Eva Marie: From Professional Soccer Dreams To WWE Diva

Natalie Eva Marie Nelson is better known to WWE fans as the infamous, fiery-haired Eva Marie, of "Total Divas" reality TV fame. She divided fans over her various gimmicks, heel, and face turns, and her perceived abilities in the ring. What fans don't know about her, however, is that she didn't initially aspire to be a professional wrestler, reality star, and fitness celebrity. Marie wanted to become a soccer star at a young age, but, quite like her two WWE runs, things didn't go as planned for her.

Marie started her climb to fame when she moved to Los Angeles from her native San Francisco area to pursue acting when her professional soccer plans fell through. In the "City of Angels," she stumbled into a WWE tryout by chance and was cast on "Total Divas" not even two days after signing with the company. She signed her contract in 2013 and made the cross-country move from Los Angeles to Orlando, Florida, where she began training at WWE's Performance Center. Marie quickly appeared on the main roster after initially signing, then was sent down to "NXT" before being let go by the company. During her time away from WWE, she re-invented herself in the fitness world, and was brought back in June 2021 to "WWE Raw." That November, after four months of a rather lackluster return in most fans' eyes, Marie was once again let go in a mass layoff in WWE.

Despite both her soccer dreams as a young woman and her career inside a wrestling ring both coming to a premature end, Eva Marie has reinvented herself over and over again. From Instagram fame to podcast hosting, to helping others recover from addiction, this former WWE star continues to impress her fans.

Before she was Eva Marie in a wrestling ring, she was working hard to become a soccer star. Marie played soccer in high school but suffered an ankle injury that derailed her plans in 2002. Marie told former WWE talent Charly Arnolt on Fox News' "OutKick The Morning" in 2024 that she had received scholarships from smaller schools, but decided to hang up her cleats after being injured. However, after recovering, Marie took to the field once again at Diablo Valley College in California, where she played as a striker, and also earned her associate degree in art. She transferred to Arizona State University, but she stopped playing due to a lack of self-confidence. Marie transferred once again, this time back to a university in California, and was persuaded to play again and tried out for the team as a walk-on.

Her NCAA eligibility had expired by the time she got to California State University, Fullerton, however, and she was unable to play due to the "five-year clock" rule, which states Division I athletes only have five years to play starting at the time of enrollment at any school. Marie went on to graduate from the university with a Bachelor of Arts in business management, with a minor in human resources. Marie told ESPN that she wouldn't have run into her NCAA eligibility problem had she just believed in herself.

"Now that I'm older, I know it's so much better to have tried and maybe you fail, than to have never tried at all," she told the outlet in December 2017.

Marie has said she came across a WWE casting call "by chance." She impressed talent scouts and following a tryout, she signed a developmental contract and was sent to the WWE Performance Center. She joined WWE in 2013 and was quickly brought up to the main roster, due in part to her joining E!'s newest reality show that would soon become a fast success, "Total Divas." Before her main roster and reality TV debut, Marie colored her hair a fiery red, adopted her trademark "All Red Everything" phrase, and chose "Eva Marie," her middle name, as her ring name.

Marie first appeared alongside the rest of the "Total Divas" cast in a MizTV segment on "WWE Raw" in July 2013, where she made her first impression as a heel character by slapping WWE Hall of Famer Jerry "The King" Lawler. She became Brie Bella's valet after the reality show's debut. The cast would go on to feud with WWE Divas Champion AJ Lee and her team of "real Divas," who mocked the "Total Divas" cast. Marie got her first in-ring victory on the main roster in a six-woman tag match, where she pinned Tamina Snuka in an upset win. Team "Total Divas" would go on to defeat Team "Real Divas" in a traditional elimination Survivor Series match that year.

After a three-month hiatus from the ring, Marie would return to "WWE SmackDown" and mix it up with the likes of Alicia Fox, Lee, and Snuka. She made her WrestleMania debut at the 30th anniversary of the event in a 14-woman "invitational" match for the Divas Championship. Marie would go on to wrestle in singles matches and tag team matches on the main roster throughout 2014, before suffering an injury that she revealed on her Instagram that November.

Marie's injury, a ruptured breast implant that caused silicon to leak into her bloodstream, was one of her storylines featured on "Total Divas" as she recovered from surgery after having the implants removed. Marie was part of the show from the start, starring alongside the likes of Brie and Nikki Bella, Naomi, Natalya, and fellow newcomer JoJo Offerman, though the show's cast changed from season to season. The first season saw a storyline where Marie planned to get on the main roster by scheming with Fandango and also followed her friendship and falling out with Offerman. The final episode featured Marie introducing her family to her then-fiancé, now husband, Jonathan Coyle.

