Lydia Grace Yilkari Williams (born 13 May 1988) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Women's Super League club Brighton & Hove Albion and the

Australia national team Sport is an important part of Australia that dates back to the early colonial period. Australian rules football, rugby league, rugby union, association football, cricket and tennis are among the earliest organised sports in Australia. Sport ha ...

. Williams previously played for Melbourne City and

Canberra United Canberra United Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in the southern Canberra suburb of Wanniassa, Australian Capital Territory. Founded in 2008 by Capital Football, the club was an inaugural member of the W-League and t ...

in Australia's W-League;

Reign FC OL Reign is an American professional women's soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded by Bill and Teresa Predmore in 2012 as Seattle Reign FC, it was one of eight inaugural members of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). In 2020, ...

Houston Dash The Houston Dash is a professional Women's association football, women's soccer team based in Houston, Texas. It joined the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in the 2014 National Women's Soccer League season, 2014 season, and is affiliated w ...

and the

Western New York Flash The Western New York Flash (WNY Flash) was an American soccer club based in Elma, New York that competed in the United Women's Soccer league. They have won league championships in four different leagues: the USL W-League in 2010, Women's Profes ...

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 Federati ...

(NWSL) in the United States; Piteå IF in Sweden's

Damallsvenskan The Damallsvenskan, Swedish for ''ladies all-Swedish'' and also known as OBOS Damallsvenskan for sponsorship reasons, is the highest division of women's football in Sweden. It is also referred to as the women's Allsvenskan. The term Allsvenskan ...

; and

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

in England's

FA Women's Super League The Women's Super League (WSL), currently known as the Barclays Women's Super League (BWSL) for sponsorship reasons, is the highest league of women's football in England. Established in 2010, it is run by the Football Association and features t ...

(WSL). Williams was twice-named PFA Women's Footballer of the Year for 2011–12 and 2015–16 and to the PFA W-League Team of the Season for 2016–17. She was awarded W-League Goalkeeper of the Year for the 2010–11, 2011–12, and 2016–17 seasons. Inducted to the Aboriginal and Islander Sports Hall of Fame, she earned for her first cap for the Australian national team, commonly known as the Matildas, at age 16. She is the author of the children's book, ''Saved!!!'', published in 2019.

Early life

Lydia Williams was born in Katanning,

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...

, Williams was raised by her Aboriginal father and American mother in the frontier mining town of

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is sometimes referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder, as the surrounding urban area inclu ...

. She spent most of her primary school years in Kalgoorlie where she attended St Joseph's School. Williams' family left Kalgoorlie for Canberra when she was eleven years old. In November 2019, Williams authored a children's book called, ''Saved!!!'', which drew on her life experiences, from growing up in the desert to achieving success as an Aboriginal female football player.

Club career

After playing junior football for Tuggeranong and Woden in the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

, Williams joined the Australian Institute of Sport Football Program. Williams joined Australian W-League team

in 2008 and made 11 appearances for the club as their starting goalkeeper during the 2009 W-League season. Canberra finished in fourth place during the regular season with a record, earning a berth to the Playoffs. Canberra was defeated 3–0 by eventual Grand Final winners, Sydney FC. During the

2010–11 W-League The 2010–11 W-League season was the third season of the W-League, the Australian national women's football (soccer) competition. The season consisted of twelve rounds, with each team playing a total of ten games, followed by a finals series ...

, Williams was the starting goalkeeper in all eleven matches. Canberra finished in third place with a record. After advancing to the Playoffs, they faced Brisbane Roar in the semi-finals and tied 2–2 leading to a penalty kick shootout in which Canberra lost 2–4.

Western New York Flash, Canberra United and Houston Dash: 2014–17

In 2014, Williams signed with the

signed Williams to be their starting goalkeeper following a season-ending injury to

Adrianna Franch Adrianna Nichole Franch (born November 12, 1990) is an American soccer goalkeeper who currently plays for Kansas City in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She is a member of the United States women's national soccer team. Early life ...

