Popp started her career at FC Silschede, playing there in mixed-gender teams until she reached the age limit of 14. Later she changed to 1. FFC Recklinghausen and played three years before joining the Bundesliga side FCR 2001 Duisburg in 2008. She had also been approached by French champions Olympique Lyonnais at the time, but chose Duisburg. Popp made her Bundesliga debut in September 2008 against Herforder SV and scored her first two goals three weeks later in an 8–0 win over TSV Crailsheim. In her first year at Duisburg, Popp won the Double: the 2009 UEFA Women's Cup and the 2009 German Cup. She was awarded the 2009 Fritz Walter medal in silver as the year's second best female junior player. One year later, she again claimed the German Cup title and finished runner-up with Duisburg in the 2009–10 Bundesliga season. Because Duisburg had major injury worries during the 2010-11 season, Popp played the majority of matches at left back. In the 2012-13 season she moved with her club teammate Luisa Wensing to VfL Wolfsburg. In her first season there she won the Treble with the Frauen-Bundesliga championship, the DFB-Pokal Frauen and the UEFA Women's Champions League. A year later Wolfsburg successfully defended their title the UEFA Women's Euro 2013. For the Bundesliga championship, it came down to a match on the final day of the season against the previously unbeaten 1. FFC Frankfurt. Frankfurt needed only a draw to win the championship, while Wolfsburg needed to win. Popp scored the winning goal in the 89th minute, and Wolfsburg was again victorious in the DFB-Pokal.
International
At the 2008 UEFA U-17 Women's Championship, Popp won her first international title with Germany, scoring the team's second goal in the final. The same year, she reached third-place at the 2008 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. In February 2010, Popp made her debut for Germany's senior national team in a friendly match against North Korea. Less than two weeks later she scored her first two international goals at the 2010 Algarve Cup in a 7–0 win over Finland. Popp returned to junior competition for the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, which was held on home soil in Germany. She won the title with the German team and was the tournament's break-out star, being honoured as the best player and top goalscorer. She scored in every game, and with ten goals she holds the scoring record for that tournament. Popp was then called up for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup squad. She played in all four games for the host nation, coming on as a substitute, but the Germans placed only sixth, defeated in extra time by eventual champions Japan. Later that year, she played in the European Championship qualifier against Kazakhstan, where she and teammate Célia Šašić each contributed four goals to a record 17-0 victory. With this achievement she became the seventh German woman to score four goals in an international game. On May 24, 2015, Silvia Neid named Popp to the senior team for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. In Canada the team reached fourth place, defeating seeded teams Sweden and France but again falling to the eventual champions, the United States. Popp started in four of the team's seven games, scoring once. Popp was called up again for the 2016 Summer Olympics, where Germany won the gold medal. She played in all six games, contributing a goal and two assists. Each player on the team received a Silbernes Lorbeerblatt, Germany's highest sports honor, for their performance. In the UEFA Women's Euro 2017 tournament she played with the senior team, losing in the quarterfinals to Denmark. She is the captain of the squad for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. She played every minute of the group stage games and scored a header versus South Africa. She made her 100th appearance for Germany on 22 June 2019, where she also scored the first goal against Nigeria.
International goals
Scores and results list Germany's goal tally first: Source:
Personal life
Popp attended Gesamtschule Berger Feld in Gelsenkirchen, one of four facilities certified as "elite schools of football" by the German Football Association. She was the school's sole female pupil and could only attend courtesy of a special permit. She studied and trained with junior players of the German men's Bundesliga side FC Schalke 04. Popp left school after the 12th grade with a Fachabitur diploma. Following a one-year internship at a physiotherapist, Popp successfully completed a three-year apprenticeship to become a zookeeper at Tierpark Essehof in Lehre. In interviews she has declared herself a fan of Borussia Dortmund.
