Amber Jean Brooks (born January 23, 1991) is an American professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player who plays as a defender for Washington Spirit in the

National Women's Soccer League The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a professional women's soccer league at the top of the United States league system. It is owned by the teams and, until 2020, was under a management contract with the United States Soccer Federatio ...

(NWSL). She has previously played for Adelaide United, Houston Dash, OL Reign,

Portland Thorns The Portland Thorns FC is an American professional women's soccer team based in Portland, Oregon. Established in 2012, the team began play in 2013 in the then-eight-team National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), which receives support from the Unit ...

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...

, and Vancouver Whitecaps. Brooks has represented the United States as member of numerous youth national teams and has one cap with the senior national team.

Early life

Brooks was born in Evansville, Indiana and attended

Pennington School The Pennington School is a private (independent), coeducational college preparatory school for day and boarding students in sixth through twelfth grades, located in Pennington, New Jersey, a small community in the northeastern United States mid ...

in New Jersey. She scored 62 goals and had 30 assists during her first three years for a total of 154 points. She did not play as a senior due to a knee injury and National Team commitments. Brooks was named first-team All-County and a Parade Magazine All-America as a junior after she helped the team finish the 2008 season undefeated at 18–0, winning its sixth straight Prep-A state championship and its third MCT Championship in five years. Pennington was ranked by the NSCAA and ESPN Rise as the number one team in the nation the same year. Brooks was awarded the 2008 NSCAA Girls' Scholar Athlete of the Year Award and was ranked by ESPN Rise as the number one recruit in the nation in 2009.

University of North Carolina

Brooks was captain of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team her junior and senior year (2011–2012). She accrued several accolades during her four years with the Tar Heels, becoming a two-time NCAA National Champion and winning the College Cup in 2009 and in 2012. She scored 34 goals and added 19 assists during her college career.

Club career

Vancouver Whitecaps, 2011

During the summer of 2011, Brooks played for the Vancouver Whitecaps in the W-League. She made five appearances, playing 391 minutes, and provided one assist.

Bayern Munich, 2013–2015

On January 11, 2013, Brooks signed with German club,

in the Bundesliga until June 30, 2014. In her first Bundesliga game against SGS Essen, she scored two goals, including the game-winning goal in the 90th minute.

Portland Thorns, 2013–2014

Brooks was drafted by

on January 18, 2013, during the 2013 National Women's Soccer League College Draft. Her debut came while visiting the Houston Dash in which she played the entirety of the 1–0 victory. She would go on to start another 19 matches for the club in addition to a solitary substitution appearance. Brooks collected her first and only goal for the Thorns during the season while adding two assists, though her primary contributions were on the defensive end of the field where her ferocity led to a team-leading four yellow cards on the season. After the conclusion of the Thorns 2014 season, the team announced that she would be on loan to her previous side

and become the second Portland member to be headed to Germany after the 2014 season, following teammate Veronica Boquete to the Bundesliga. While Portland initially indicated that Brooks would be re-signed for the

2015 National Women's Soccer League season The 2015 National Women's Soccer League season was the third season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division of women's soccer in the United States. Including the NWSL's two professional predecessors, Women's Professional Soccer (2 ...

, she was instead traded to the Western New York Flash on November 6, 2014, in exchange for midfielder McCall Zerboni and defender

Kathryn Williamson Kathryn Emily Williamson (born August 1, 1989) is a former American soccer defender who played for the Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Career College career Williamson was born in McKinney, Texas. She accepte ...

Seattle Reign, 2015

In March 2015, Brooks was traded to Seattle Reign along with the rights to

Abby Wambach Mary Abigail Wambach (born June 2, 1980) is an American retired soccer player, coach, and member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. A six-time winner of the U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year award, Wambach was a regular on the U.S. women's natio ...

in exchange for Sydney Leroux and

Amanda Frisbie Amanda Paige Frisbie (born May 29, 1992) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender. She has previously played for Boston Breakers, Seattle Reign, Western New York Flash, FC Kansas City, Sky Blue FC of the NWSL, Stjarna ...

