Sofia Sakalis

Australian soccer player

Sofia Sakalis
Personal information
Full name Sofia Sakalis
Date of birth (2002-07-11) 11 July 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth East Melbourne, Australia
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Melbourne Victory
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2021 Melbourne City 5 (0)
2021–2024 Perth Glory 49 (3)
2024– Melbourne Victory 0 (0)
International career‡
2016–2017 Australia U-17 8 (12)
2018– Australia U-20 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 28 May 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 31 October 2018

Sofia Sakalis (born 11 July 2002) is an Australian soccer player who plays for Melbourne Victory in the A-League Women. She has represented Australia in the Australia U-17 and Australia U-20. Sakalis plays in the attacking midfielder position.

Early life

Sakalis, who is of Greek-Australian background, showed interest in soccer at the age of three and began playing two years later.[1][2] When she first started playing, coaches assigned her to teams with boys her age but advanced her to play with older boys.[1] At age 13, her performance at the National Championships earned her call-ups to three training camps with the Junior Matildas, Australia's under-17 national team.[1]

Club career

Melbourne City, 2017–2021

After training with Melbourne City in 2015–16, Sakalis signed with the team for the 2017–18 season at the age of 15.[3] She made her debut for the club during the team's 5–2 win over the Newcastle Jets on 12 November.[4][5]

Perth Glory, 2021–2024

Sofia signed a 2-year deal with Perth Glory ahead of the 2021–22 A-League Women season.[6] In August 2024, Sakalis announced that she had left the club.[7]

Melbourne Victory, 2024–

In August 2024, Sakalis joined Melbourne Victory.[8]

National Premier League

Sakalis was awarded Football Victoria's Gold Medal Award for the best player of 2022.

International career

Sakalis competed with the Junior Matildas[9][10] at the 2017 AFC U-16 Women's Championship qualification tournament in Vietnam where they finished first in their group with an undefeated record.[11] During the team's first group match against Palestine, Sakalis scored five goals,[12] and scored a total of 11 goals over 5 games.[13] She was the top scorer at the qualifying tournament, helping Australia secure a place at the 2017 AFC U-16 Women's Championship in Thailand.[11][14]

Honours

Sakalis was named 2016 Sport Stars of the Year with Olympic boxer Jason Whateley by the Whitehorse Leader.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b c Komarkowski, Antonia (21 June 2017). "Sofia Sakalis 15-year-old Soccer star". Greek City Times. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  2. ^ "City sign trio for Westfield W-League season". W-League. 24 September 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  3. ^ "Complete preview for each W-League team for season 2017/18". News.com.au. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  4. ^ "S. Sakalis". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  5. ^ "A day to remember for Sakalis and Muldeary". Melbourne City FC. 17 November 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  6. ^ "Midfield duo board w-league 2021/22 campaign". Perth Glory. 21 July 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  7. ^ Sakalis, Sofia (17 August 2024). "For 3 seasons Perth has been my home, a huge thank you to all my teammates, staff and supporters, that have made it so special. @perthgloryfc will always be a club and place I treasure" – via Instagram.
  8. ^ "Melbourne Victory signs Sofia Sakalis". Melbourne Victory. 29 August 2024.
  9. ^ Stogiannou, George (5 August 2016). "Sakalis selected for Junior Matildas in AFC qualifying tournament in Vietnam". Neos Kosmos. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  10. ^ "Juric names squad for AFC U-16 qualifiers". Westfield Matildas. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  11. ^ a b "Junior Matildas complete qualifiers with perfect record". The Women's Game. 3 December 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  12. ^ "Junior Matildas' easy win in Vietnam". Westfield Matildas. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  13. ^ Turner, David (25 September 2016). "Vermont South's Sofia Sakalis is a rising soccer star with the world at her feet". Whitehorse Leader. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  14. ^ "World champions Korea DPR target Asian treble". FIFA. 8 September 2017. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  15. ^ Naughtin, Paddy (22 November 2016). "Soccer star Sofia Sakalis and Olympic boxer Jason Whateley named 2016 Whitehorse Leader Sport Stars". Whitehorse Leader. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  • Melbourne City player profile
  • Sofia Sakalis at Soccerway
  • v
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Melbourne Victory FC (A-League Women) – current squad