Kayla Sharples

Last updated
Kayla Sharples
NC Courage vs KC Current (Apr 2025) 048 (cropped).jpg
Sharples with the Kansas City Current in 2024
Personal information
Full name Kayla Lynne Sharples [1]
Date of birth (1997-06-17) June 17, 1997 (age 28)
Place of birth Naperville, Illinois
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) [2]
Position Center back
Team information
Current team
 Kansas City Current
Number 27
Youth career
Eclipse Select
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2015–2018 Northwestern Wildcats 87 (9)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2019–2023 Chicago Red Stars 35 (1)
2020 → KuPS (loan) 6 (1)
2021–2022 → Adelaide United (loan) 11 (1)
2024 Bay FC 15 (2)
2024– Kansas City Current 32 (2)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 01:59, November 10, 2025 (UTC)

Kayla Lynne Sharples (born June 17, 1997) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center back for the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the Northwestern Wildcats and was drafted by hometown club Chicago Red Stars in the third round of the 2019 NWSL College Draft. She spent five seasons with Chicago, including loans to Finland's KuPS and Australia's Adelaide United, before joining expansion team Bay FC in 2024. Later that year she was traded to the Current.

Contents

Early life

Sharples was born in Naperville, Illinois, and attended Naperville North High School where she played basketball and soccer, winning a state championship in soccer as a freshman in 2010. [3] [4] She played club soccer with Eclipse Select, winning multiple state championships. [5] Her Chicago Red Stars jersey is displayed outside of Naperville North's gym, among jerseys of other professional athlete alumni. [6]

Northwestern Wildcats

Sharples attended Northwestern University where she played for the Northwestern Wildcats. She led the Wildcats to four straight NCAA Tournament appearances between 2015 and 2018, a best in program history. Their furthest NCAA appearance came in the 2016 tournament, reaching the Round of 16 where they ultimate fell to the #3 seed Duke Blue Devils. It was the Northwestern's best NCAA tournament appearance since 1998. [7] Sharples started all 87 of her matches for Northwestern, which included a streak of 86 straight starts, which is the second longest such streak in program history. [8]

Club career

Chicago Red Stars

Sharples was selected 26th overall in the 2019 NWSL College Draft by the Chicago Red Stars, her hometown team. [9] [10] She made her professional debut on June 2, 2019, as a substitute in a 3–0 loss away to the Portland Thorns FC. [11] Sharples had limited minutes in the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup, but started in the final where the Red Stars lost the inaugural Challenge Cup Championship to the Houston Dash. [12] She suffered a season ending ACL injury on June 12, 2022, in a match against the Orlando Pride. [13] She made her return from injury on May 31, 2023, as a substitute during a Challenge Cup group stage match against Racing Louisville FC.

KuPS loan (2020)

In August 2020 Sharples received an offer to join Kuopion Palloseura on loan for the remainder of the 2020 Kansallinen Liiga season. After consulting with Chicago head coach Rory Dames who told her that she may not get playing time in the 2020 NWSL Fall Series, Sharples accepted the offer. [14] She made six total appearances, scoring one goal, contributing to KuPS's third place finish that season, the highest ever for the club in their history. [15] [16]

Adelaide United loan (2021–22)

In December 2021, Sharples was loaned to Australian club Adelaide United, just before the beginning of the 2021–22 A-League Women season. Sharples stated that it had been a goal of hers to play in Australia due to the quality of the league. [17] Sharples missed the start of the season due to quarantine protocols upon entering Australia due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Following her quarantine, she started in 11 of Adelaide's 14 regular season matches, scoring one goal in a 3–0 win away to Western Sydney Wanderers on January 28, 2022. [18] [19] Sharples was part of a squad that led the club to their first ever Finals appearance in fourteen A-League seasons. On March 13, Sharples started in the club's finals debut, but Adelaide ultimately lost 1–2 to eventual 2022 A-League grand final champion Melbourne Victory. [20] [21] Following the loss, her loan concluded and she returned to the Chicago Red Stars to prepare for the 2022 NWSL season.

Bay FC

On December 21, 2023, Sharples signed with NWSL expansion side Bay FC, having become a free agent after her contract with Chicago expired. [22] [10] She was part of Bay FC's inaugural starting eleven in their first regular season NWSL match, which was a win away to Angel City FC. [23]

Kansas City Current

Sharples was traded on August 28, 2024, to the Kansas City Current for goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz and $15,000 in allocation money. [24] She was immediately a starter for the Current, debuting in a 1–0 win over the Utah Royals on September 7. [25] Her arrival was credited with improving the Current's defensive performance. [26] Kansas City placed fourth in the standings and won 1–0 over the North Carolina Courage in the quarterfinals. On November 17, in the semifinals against the Orlando Pride, Sharples was partly responsible for two goals and missed a late header as the Current lost 3–2 to end their season. [27] [28]

On April 19, 2025, Sharples scored her first goal for the Current to conclude a 2–0 win over the Houston Dash. [29] On July 29, the Current announced that the club had re-signed her through the 2027 season with the option for an additional year. [26] Not until after clinching the NWSL Shield did the Current see any minutes without Sharples on the field. [29]

On November 10, 2025, it was announced that Sharples was one of five finalists for the NWSL Defender of the Year award, along with defensive teammate Izzy Rodriguez. [30] Players from the Current made up one-third of all NWSL award nominees. Sharples was named to the 2025 NWSL Best XI First Team at the NWSL Awards. [31]

International career

In October 2025, United States head coach Emma Hayes said it was a "tough" decision not to call up Sharples for a series of friendlies, adding that the "door is open for Sharples, and I think she's been a top performer". [32]