. She made twelve appearances and scored one goal for Seattle.
Soccerway. October 25, 2015. Retrieved October 25, 2015.

Houston Dash, 2015–2019

On October 26, 2015, Brooks was traded to the Houston Dash in exchange for Meghan Klingenberg and a conditional selection in the 2017

NWSL College Draft The NWSL Draft is an annual event which takes place in January of each year where the teams of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) select players who are in their senior season in college or have exhausted their collegiate eligibility. Prior t ...

from Seattle Reign. Brooks had her contract option exercised for the 2017 season. She was named the 2017 Dash MVP and played all 2,160 minutes of the regular season, scored one goal and tallied two assists, captaining the side eight times. She was then re-signed for the 2018 season. Brooks was named 2018 Dash Defender of the Year. The club has exercised her contract option for the 2019 season. On April 14, 2019, Brooks played in her 100th career NWSL game, becoming the 22nd player to reach that mark.

Loan to Adelaide United

Brooks signed with Adelaide United for the

2018–19 W-League The 2018–19 W-League season was the eleventh season of the W-League, the Australian national women's association football competition. Clubs Stadia and locations Personnel and kits Managerial changes Transfers Foreign players Th ...

season, alongside Houston Dash teammate

Veronica Latsko Veronica Anne Latsko (born December 12, 1995) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for OL Reign of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). College career Latsko made 93 appearances for the Cavaliers during her fo ...

OL Reign, 2020–2021

Brooks was out of contract following the

2019 NWSL season The 2019 National Women's Soccer League season was the seventh season of the National Women's Soccer League, the top division of women's soccer in the United States. Including the NWSL's two professional predecessors, Women's Professional Soccer ...

and Houston Dash traded her rights to OL Reign. She subsequently signed a three-year contract with the Tacoma-based club on March 4, 2020.

Washington Spirit, 202
Present

Brooks signs one-year deal with the Washington Spirit.

International career

Brooks has competed on behalf of the United States in various national youth teams since 2007, including at the

2008 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup The 2008 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup is the first women's football U-17 World Cup in FIFA history. It was held in New Zealand from 28 October to 16 November 2008. It is the officially recognized world championship for women's under-17 national ...

. As a member of the U-20 national team, she represented the United States at the

2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup The 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was the 5th edition of the tournament. It was held in Germany, who will also host the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup a year later from 13 July to 1 August 2010. Sixteen teams, comprising representatives from all ...

in Germany and won the

2010 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship The 2010 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship was the fifth edition of the CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship. The tournament was hosted by Guatemala, and all matches were played at the Estadio Cementos Progreso. The United States were the defending ...

. She was a captain of the U-23 national team. On November 10, 2013, Brooks made her debut for the U.S. WNT team against Brazil in a

friendly Friendly may refer to: Places * Friendly, West Yorkshire, a settlement in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England * Friendly, Maryland, an unincorporated community in the United States * Friendly, Eugene, Oregon, a neighborhood in the United States * ...

; started in the match and played 81 minutes.

Career statistics

Honors

Bayern Munich * Frauen-Bundesliga: 2014–15 Seattle Reign * NWSL Shield:

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

United States * CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

References

External links

* *
US Soccer player profile

Portland Thorns FC player profile

FC Bayern Munich player profile

University of North Carolina player profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Amber Living people 1991 births Vancouver Whitecaps FC (women) players North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer players Parade High School All-Americans (girls' soccer) American women's soccer players Soccer players from New Jersey FC Bayern Munich (women) players Portland Thorns FC players OL Reign players United States women's international soccer players Women's association football defenders Women's association football midfielders Houston Dash players American expatriate sportspeople in Germany National Women's Soccer League players Expatriate women's footballers in Germany Portland Thorns FC draft picks United States women's under-20 international soccer players New Jersey Wildcats players People from New Hope, Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Bucks County, Pennsylvania The Pennington School alumni Frauen-Bundesliga players American expatriate women's soccer players Washington Spirit players