Lucy Bronze
Encyclopedia
Lucia Roberta "Lucy" Tough Bronze (born 28 October 1991) is an English
female footballer who plays for Everton Ladies
and previously represented North Carolina Tar Heels
at college level. She has also represented England at youth level.
at under-12 academy level and joined the senior team when she turned 16 in 2007. She had previously captained the under-16 team. In 2007-08 Bronze was named Manager's Player of the Year as Sunderland
finished third in the FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
. The next season she helped them win the Northern Division
and gain promotion to the National Division
. Bronze also appeared in the 2009 FA Women's Cup
final, claiming the Player of the Match award in Sunderland
's 2-1 defeat to Arsenal
.
That summer Bronze moved to North Carolina
to study at UNC
. She won a scholarship from coach Anson Dorrance
after impressing him during several soccer camps. She went on to feature prominently in midfield for the Tar Heels
varsity team, eventually becoming the first British
player to win an NCAA
Cup in December 2009. All-American honours followed for Bronze, who scored three goals in 24 games.
She then returned to Sunderland A.F.C. Women
in the Premier League National Division
. In September 2010 it was revealed that Bronze had signed for Everton
, when she was named in their UEFA Women's Champions League squad. She debuted for Everton against MTK in Hungary
, but continued to play for Sunderland while her new club await the FA Women's Super League.
in New Zealand
. Lucy was also part of the England under-19 squad that won the UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship
in Belarus
during July 2009 and part of the squad the following year that finished runners up to France
in the finals held in June 2010 in Macedonia
.
She was called into an England under-20 training camp in January 2010. After featuring in all three games during the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
, Bronze made her debut for the England under-23 team in a 2-1 win over Germany
in September 2010.
and half English
descent and was born in Berwick-upon-Tweed
. She has since lived on Lindisfarne
, in Belford, Northumberland
and Alnwick
. Having studied at The Duchess's High School, she moved to North Carolina
to study at UNC
. She is currently taking time off to prepare a move to Leeds Metropolitan University
. Lucy has two siblings, an elder brother Jorge and younger sister Sophie.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
female footballer who plays for Everton Ladies
Everton L.F.C.
Everton Ladies Football Club are a semi-professional women's association football team from the city of Liverpool, who compete in the FA WSL. They were runners-up to Arsenal in the 2009–10 Premier League National Division season. They have won the title once in 1998 and the FA Women's Cup on...
and previously represented North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer
The North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Atlantic Coast Conference of NCAA Division I soccer...
at college level. She has also represented England at youth level.
Club career
Bronze began playing for Sunderland A.F.C. WomenSunderland A.F.C. Women
Sunderland AFC Women is a women's football club based in Sunderland, North East England. They play their home games at The Hetton Centre in Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear.-History:...
at under-12 academy level and joined the senior team when she turned 16 in 2007. She had previously captained the under-16 team. In 2007-08 Bronze was named Manager's Player of the Year as Sunderland
Sunderland A.F.C. Women
Sunderland AFC Women is a women's football club based in Sunderland, North East England. They play their home games at The Hetton Centre in Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear.-History:...
finished third in the FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
The FA Women's Premier League Northern Division is a league in the third-level in the women's football pyramid in England, along with the Southern division. These two divisions are below the FA Women's Super League and National Division....
. The next season she helped them win the Northern Division
FA Women's Premier League Northern Division
The FA Women's Premier League Northern Division is a league in the third-level in the women's football pyramid in England, along with the Southern division. These two divisions are below the FA Women's Super League and National Division....
and gain promotion to the National Division
FA Women's Premier League National Division
The FA Women's Premier League National Division is the second level of the English women's football league pyramid. From 1991 until the introduction of the summer competition FA Women's Super League the National Division functioned as the top league in England. Below it are simultaneously the...
. Bronze also appeared in the 2009 FA Women's Cup
FA Women's Cup
The Football Association Women’s Challenge Cup Competition, commonly referred to as the FA Women's Cup, is the top cup competition for women's football clubs in England – designed as an exact equivalent to the FA Cup created 99 years earlier...
final, claiming the Player of the Match award in Sunderland
Sunderland A.F.C. Women
Sunderland AFC Women is a women's football club based in Sunderland, North East England. They play their home games at The Hetton Centre in Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear.-History:...
's 2-1 defeat to Arsenal
Arsenal L.F.C.
Arsenal Ladies Football Club are an English women's association football club affiliated with Arsenal F.C.. Founded in 1987, they are the most successful club in English women's football having won 34 major trophies to date; which are 12 FA Women's Premier League titles, 11 FA Women's Cups, ten...