. Williams started 14 games in goal for the Flash. She recorded two shutouts in 2014 prior to suffering a season-ending ACL injury while competing at the 2014

AFC Women's Asian Cup The AFC Women's Asian Cup (formerly known as the AFC Women's Championship) is a quadrennial competition in women's football for national teams which belong to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It is the oldest women's international football ...

with the Australian national team. In September 2014, Williams was waived by the Flash and was selected by

Washington Spirit The Washington Spirit is an American professional soccer club based in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area that participates in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). It is a continuation of the D.C. United Women of the W-League and con ...

for the 2015 season, though she did not play for the team. After returning to Australia, Williams played for Canberra United for the

2015–16 W-League The 2015–16 W-League season was the eighth season of the W-League, the Australian national women's association football competition. On 13 May 2015, it was confirmed that Melbourne City would join the league for the 2015–16 season. Leag ...

season. She was the starting goalkeeper in the 10 games in which she played and helped Canberra finish second in the regular season with a record, earning a berth to the Playoffs. Canberra was defeated 1–0 by Sydney FC's controversial goal in the semi-finals. In January 2016, Williams signed with the

. She was the starting goalkeeper in all 15 games that she played. Two of her saves were voted Save of the Week by fans in Week 5 and 19. The Dash finished in eighth place during the regular season with a record.

Melbourne City (loan): 2016–17

Following the season, Williams signed on loan with Melbourne City for the

2016–17 W-League The 2016–17 W-League season was the ninth season of the W-League, the Australian national women's association football competition. Clubs Stadia and locations Personnel and kits Transfers Foreign players The following do not fill ...

. Williams was the starting goalkeeper in 15 games helping Melbourne City finish in fourth place during the regular season with a record, securing a berth to the Finals. Williams was described as "impenetrable" after holding Canberra United to a 1–0 shutout in extratime during the semi-final. She continued her effective, defensive armor in the 2–0 win over Perth Glory in the

Grand Final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...

. Williams was named the league's Goalkeeper of the Year following the season.

Reign FC and Melbourne City: 2017–20

Returning to Houston for the 2017 season, Williams made 8 starts in goal before traded to

Seattle Reign FC OL Reign is an American professional women's soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded by Bill and Teresa Predmore in 2012 as Seattle Reign FC, it was one of eight inaugural members of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). In 2020, ...

on August 31 in exchange for a 2018 2nd-round draft pick. She made three starts in goal for the Reign during the remainder of the season. The Reign finished in fifth place during the regular season. In October 2017, Williams commenced pre-season training with Melbourne City, re-signing with them for the

2017–18 W-League The 2017–18 W-League season was the tenth 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 The ...

season. She made 12 starts in goal helping lead Melbourne City to a fourth-place season during the regular season and berth to the Finals. After defeating the regular season premiers, Brisbane Roar, in a 2–0 shutout in the semi-final, Melbourne City faced Sydney FC in the Grand Final and won 2–0, clinching the team's third consecutive title. Williams was the starting goalkeeper for Reign FC in all 17 games that she played during the

2018 NWSL season The 2018 National Women's Soccer League season was the sixth 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 (200 ...

. The Reign finished in third place during the regular season with a record. The third-place finished earned the team a berth to the Playoffs, though they were defeated 2–1 by local rivals Portland Thorns FC in the semi-finals. Williams returned to Melbourne City for the

2019–20 W-League The 2019–20 W-League season was the twelfth season of the W-League, the Australian national women's association football competition. Nine teams competed in the league, with most of the players from Australia but 33 of them from 11 other co ...

season. She was the starting goalkeeper in 14 matches, recording nine shutouts and an .871 (87.1%) save percentage. Melbourne City finished in first place during the regular season, claiming the premiership with an undefeated record. During the playoffs, Williams helped elevate City to a 5–1 win in the team's semi-final match against Western Sydney Wanderers. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Grand Final was not open to fans, though broadcast internationally. Williams helped hold Sydney FC to a 1–0 shutout to clinch the championship.

