Zoe Matthews

Zoe Matthews
Matthews with the Orlando Pride in 2026
Personal information
Full name Zoe Noel Matthews
Date of birth (2007-05-25) May 25, 2007 (age 19)
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Positions
Team information
Current team
 Orlando Pride
Number 33
Youth career
Solar SC
2021–2023 Southlake Carroll Dragons
2022–2024 Legends FC
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2024–2026 Houston Dash 2 (0)
2025 → Dux Logroño (loan) 8 (0)
2026 → Benfica (loan) 0 (0)
2026– Orlando Pride 4 (0)
International career
2023 United States U-16 3 (1)
2025– United States U-20 2 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22:54, August 31, 2026 (UTC)

Zoe Noel Matthews (born May 25, 2007) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder or defender for the Orlando Pride of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She started her professional career with the Houston Dash at age 17 in 2024.

Early life

Matthews grew up in Southlake, Texas, the daughter of Jason and Angie Matthews. She played high school soccer at Carroll Senior High School, leading the team to the UIL Class 6A state championship as a freshman in 2022. She scored a goal and had an assist in the final as teammate Kennedy Fuller scored a hat trick in the 4–0 win. She scored 22 goals and tallied 26 assists as a sophomore, being named All-American by United Soccer Coaches in 2023. She played ECNL club soccer for Solar SC and Legends SC, earning all-conference honors twice. She helped lead both teams to ECNL national finals, winning the under-14 title with Solar SC in 2021 and finishing runner-up for the under-17 title with Legends SC in 2024. She played as an attacking midfielder growing up and was mentored by North Carolina Courage midfielder Brianna Pinto through the group Voice in Sport. Before going pro, she was committed to play college soccer for the LSU Tigers.

Club career

Houston Dash

National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) club Houston Dash announced on October 11, 2024, that they had signed Matthews to her first professional contract on a three-year deal running through 2026. The following week, she made her professional debut against the Seattle Reign, replacing Sarah Puntigam as a 85th-minute substitute in a 2–1 loss. She became the youngest player in Dash history and the youngest African American to play in the NWSL.

On August 20, 2025, having barely featured for Houston, Matthews was sent to newly promoted Liga F club Dux Logroño on a season-long loan. She joined the Spanish club alongside Dash teammate Rebeca. On September 6, she made her club debut – and first professional start – in a 1–0 loss to Real Sociedad. She made nine appearances before the loan ended after half a season.

On February 2, 2026, Matthews joined Benfica on loan for the rest of the Campeonato Nacional Feminino season. Benfica initially announced that they had activated a purchase option in the loan, signing Matthews to a three-year contract through 2029, but it was later revealed that the loan had not been made permanent due to medical reasons. She made no appearances for the Portuguese champions, and agreed to leave the Dash when the loan expired.

Orlando Pride

On July 16, 2026, it was announced that Matthews had signed with the NWSL's Orlando Pride until the end of the season.

International career

Matthews is eligible to represent the United States and Jamaica internationally. In 2022, she trained with the United States under-15 and under-16 teams. The same year, she was called up to the Jamaica national team at age 15 by head coach Lorne Donaldson. She played a friendly tournament with the United States under-16s in 2023, scoring in a pre-tournament friendly against hosts France and starting in the final with high school teammate Kennedy Fuller. She trained with the United States under-18 and under-19 teams in 2024 and 2025. She was called into a development camp, training concurrently with the senior national team, in January 2026.

Honors

Benfica

References

  1. ↑ "Zoe Matthews". National Women's Soccer League. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Houston Dash Sign Midfielder Zoe Matthews as the Youngest Player in Team History". Houston Dash. October 11, 2024. Retrieved October 11, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "Meet Zoe Matthews, the youngest Black American in NWSL". Andscape. November 13, 2024. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Kretzschmar, Rick (April 16, 2022). "Southlake Carroll rolls past Rockwall to win 6A girls soccer state championship". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved April 18, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Riddle, Greg (April 5, 2023). "Defending state champ Southlake Carroll to be missing its two offensive stars at regionals". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved October 11, 2024.
  6. ↑ "ECNL Girls Texas All-Conference Teams". Elite Clubs National League. August 8, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2025 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
    "ECNL Girls Southwest All-Conference Teams". Elite Clubs National League. August 18, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2025 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  7. ↑ Golden, Andrew (December 20, 2021). "Black girls are more apt to drop out of sports. This mentorship program aims to change that". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 11, 2024.
  8. ↑ Olorunfemi, Victor (December 27, 2023). "23 Female Players That Dominated 2023". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved October 11, 2024.
  9. ↑ "Houston Dash Split Two-Game Road Trip after Loss in Seattle". Houston Dash. October 19, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Houston Dash Loan Defender Zoe Matthews to Dux Logroño in Spain". Houston Dash. August 20, 2025. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  11. ↑ "NWSL Transfer Tracker: 2025 summer break". The Equalizer. June 23, 2025. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
  12. 1 2 3 Zoe Matthews at Flashscore Edit this at Wikidata
  13. ↑ "Houston Dash Loan Defender Zoe Matthews to SL Benfica Lisbon". Houston Dash. February 2, 2026. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Centrocampista Zoe Matthews é reforço das Inspiradoras" (in Portuguese). S.L. Benfica. February 2, 2026. Archived from the original on February 2, 2026. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Cinco jovens futebolistas a terminar contrato" (in Portuguese). S.L. Benfica. June 3, 2026. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Houston Dash Announce Roster Update and Free Agent List". Houston Dash. July 1, 2026. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Orlando Pride Signs Midfielder Zoe Matthews through End of 2026 Season". Orlando Pride. July 16, 2026. Retrieved July 16, 2026.
  18. ↑ "U15 GNT Camp Roster – California". United States Soccer Federation. January 10, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
    "Under-16 WNT Heads to Portland". United States Soccer Federation. October 18, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  19. ↑ "Reggae Girlz head coach Donaldson eager to see what new recruits, returning players bring to squad". Sportsmax. October 29, 2022. Archived from the original on September 11, 2024. Retrieved October 11, 2024.
  20. ↑ "U.S. Under-16 Women's Youth National Team Wins Mondial Montaigu Tournament With 1-0 Victory Over Host France". United States Soccer Federation. April 9, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  21. ↑ "U19 WNT Roster for Florida Training Camp". United States Soccer Federation. October 18, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2025 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
    "U19, U18 WNT Rosters for Georgia Camp". United States Soccer Federation. March 28, 2025. Retrieved August 20, 2025 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  22. ↑ "24 Players Named To U.S. National Team Development Camp Which Will Run Concurrently With USWNT Training Camp in Los Angeles". United States Soccer Federation. January 15, 2026. Retrieved January 23, 2026.
  23. ↑ Casteleiro, Pedro (April 25, 2026). "Benfica hexacampeão: «Somos as justas vencedoras»". A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved May 14, 2026.