In a subsequent season, Marie opened up to the Bella Twins, Cameron, and Natalya about her issues with alcohol addiction and the fact she no longer drinks after multiple DUIs and run-ins with the law, which led to jail time prior to her arriving in WWE. Marie's wedding to Coyle was filmed and showcased in the mid-season finale of Season Three of the series, where Marie went back to her natural dark hair color for the ceremony, to revert to "All Red Everything" at her reception, which was attended by the rest of the "Total Divas" cast. Marie's family life, sobriety, and drama within the Divas division of WWE were frequent topics throughout all seasons she was featured in.

Marie starred on the show through season six. She announced she wouldn't be participating in the seventh season in July 2017, and shortly after, announced her departure from WWE. One of her final storylines on the show followed her real-life 30-day suspension from the company due to a wellness policy violation. It was revealed in the episode that she was late to file her paperwork to disclose an Adderall prescription.

Following a hiatus to train with Brian Kendrick, Marie returned to "WWE NXT" in June 2015. General Manager William Regal told Marie she needed to show she was ready to compete, and Marie defeated Cassie in the IIconic member's in-ring debut the following month to prove herself. Marie went on to feud with Carmella on "NXT" live events, and she continued to wrestle other "NXT" stars like Billie Kay and Liv Morgan. Marie had racked up a win streak and challenged Bayley for the NXT Women's Championship, but lost, despite interference from Nia Jax. Her last match on "NXT" would be a loss in a non-title match against NXT Women's Champion Asuka.

She returned to the main roster in March 2016 to come to the aid of her fellow "Total Divas" co-stars. Marie competed in a 10-woman tag team match pitting "Team Total Divas" against "B.A.D. & Blonde,) featuring Naomi, Tamina, Lana, Emma, and Summer Rae. The match took place on the pre-show of WrestleMania 32, and Marie's team emerged victorious. Following the match and another brief hiatus, Marie was drafted to "SmackDown" in the 2016 WWE Draft. Upon her return, she began faking accidents, or incidents like wardrobe malfunctions, that prevented her from wrestling, to avoid competition. That August, she was suspended for her wellness policy violation. She began to pursue her other interests and announced in August 2017, after months of speculation, that she was no longer with WWE.

During her time away from WWE, Marie invested in various other business ventures, such as a clothing line called "NEM Fashion" that she promoted on her growing Instagram page. She dabbled in other things, such as launching her own line of hair extensions and an all-inclusive denim brand, but WWE came calling to her once again in October 2020. In May 2021, video vignettes began airing teasing Marie's return, promoting the "Eva-Lution" to come in WWE, teasing Marie as a "role model" type of character. After several weeks of the videos, Marie returned on a June episode of "Raw," where she was set to face Naomi. Instead of Marie wrestling, however, Naomi faced off against her "protege," "Doudrop," better known as Piper Niven. The pair would team up in tag matches, but Marie would announce herself as the sole winner. The pair started a feud with Alexa Bliss, who Marie lost to in a match at SummerSlam that year, and Doudrop turned on her mentor that night. Marie and Doudrop would face off in multiple matches in the following weeks on "Raw," with Marie mostly losing.

Marie last appeared in WWE in an injury angle in September 2021 after she was attacked by Shayna Baszler. Reports later revealed the injury was a storyline to get her off TV so she could start filming a movie. Marie was released by WWE as a part of mass layoffs within the company, that saw both talent and administrative roles be shown the door. As of April 2023, Marie said she is constantly in talks with the company to make a return, and the door is always open.

Marie hasn't slowed down since being a part of WWE's mass releases, and she's only grown in celebrity status. The model-turned-professional wrestler now has over six million followers on Instagram, where she continues to share more about her various business ventures. She is currently a brand ambassador for Reign energy drinks and continues to run a YouTube channel, where she shares vlogs of her daily life as well as workout and fitness content. She's dabbled in Hollywood, starting during her time with WWE, and has mostly recently appeared in "Phoenix" as the film's lead role. In addition to "Total Divas," Marie also appeared on the 2019 season of "Celebrity Big Brother" and as a guest on "American Ninja Warrior Junior" in 2021.

Alongside her husband, Marie launched a podcast on PodcastOne called "The Natalie Eva Marie Show," where the couple and a cast of rotating guests discuss various topics, including addiction recovery, something close to Marie's heart. Through her own experiences and leadership, Marie founded NEM Recovery Centers in Long Beach, California. The centers specialize in substance abuse treatment, medical detox, and dual diagnosis programming, and offers residential treatment. Marie has also been featured on "The Hopeaholics" podcast, where she's shared her story to inspire others and to break the stigma of those suffering from addiction.