Honors

Kansas City Current

Career statistics

Club

As of April 22, 2024
ClubSeasonLeagueCup [a] Playoffs [b] OtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Chicago Red Stars 2019 NWSL 20—00—20
2020 NWSL —30—0 [c] 030
2021 NWSL 1402000—160
2022 NWSL 804000—120
2023 NWSL 11140——151
KuPS (loan) 2020 Kansallinen Liiga 6100——61
Adelaide United (loan) 2021–22 A-League 111—10—121
Bay FC 2024 NWSL 42———42
Career total5651301000705
  1. ↑ Includes the NWSL Challenge Cup
  2. ↑ Includes NWSL Playoffs and A-League Women Finals series
  3. ↑ Includes the NWSL Fall Series

References

  1. ↑ "Undergraduate Degrees – School of Communication: Bachelor of Arts in Communication – Degree awarded March 29, 2019". One Hundred and Sixty-First Annual Commencement. Evanston, Illinois: Northwestern University. June 21, 2019. p. 21.
  2. ↑ "Kayla Sharples - 2018 - Women's Soccer". Northwestern University Athletics.
  3. ↑ Wernette, Jane (2017-08-28). "NSW Where Are They Now? // Kayla Sharples". NCTV17. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  4. ↑ Machak, Kevin (2022-11-28). "Talking Soccer with Kayla Sharples". NCTV17. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  5. ↑ Northwestern University Women's Soccer. "Kayla Sharples" . Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  6. ↑ Berry, Maggie. "Pro-athlete alumni honored during basketball game". The North Star. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
  7. ↑ Jung, Tristan (2016-11-20). "Duke knocks Northwestern women's soccer out of NCAA Tournament". Inside NU. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
  8. ↑ Northwestern Women's Soccer (10 January 2019). "Sharples, Viggiano, Davison Selected in NWSL Draft" . Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  9. ↑ Salazar, Emmanuel (2019-01-10). "Chicago Drafts Seven in 2019 NWSL College Draft". Chicago Red Stars. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  10. 1 2 Cornwell, Justin (2024-01-16). "Naperville natives Casey Krueger and Kayla Sharples leave the Chicago Red Stars". NCTV17. Retrieved 2024-04-13.
  11. ↑ Tribune, Matt Le Cren | Chicago (2019-07-05). "'It was like a dream come true': Naperville's Kayla Sharples makes pro debut with Chicago Red Stars". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  12. ↑ "Kickin' It with Kayla Sharples". Northwestern Magazine. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
  13. ↑ Balls, Women Kick. "Kayla Sharples Shares Her Journey Through ACL Recovery". Women Kick Balls. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  14. ↑ Jones, Emily (2020-08-14). "Hill, Miller, Doniak, Boyd and Sharples on Loan for Offseason". Chicago Red Stars. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  15. ↑ Tribune, Matt Le Cren | Chicago (2021-01-15). "'A great growing experience': Naperville North and Northwestern graduate Kayla Sharples scores first professional goal in Finland". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  16. ↑ "KuPS:n puolustuksen puuttuva palanen – Kayla Sharples toivoo joukkueensa tekevän historiaa". Kansallinen Liiga. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
  17. ↑ "Reds loan American defender, Sharples". Adelaide United . 1 December 2021.
  18. ↑ "Western Sydney Wanderers vs. Adelaide United - 28 January 2022 - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved 2024-04-13.
  19. ↑ Filosi, Gianluca (2022-03-03). "Reds looking to kick on after finals berth insists Sharples". Adelaide United. Retrieved 2024-04-13.
  20. ↑ Gagliardi, Lee (13 March 2022). "Melbourne Victory edges Adelaide United in A-League Women semi-final". The New Daily. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  21. ↑ "Melbourne Victory 2-1 Adelaide United (Mar 13, 2022) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 2024-04-13.
  22. ↑ "Bay FC signs free agent defender Kayla Sharples". Bay FC. 2023-12-21. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  23. ↑ "Bay FC shocks Angel City with 1-0 win in first-ever NWSL game". The Mercury News. 2024-03-18. Retrieved 2024-04-13.
  24. ↑ "Bay FC acquires goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz, $15,000 Allocation Money from Kansas City Current in exchange for defender Kayla Sharples". Bay FC. 2024-08-28. Retrieved 2024-08-28.
  25. ↑ "Kayla Sharples 2024 Match Logs". FBref.com . Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  26. 1 2 Sperry, Daniel (2025-07-29). "She's helped invigorate the KC Current's defense. Now she has new NWSL contract". The Kansas City Star . Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  27. ↑ Kassouf, Jeff (2024-11-17). "Marta, Pride down K.C. Current to set up NWSL final with Spirit". ESPN . Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  28. ↑ Yang, Steph (2024-11-17). "Marta delivers GOAT goal to lift Orlando Pride to NWSL Championship". The Athletic . Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  29. 1 2 "Kayla Sharples 2025 Match Logs". FBref.com . Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  30. ↑ "NWSL Announces 2025 NWSL Award Finalists, Opens Fan Voting Round". NWSL.com. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
  31. ↑ "Players step out and celebrate 2025 season at NWSL Awards presented by AT&T". NWSL.com. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  32. ↑ Griffin, Tamera (2025-10-15). "In Naomi Girma's absence, Emma Hayes continues to experiment with the USWNT defense". The Athletic . Retrieved 2025-10-17.
  33. ↑ "Kansas City Current Claims 2025 NWSL Shield, Presented By CarMax". National Women's Soccer League. 2025-09-20. Retrieved 2025-09-20.
  34. ↑ "Match Report: Kansas City Current win NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup with 2-0 victory over NJ/NY Gotham FC". Kansas City Current. 2024-10-25. Retrieved 2024-11-29.
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