Every time NFL players come up in conversation, we tend to focus only on touchdowns, tackles, and the game’s highlights. But this time, look at Ravens‘ star Patrick Mekari and a special part of his life—his athletic girlfriend Emily Boyd.

Emily Boyd is no ordinary athlete but also a Sports Business and marketing expert. Born on July 25, 1996, in Seattle, Washington, she was a goalkeeper at the University of California, Berkeley, and her interest in marketing inspired her to work for Nike. Boyd is the daughter of Dana and Doug Boyd. Her father, Doug, was a member of the Ohio State Hockey team.

Emily’s soccer journey is nothing short of extraordinary. Kicking off with Crossfire Premiere FC, she made a mark by attending the Elite Club National League Training Camp at Nike Headquarters in August 2013. That same year, she dazzled on the field, boasting a flawless 19–0 record and only three losses overall, and snagged the ENCL All-Tournament Goalkeeper honor for the second time. Emily’s talent shone brightly as she also participated in the Olympic Development Program event in Costa Rica in 2013.

In 2014, Emily won the First Team Freshman All-American title from Soccer America. In 2015, she received Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable Mention and All-Pac-12 Second Team honors. By 2016, she had a school record of 11 shutouts and earned Second Team All-Pac-12 honors.

Then in 2017, Emily made waves in the college world—earning Second Team All-American, First Team All-Region, and Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Year titles. By setting a California record of 36 shutouts, she became the first Pac-12 goalkeeper to receive the honor. In 2016, Boyd played under the U-20 Women’s National Team and also spent her time with the U18 and U15 National Teams. The journey of Emily is evident in her excellent sporting ability and hard work.

After college, the Chicago Red Stars drafted her 15th overall in the second round of the NWSL College Draft 2018 and signed by the team in 2019. During her first season, in 2018, she made 2 starts with 2 shutouts and was nominated for the NWSL Save of the Week in two of her first three starts in the next season, 2019.

But as life’s path is straight for none. She suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament, and medial collateral ligament injury on October 3, 2020. Soon, she returned in November 2020 and continued playing until Feb 15, 2024, when she decided to retire.

Almost 8 years before her retirement, we missed an important part of her life. The place was UC Berkeley, and the year was 2016, when the Ravens’ defensive end Patrick Mekari and goalkeeper Emily Boyd fell in love at first sight.

Meet Emily Boyd, Patrick Mekari’s partner

The year was 2016, month of November, and the date was 7, when the duo initiated their romantic affair. The couple kept their relation somewhat private until they took it to the next level by tying the knot. Mekari and Boyd get married on February 19, 2023. We can find them together in any restaurant or football stadium. They look stunning together, bringing so much joy to each other.

Boyd keeps sharing their happy moments with her fans through her social media. Actively sharing her athletic posts and romantic stories, she has more than 10k followers on Instagram and almost 1.5k followers on X.

As she always looks curious about her upcoming and ongoing events together, as she shared an Insta post reading “1 month“, in January 2024, just a month before they tie their knot, indicating her excitement and happiness.

More on her feed, we can find her sharing some moments of love and closeness with her partner Patrick Mekari, like shared on November 7, 2020, celebrating her 4th dating anniversary captioning, “4 whole years with this guy“. One more post reading, “We dreamed of this“, highlights the strong foundation of their relationship and how they successfully made it.

Loving is a bit easy, but loving forever is the real magic. After spending almost 8 years together, the couple is now married and living their life to their fullest. The Ravens’ linebacker has signed a $15.35 million three-year contract extension the previous year and, after playing soccer for almost 6 years, Emily Boyd is running her own health and wellness brand, ‘eboydsfood‘ these days.