Sophie Schmidt

College career Schmidt attended the University of Portland and played for the Portland Pilots from 2007 to 2009. She did not play during the 2006 season due to her Canadian national team commitments. In 2009, Schmidt finished the season tied for first on the team with 12 assists and third on the team with 12 goals. She was named to the Soccer America MVP Team (All-America) First Team, NSCAA First Team All-American, NSCAA All-West Region First Team, and ll-WCC First Team. She ranked ninth in school history for career points per game (1.60) and assists per game (0.46) and tenth in Pilots' history in goals (33) and goals per game (0.58) in 57 matches.

Club career

Early career Schmidt played for the Vancouver Whitecaps from 2005 to 2006, alongside former Pilots Christine Sinclair and Tiffeny Milbrett. She appeared and started in eight games for the Whitecaps, recording three assists. followed by a short-term contract with Kristianstads DFF in 2012.

Sky Blue FC On 11 January 2013, she joined Sky Blue FC in the new National Women's Soccer League, Schmidt played two seasons with Sky Blue, making 42 appearances and scoring 8 goals.

FFC Frankfurt Schmidt signed a one-year deal for German club 1. FFC Frankfurt of the Bundesliga on 31 July 2015. Schmidt left 1. FFC Frankfurt following the 2017–2018 Bundesliga season.

Houston Dash After three seasons with Frankfurt, Schmidt would sign with NWSL club Houston Dash in 2019. She made her debut for the club on April 14, 2019, against Seattle Reign FC. During the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup Final, she would score a penalty, helping the Dash defeat the Chicago Red Stars for the club's first major trophy. In December 2020, she would re-sign with the Dash through the 2022 season, with the Dash having an option for the 2023 season. In October 2022 she signed a new two-year contract with the Dash, having by then made 70 appearances overall for the club, with General Manager Alex Singer saying "Keeping Sophie with us in Houston was a top priority as she has consistently been one of the most impactful players on our roster". Featuring in a 2–1 victory over the Chicago Red Stars in April 2023, Schmidt made 23 ball recoveries as the Dash earned their first win of 2023. On October 4, 2024, Schmidt signed a two-year contract extension through 2026 , with a mutual option for 2027. After being injured in the second half of Houston's 3–0 win over the San Diego Wave, it was announced on September 13, 2025, that Schmidt had been placed on the season-ending injury list after undergoing knee surgery.

International career Schmidt has represented Canada at both the U-17 and U-20 level, and captained Canada at the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship in Russia. She made her senior debut against Netherlands on 19 April 2005.

On 28 February 2012, Schmidt made her 30th consecutive international appearance in a match against Scotland in Cyprus and had her first two-goal game. Schmidt and her teammates won an Olympic bronze medal at London 2012. She scored two goals in a 3–0 win over Finland at the 2014 Cyprus Cup on 5 March 2014, marking her 65th consecutive appearance for Canada, with head coach John Herdman saying of her goalscoring performance "We have been asking Sophie and the midfielders to start chipping in with goals. We really didn’t blow teams away in terms of the goals because we were either trigger-shy or players weren’t getting into the right areas early enough. So we’ve been working on that". In August 2016, she won the bronze medal in the 2016 Summer Olympics.

18 February 2021, she played her 200th match for Canada in a 1–0 defeat against the United States in the 2021 SheBelieves Cup. On August 6, 2021, she won the Olympic gold medal in the 2020 Summer Olympics with Canada, playing once by starting in a 1-1 draw against Great Britain, becoming one of three players in the national program to win 3 consecutive Olympic medals, alongside Christine Sinclair and Desiree Scott.

Schmidt was named Canada Soccer Player of the Month for August 2022.

Following the Tokyo Olympics, the Canadian women's team became enmeshed in disputes over compensation and funding with the Canadian Soccer Association. Schmidt, frustrated, contemplated immediate retirement in early 2023, but was persuaded by coach Bev Priestman to delay her retirement until after the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. As a sign that the team was playing under protest, during their November 2023 SheBelieves Cup match against the United States the Canadian players wore their training jerseys inside out and used purple wrist tape as a symbol of gender equality, with Schmidt saying "we are so proud and honoured to play for Canada. But right now we feel as though our federation has let us down". On March 9, 2023, Schmidt spoke before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage alongside teammates Christine Sinclair, Quinn and Janine Sonis, criticizing Canada Soccer's treatment of the women's program. Named to the Canadian squad for the fifth time, Schmidt was used as a substitute in Canada's first two group stage matches, replacing Sinclair in the 71st minute of Canada's opening 0–0 draw against Nigeria, and playing a crucial role in victory over Ireland after setting up Adriana Leon's game-winning goal.

Following Canada's group stage exit from the 2023 World Cup, Schmidt initially followed through on her planned international retirement. However, once longtime teammate Christine Sinclair announced her own impending retirement for year's end, Schmidt was persuaded to return one final time for the second of two scheduled matches against Australia to be played in both women's home province of British Columbia. Following an injury to midfielder Julia Grosso, she agreed to feature in both matches. She was brought on as a substitute in Canada's 5–0 win over Australia on December 1, 2023. On December 5, 2023, Schmidt made her final international appearance, a 1–0 victory in a friendly match against Australia held at BC Place in Vancouver, entering as a second-half substitute for Sinclair. Before the game, Schmidt, along with Christine Sinclair and Erin McLeod, had their international careers celebrated.

Personal life Schmidt became engaged to Nic Kyle, an actor and singer, in September 2017. They married in New Zealand in December 2018.

Schmidt received an honorary degree from the University of the Fraser Valley in 2019.

Career statistics

Club

International goals

Honours Houston Dash NWSL Challenge Cup: 2020

Canada U20

CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship: 2008

Canada CONCACAF Women's Championship: 2010 Summer Olympics: 2021; bronze medal: 2012, 2016 Pan American Games: 2011 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship: 2008 Algarve Cup: 2016 Four Nations Tournament: 2015 Cyprus Cup: 2008, 2011 Individual Canadian U-20 Player of the Year: 2007 BC Soccer Youth Player of the Year: 2005 BC Soccer Adult Player of the Year: 2007