Fawcett attended the University of California, Berkeley where she is the all-time scoring leader and inducted into the UC Berkeley Hall of Fame.
Joy is one of two players to play every minute of the 1995 Women's World Cup, the 1996 Olympics, the 1999 Women's World Cup and the 2000 Olympics. She was probably the USA's best and most consistent player at the 2000 Olympics, playing a stellar tournament in the center of the defense widely hailed as perhaps the best defender in the world. At the time of her retirement, she was the highest scoring defender in U.S. Women's National Team history.
She retired with 239 caps and was a founding member of the WUSA. She was elected for induction into the national Soccer Hall of Fame in 2009.