as a substitute for Roselène Khezami.
On 6 July 2026, Bethi was announced to Algeria's 26-player roster for the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsOlympique Lyonnais2022–23D1F—00——002023–24D1F20—— 5Appearance with Lyon reserve team 'Lyon B' 1Goals with Lyon reserve team 'Lyon B' 71Career total2000—5171
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsAlgeria202410Total10
Honours Lyon Division 1 Féminine: 2023–24 Championnat de France féminin de football des U-19: 2022, 2024
Individual UNFP Première Ligue team of the season: 2025–26
References
External links