.
That summer Bronze moved to North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
to study at UNC
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
. She won a scholarship from coach Anson Dorrance
Anson Dorrance
Anson Dorrance is the head coach of the women's soccer program at the University of North Carolina. He has one of the most successful coaching records in the history of athletics. Under Dorrance's leadership, the Tar Heels have won 20 of the 28 NCAA Women's Soccer Championships...
after impressing him during several soccer camps. She went on to feature prominently in midfield for the Tar Heels
North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer
The North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Atlantic Coast Conference of NCAA Division I soccer...
varsity team, eventually becoming the first British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
player to win an NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
Cup in December 2009. All-American honours followed for Bronze, who scored three goals in 24 games.
She then returned to Sunderland A.F.C. Women
Sunderland A.F.C. Women
Sunderland AFC Women is a women's football club based in Sunderland, North East England. They play their home games at The Hetton Centre in Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear.-History:...
in the Premier League National Division
FA Women's Premier League National Division
The FA Women's Premier League National Division is the second level of the English women's football league pyramid. From 1991 until the introduction of the summer competition FA Women's Super League the National Division functioned as the top league in England. Below it are simultaneously the...
. In September 2010 it was revealed that Bronze had signed for Everton
Everton L.F.C.
Everton Ladies Football Club are a semi-professional women's association football team from the city of Liverpool, who compete in the FA WSL. They were runners-up to Arsenal in the 2009–10 Premier League National Division season. They have won the title once in 1998 and the FA Women's Cup on...
, when she was named in their UEFA Women's Champions League squad. She debuted for Everton against MTK in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, but continued to play for Sunderland while her new club await the FA Women's Super League.
International career
Bronze was called into the England under-17 squad in March 2007, while she was playing for Blyth Town WFC in the Northern Girls Tyne Tees League. She went on to participate in the England under-17 squad that came fourth in the FIFA U-17 Women's World CupFIFA U-17 Women's World Cup
The FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup is an international association football tournament for female players under the age of 17. It is organized by Fédération Internationale de Football Association...
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Lucy was also part of the England under-19 squad that won the UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship
UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship
The UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship is a competition in women's football for European national teams of players under 19 years of age. It is also a FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup qualifying competition...
in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
during July 2009 and part of the squad the following year that finished runners up to France
France women's national football team
The French women's national football team represents France in international women's football. The team is directed by the French Football Federation and competes as a member of UEFA in various international football tournaments such as the FIFA Women's World Cup, UEFA Women's Euro, the Summer...
in the finals held in June 2010 in Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
.
She was called into an England under-20 training camp in January 2010. After featuring in all three games during the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
The 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was held in Germany from July 13 to August 1. Sixteen teams, comprising representatives from all six confederations, were taking part in the final competition, in which Germany had a guaranteed place as the host nation....
, Bronze made her debut for the England under-23 team in a 2-1 win over Germany
Germany women's national football team
The German women's national football team represents Germany in international women's football and is directed by the German Football Association . The team – informally called West Germany in English – played its first international match in 1982...
in September 2010.
Personal life
Bronze is of half PortuguesePortugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and half English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
descent and was born in Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed or simply Berwick is a town in the county of Northumberland and is the northernmost town in England, on the east coast at the mouth of the River Tweed. It is situated 2.5 miles south of the Scottish border....
. She has since lived on Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne is a tidal island off the north-east coast of England. It is also known as Holy Island and constitutes a civil parish in Northumberland...
, in Belford, Northumberland
Belford, Northumberland
Belford is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, England about halfway between Alnwick and Berwick-upon-Tweed, a few miles inland from the east coast and just off the Great North Road, the A1...
and Alnwick
Alnwick
Alnwick is a small market town in north Northumberland, England. The town's population was just over 8000 at the time of the 2001 census and Alnwick's district population was 31,029....
. Having studied at The Duchess's High School, she moved to North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
to study at UNC
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
. She is currently taking time off to prepare a move to Leeds Metropolitan University
Leeds Metropolitan University
Leeds Metropolitan University is a British University with three campuses. Two are situated in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England while the third is situated in Bhopal, India...
. Lucy has two siblings, an elder brother Jorge and younger sister Sophie.
External links
- Lucy Bronze at the FA website
- Lucy Bronze at the FIFA website
- Lucy Bronze at the UNC website
- Lucy Bronze at the Sunderland WFC website