Sophie Howard (footballer)

Last updated

Sophie Howard
Sophie Howard 20180324 (cropped).jpg
Howard playing for TSG 1899 Hoffenheim in 2016
Personal information
Full name Sophie Louise Howard [1]
Date of birth (1993-09-17) 17 September 1993 (age 31)
Place of birth Hanau, Germany
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
Como
Youth career
Sportfreunde Oberau
SV Phönix Düdelsheim
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2012–2014 UCF Knights 63 (3)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2009–2012 1899 Hoffenheim 42 (1)
2013 Colorado Rapids Women
2014–2015 Colorado Pride
2015–2018 1899 Hoffenheim 63 (1)
2018–2020 Reading 17 (0)
2020–2025 Leicester City 100 (2)
2025– Como 0 (0)
International career
2012 Germany U20 2 (0)
2017– Scotland 58 (4)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 9 February 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of 10 March 2025

Sophie Louise Howard (born 17 September 1993) is a footballer who plays as a defender for Serie A club Como. Born in Germany, she has been a member of the Scotland national team since 2017.

Contents

College career

Howard joined UCF Knights in September 2012 and scored her first goal in her fifth appearance. [2] At the end of her first season, Howard was named to the 2012 All-Conference Freshman Team, after three goals and two assists. [3] She was also named to the 2013 American Athletic Conference All-Tournament Team and the 2014 AAC Second Team, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in sports science in 2015 with cum laude honors. [4]

Club career

Howard joined German club 1899 Hoffenheim in 2009. During her time at the club she played 17 regional league games, 42 second division games, and 8 cup games until 2012. [5]

In July 2015, Howard was named in the W-League Western All-Conference team, after scoring one goal in nine games for Colorado Pride. [6]

After finishing her education at University of Central Florida, Howard returned to Germany with 1899 Hoffenheim, who announced her signing for the 2015–16 Frauen-Bundesliga season in February 2015. [5]

Howard (15) with Leicester City in April 2021 Lewes FC Women 1 Leicester City Women 0 25 04 2021-323 (51139561115).jpg
Howard (15) with Leicester City in April 2021

In July 2018, Howard joined English club Reading. [7] [8] In June 2020, Reading announced that Howard had left the club at the conclusion of her contract. [9] Two months later, in August, Howard signed for Leicester City ahead of the 2020–21 FA Women's Championship season. [10] She helped the club top the Championship comfortably, sitting eight points ahead of second-placed Durham, and get promoted to the 2021–22 FA WSL. During the season, Howard was a regular starter and continued to be a key player for Leicester City. [11] In 2024, Howard became one of two players to make 100 appearances for the club. [12] [13]

International career

Howard played twice for the Germany U20 national team in 2012. She was named in Germany's squad for the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Japan, but did not get to play in any matches. In 2016 she was called into a training camp for England's new "Next Gen" team. She said: "Although I was born and brought up in Germany it's always been my ambition to play for England, and hopefully I’ve now taken my first step." [14]

Howard (centre, with Jenna Clark and Lauren Davidson) lining up for Scotland against Howard's birth nation Germany, 2025 2025-04-08 Fussball, UEFA Women's Nations League, Deutschland - Schottland STP 2112 (cropped).jpg
Howard (centre, with Jenna Clark and Lauren Davidson) lining up for Scotland against Howard's birth nation Germany, 2025

In March 2017 she was called up into the Scotland national team. The Scots had three injured defenders and were allowed to pick Howard because her grandfather is Scottish. [15] She made her senior international debut on 11 April 2017, as a 64th-minute substitute in a 5–0 friendly defeat by Belgium in Leuven. [16] In May 2019, Howard scored her first goal for the national team, heading in the winning goal in a 3–2 victory over Jamaica. [17]

Personal life

Howard was born in the German town Hanau to a Scottish mother and English father. [18]

Career statistics

International appearances

Scotland statistics accurate as of match played 29 September 2023. [19]
Year Scotland
AppsGoals
201740
201880
201941
202030
202150
202290
202382
Total413

