Louie Watson

Louie Watson
Personal information
Full name Louie Shaun Watson
Date of birth (2001-06-07) 7 June 2001 (age 25)
Place of birth Croydon, England
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position Attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Crawley Town
Number 8
Youth career
2012–2020 West Ham United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020–2022 Derby County 13 (0)
2022–2024 Luton Town 5 (0)
2023–2024 → Charlton Athletic (loan) 21 (0)
2025– Crawley Town 32 (1)
International career‡
2016 England U15 2 (0)
2019 Republic of Ireland U18 2 (0)
2021 Republic of Ireland U21 5 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:10, 6 May 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 17:10, 30 April 2024 (UTC)

Louie Shaun Watson (born 7 June 2001) is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for EFL League Two club Crawley Town.

Club career

Early career

Born in Croydon, Watson began playing youth football with Junior Elite FC in Beckenham aged 9 before joining West Ham United's academy at under-11 level. He signed his first professional contract with West Ham in May 2019.

Derby County

Watson joined Derby County in summer 2020 on a two-year contract. He was named in a Derby first team squad for the first-time for a match against Preston North End on 26 December 2020, and made his debut for Derby County in the following match as a substitute in a 4–0 win against Birmingham City on 29 December. He made his full debut for the club in a 2–2 draw with Brentford in March 2021, and made nine appearances in total during the 2020–21 season for Derby.

Luton Town

On 1 July 2022, Watson joined Championship club Luton Town for an undisclosed fee.

Charlton Athletic (loan)

On 1 September 2023, Watson signed for League One club Charlton Athletic on a season-long loan.

On 30 August 2024, Watson departed Luton Town having had his contract terminated by mutual consent.

Crawley Town

On 21 February 2025, Watson joined Crawley Town on a deal until the end of the 2025–26 season. He extended his contract for another two years in June 2026.

International career

Watson was capped twice for England U15 in two friendlies against United States U15, before playing for the Republic of Ireland at U18 level. On 26 March 2021, Watson made his Republic of Ireland U21 debut playing 73 minutes in a 2–1 away win over Wales U21s. He made a total of 5 appearances for the 21s.

Watson is also eligible to represent Bangladesh through his paternal grandfather's Bangladeshi heritage.

Personal life

He is the son of former footballer Steve Watson, who played non-League football for clubs including Sutton United and Aldershot Town.

Career statistics

As of match played on 2 May 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
West Ham United U23 2019–20 —1010
Derby County 2020–21 Championship 900000—90
2021–22 Championship 400020—60
Total 1300020—150
Luton Town 2022–23 Championship 5030100090
2023–24 Premier League 000000—00
Total 5030100090
Charlton Athletic (loan) 2023–24 League One 210200041271
Crawley Town 2024–25 League One 70———70
2025–26 League Two 251101000271
Total 321101000341
Career total 711604051862
  1. 1 2 Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

References

  1. 1 2 Louie Watson at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  2. ↑ "Louie Watson - Fotmob". FotMob. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  3. ↑ "England - L. Watson - Profile with news, career statistics and history". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
  4. 1 2 Fennessy, Paul (16 March 2021). "Ireland underage international makes full debut in Championship". The 42. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Academy Spotlight: Louie Watson". West Ham United F.C. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  6. ↑ "Midfielder Watson signs first professional contract". West Ham United F.C. 27 May 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  7. 1 2 "Lowdown on midfielder who makes Derby County's squad for the first time". Derbyshire Live. 26 December 2020. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  8. ↑ "Youngster hailed as 'fantastic' by Rooney could step up for Derby". Derbyshire Live. 3 June 2021. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  9. ↑ "Birmingham City 0-4 Derby County". BBC Sport. 29 December 2020. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
  10. ↑ "Derby fans hail the 'nice touch' that capped excellent night v Birmingham". Derbyshire Live. 30 December 2020. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  11. 1 2 "Games played by Louie Watson in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  12. ↑ "Louie Watson joins Luton Town!". www.lutontown.co.uk. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  13. ↑ "DONE DEAL : ADDICKS COMPLETE LOUIE WATSON LOAN". Charlton Athletic Official Site. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  14. ↑ "Louie Watson departs by mutual consent". www.lutontown.co.uk. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  15. ↑ "LOUIE WATSON SIGNS FOR CRAWLEY". Crawley Town Official Site. 21 February 2025. Retrieved 21 February 2025.
  16. ↑ "Crawley sign free agent Watson". BBC Sport. 21 February 2025. Retrieved 21 February 2025.
  17. ↑ "Louie Watson: New contract for Crawley Town midfielder". BBC Sport. 23 June 2026. Retrieved 16 August 2026.
  18. ↑ "Academy Spotlight: Louie Watson". West Ham United. 8 April 2020. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
  19. ↑ "Another set of Sullivan brothers are making football waves in Bangladesh". The Guardian. 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  20. ↑ "Games played by Louie Watson in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  21. ↑ "Games played by Louie Watson in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  22. ↑ "Games played by Louie Watson in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  23. 1 2 "Games played by Louie Watson in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  24. ↑ "Games played by Louie Watson in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  25. ↑ "Games played by Louie Watson in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 October 2025.