Arsenal: 2020–2022

Williams signed a one-year contract with

in England's WSL in July 2020. She noted the "recent investment surge in European women's soccer" as a contributing factor to her signing. In late August, it was announced that she would be temporarily be sidelined by ankle surgery due to a pre-season injury. On 18 November 2020 Williams made her debut as she started in the

FA Women's League Cup The FA Women's League Cup is a league cup competition in English women's association football. The competition was originally open to the eight teams in the FA WSL, but since the WSL's restructuring to two divisions, it has featured 23 teams. Pr ...

against

North London derby The North London derby is the meeting of the association football clubs Arsenal F.C. and Tottenham Hotspur F.C., both of which are based in North London, England. Fans of both clubs consider the other to be their main rivals, and the derby is c ...

rivals

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

. The game finished 2–2 with Arsenal winning 5–4 on penalties. She made her

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

debut on 6 December 2020 against

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

Paris Saint-Germain: 2022–2023

On 21 July 2022,

Division 1 Féminine The Division 1 Féminine, shortened as D1 Féminine or D1F, and currently known as D1 Arkema for sponsorship reasons, is the highest division of women's football in France. Run by the French Football Federation, the league is contested by twelv ...

club

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As F ...

announced the signing of Williams on a one-year deal until June 2023. In January 2023, she left the club after playing two official matches for the team.

Brighton & Hove Albion: 2023–present

On 19 January 2023, Williams joined Brighton & Hove Albion on a permanent transfer until June 2024.

International career

Williams has represented Australia on the senior and under-20 national teams. She earned her first training camp call-up with the senior national team at age 15. It was the first time she'd heard of the Matildas. In 2006, she competed with Australia at the

and 2006 FIFA World Under 20 Women's Championship. At age 19, Williams was selected to the Matildas squad for the

2007 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup, the fifth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, was an international association football competition for women held in China from 10 to 30 September 2007. Originally, China was to host the 2003 edition, but th ...

in China, though she did not play. Australia finished second in their group and were knocked out by Brazil during a 3–2 quarterfinal match. She shared the starting goalkeeper role with veteran Matilda

Melissa Barbieri Melissa Anne Barbieri (born 20 February 1980) is an Australian international football goalkeeper who plays for Melbourne City in the A-League Women. She earned over 86 caps with the Australia women's national soccer team and competed at four ...

at the

2011 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup was the sixth FIFA Women's World Cup competition, the world championship for women's national association football teams. It was held from 26 June to 17 July 2011 in Germany, which won the right to host the event ...

in Germany. During the team's first group stage match against Brazil, Barbieri helped keep the rivals to a 1–0 scoreline. Williams was the starting goalkeeper for Australia's next match against Equatorial Guinea and helped the Matildas win 3–2. Barbieri was in goal for the team's last group stage match: a 2–1 win over

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. Australia finished second in their group and advanced to the quarterfinals where they were knocked out by Sweden 3–1 with Barbieri in goal. Williams was the starting goalkeeper in all but one of Australia's matches at the

2015 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup was the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international soccer championship contested by the women's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament was hosted by Canada for the ...

in Canada. The team lost 3–1 to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

during their first group stage match with Barbieri between the posts. Williams helped hold

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

to a 2–0 shutout in the team's second group stage match and a 1–1 draw against Sweden. Australia finished second in the "

Group of Death A group of death in a multi-stage tournament is a group which is unusually competitive, because the number of strong competitors in the group is greater than the number of qualifying places available for the next phase of the tournament. Thus, ...

" and advanced to the Round of 16 where they faced Brazil. During the match, Williams' save on a long-range shot by Formiga made international headlines as the save of the tournament. In the 90th minute, Williams stopped

Christiane Christiane is a given name, a form of the Latin ''Christiana'', feminine form of ''Christianuis'' (see Christian), or a Latinized form of Middle English ''Christin'' 'Christian' (Old English ''christen'', from Latin).. A short form is Chris. Alter ...

's header marking 10th-ranked Australia's first win against Brazil in World Cup history. She finished the match with six saves and a shutout. The Matildas faced 2011 champions, Japan in the quarterfinals and narrowly lost 1–0 after a goal against in the 87th minute. After qualifying for the

2016 Rio Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...

in Japan, the Matildas faced Canada in their first group stage match with Williams in goal. The team tied their next group stage match against

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

2–2. After defeating

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

6–1, the team finished third in

Group F Group F may refer to: * A set of international motor racing regulations used in touring car racing * One of six or eight groups of four teams competing at the FIFA World Cup ** 2022 FIFA World Cup Group F ** 2018 FIFA World Cup Group F ** 2014 FIF ...

and top ranking in the third place teams advancing to the knockout stage. During their "thrilling" quarterfinal match against Brazil, Williams was put to the test in a penalty shootout after a 0–0 draw. Despite saving a penalty from

Marta Marta may refer to: People * Marta (given name), a feminine given name * Märta, a feminine given name * Marta (surname) : István Márta composer * Marta (footballer) (born 1986), Brazilian professional footballer Places * Marta (river), ...