International goals

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Howard goal. [19]
List of international goals scored by Sophie Howard
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
128 May 2019 Hampden Park, Glasgow Flag of Jamaica.svg  Jamaica 3–23–2 Friendly
221 February 2023 Pinatar Arena, San Pedro del Pinatar Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 1–01–1 2023 Pinatar Cup
221 February 2023Hampden Park, GlasgowFlag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 1–11–1 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League

References

  1. "FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Japan 2012 List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 14 September 2012. p. 5. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  2. Marina, Jenna (30 September 2012). "No. 10 UCF Women's Soccer Tops Rice, 1-0". UCF Knights. Playing in just her fifth match as a Knight, freshman Sophie Howard netted the first goal of her career to lift the Knights to victory. Howard missed most of the non-conference season and arrived in Orlando in two weeks ago from the U-20 World Cup in Japan where she was representing her home country of Germany.
  3. Marina, Jenna (31 October 2012). "Women's Soccer: Diggs Named Defensive Player of the Year". University of Central Florida. newcomer Sophie Howard earned a spot on the freshman team
  4. Marina Lee, Jenna (3 June 2019). "Meet 4 UCF Knights Who Will Compete at 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup". University of Central Florida News | UCF Today. University of Central Florida.
  5. 1 2 "Sophie Howard kehrt zurück" [Sophie Howard returns] (in German). 1899 Hoffenheim. 26 February 2015.
  6. Heil, Jarrod (27 July 2015). "UCF women's soccer players recognized for honors". The Burlington Free Press . Howard, who played the 2014 and 2015 seasons on defense for the Knights, was named to the Western All-Conference Team.
  7. Frith, Wilf (7 July 2018). "Reading Women sign defender Sophie Howard". She Kicks .
  8. "Reading FC Women sign winger Gemma Davidson and defender Sophie Howard". BBC Sport. 8 July 2018.
  9. "🙏 Reading FC Women issue thanks as out of contract players depart". Reading F.C. 8 June 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  10. Frith, Wilf (23 August 2020). "Leicester City Women go pro after officially joining Foxes family". She Kicks . Many new signings were also announced; former Reading trio Remi Allen, Sophie Howard and Millie Farrow
  11. Pinnock, Hannah (18 June 2023). "Leicester City Women's 2020/21 Championship winning team and where they are now". Leicester Mercury . Like Sam Tierney, central defender Sophie Howard has been a key player for City for a number of years. The Scotland international was a regular starter in her debut season in 2020/21 and continues to marshal the Foxes' backline.
  12. "Sophie Howard". Leicester City . Retrieved 10 March 2025. Howard reached 100 appearances for LCFC Women on the final day of the 2023/24 season at King Power Stadium, as the Foxes confirmed a tenth-placed finish despite losing to Liverpool.
  13. "City in Australia: Leicester City scout report". Yahoo!. 21 August 2024. Meanwhile, two stalwarts to watch out for are Sophie Howard and Sam Tierney. They are the only two players to appear 100 times for Leicester City Women.
  14. Leighton, Tony (23 August 2016). "Howard's way is a boost for Next Gen coach Spacey". The League Paper. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  15. Lindsay, Clive (29 March 2017). "Scotland women: Signeul hopes to add Barsley and Howard to squad to face Belgium". BBC Sport. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  16. "Under-strength Scotland fall to Belgium". Scottish Football Association. 12 April 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017. Anna Signeul made a further change on the 64th minute, replacing one debutant with another, as the impressive Vaila Barsley made way for Sophie Howard.
  17. Garavelli, Dani (29 May 2019). "Why last night was a landmark for Scottish women's football". The Scotsman .
  18. Gordon, Moira (6 June 2019). "No regrets over Sophie's choice to pick Scotland over Germany and England". The Scotsman .
  19. 1 2 Sophie Howard at the Scottish Football Association