, the Matildas were ultimately edged out 7–6 during the shootout and knocked out of the competition. Williams was the starting goalkeeper at the

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football championship contested by 24 women's national teams representing member associations of FIFA. It ...

in France — her fourth World Cup selection. During the team's first group stage match against

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, a late Italian goal in the 5th minute of extratime resulted in a 2–1 surprising loss for the Matildas. They faced rivals Brazil next and won 3–2. After defeating

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...

4–1, Australia finished second in

Group C Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with '' Group A'' for touring cars and '' Group B'' for GTs. It was designed to replace both Group 5 special production cars (closed top t ...

and advanced to the Round of 16 where they faced Norway. After a 1–1 tie, Norway won 4–1 in penalties. Williams was selected for the Australian women's soccer team which qualified for the

Tokyo 2020 Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the List of Olympic Games h ...

. The Matildas advanced to the quarter-finals with one victory and a draw in the group play. In the quarter-finals, they beat

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

4–3 after extra time. However, they lost 1–0 to Sweden in the semi-final and were then beaten 4–3 in the bronze medal playoff by USA. On 28 June 2022, she played her 100th match for Australia in a friendly match against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...

Honours

Club

;

* W-League Championship: 2011–12 * W-League Premiership: 2011–12, 2013–14

International

; Australia *

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

(runners-up) *

AFF Women's Championship The AFF Women's Championship is the competition in women's football organised by the ASEAN Football Federation, contested by the national teams of nations in Southeast Asia and Australia. The official tournament started in 2004, hosted by Vietn ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

Tournament of Nations The Tournament of Nations was a global invitational tournament for national teams in women's soccer in non-World Cup and non-Olympic years hosted by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) in several American cities. The inaugural tourname ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

(runners-up) *

FFA Cup of Nations The Cup of Nations is an invitational women's soccer tournament held early in the year in Australia. In the first edition (in 2019), it was contested by Australia, Argentina, South Korea, and New Zealand. On 12 January 2023, Football Australia ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Individual

* Aboriginal and Islander Sports Hall of Fame *

Deadly Award The Deadly Awards, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The event was held from 1995 to 2013. Description T ...

for Female Sportsperson of the Year: 2006 * PFA Women's Footballer of the Year: 2011–12, 2015–16 * W-League Goalkeeper of the Year:

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

, 2011–12, 2016–17 * PFA W-League Team of the Season: 2016–17 * IFFHS AFC Woman Team of the Decade 2011–2020

References

External links

*
Matildas player profile

Arsenal player profile
*
Houston Dash player profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Lydia 1988 births Living people Australian women's soccer players Australian people of American descent Indigenous Australian soccer players Canberra United FC players Chicago Red Stars players Western New York Flash players Washington Spirit players People from Katanning, Western Australia Women's association football goalkeepers 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup players 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup players Footballers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Australia women's international soccer players Houston Dash players Melbourne City FC (A-League Women) players A-League Women players National Women's Soccer League players Indigenous Australian Olympians Olympic soccer players of Australia ACT Academy of Sport alumni OL Reign players 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup players Damallsvenskan players Piteå IF (women) players Paris Saint-Germain Féminine players Brighton & Hove Albion W.F.C. players 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup players Footballers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Sportswomen from Western Australia Soccer players from Western Australia Sportswomen from the Australian Capital Territory Sportspeople from Canberra Soccer players from the Australian Capital Territory People from Kalgoorlie Arsenal W.F.C. players FIFA Century Club Australian expatriate women's soccer players Australian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Australian expatriate sportspeople in Sweden Australian expatriate sportspeople in England Australian expatriate sportspeople in France Expatriate women's soccer players in the United States Expatriate women's footballers in Sweden Expatriate women's footballers in England Expatriate women's footballers in France