Lindsey Horan

Lindsey Michelle Horan (born May 26, 1994) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Première Ligue club Lyon and captains the United States national team.

She previously played for the Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the highest division of women's professional soccer in the United States, and won the league's most valuable player award in 2018. Horan was a leading player for the Thorns during their 2017 championship season, scoring the winning goal in the championship game. Before that, she was a prolific scorer for Paris Saint-Germain, scoring 46 goals in 58 appearances.

She is currently the captain of the US Women's National Team. She was the leading scorer for the United States U-17 team at the 2010 CONCACAF U-17 Women's Championship.

Early life
Horan was born May 26, 1994, and grew up in Golden, Colorado, near Denver. Although she attended Golden High School, she did not play soccer for the school. Instead, she played club soccer with the Colorado Rush. She first started playing for the Colorado Edge during the U-11 tryouts. In March, when Horan was 15 years old and was one of the youngest players on the United States under-17 women's national team, she scored 12 goals in nine games (a team best) leading up to the North American/Central American/Caribbean U-17 tournament in Costa Rica. During her sophomore year at Golden, she was named to the Parade Magazine High School All-American team although she didn't play high school soccer.

In 2012, Horan was named the top-ranked college prospect by ESPN. Although she had a scholarship to play for Tar Heels of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill starting in the 2012 season, Horan bypassed her college career and signed with French club Paris Saint-Germain FC (PSG).

Colorado Rush, 2012
Horan played for the Colorado Rush in the 2012 USL W-League season. She played three games for the team, scoring two goals and taking 19 shots. Her performance for the Rush against Seattle Sounders Women on June 1, 2012, in which Horan scored a goal against Seattle and USWNT goalkeeper Hope Solo, impressed several national team players who also played for Seattle. After the match, Megan Rapinoe called Horan "a hell of a player".

Paris Saint-Germain FC, 2012–2016
In July 2012, Horan signed a six-figure deal to play with the professional French club, Paris Saint-Germain FC (PSG). On January 4, 2016, Paris Saint-Germain announced Horan's contract had been terminated to allow her to return to the United States. She played her final game on December 5, 2015, a 5–0 win over FCF Juvisy. Horan scored the match's opening goal. Horan scored 46 goals in 58 appearances for PSG.

Portland Thorns, 2016–2022
On January 13, 2016, Horan signed with the Portland Thorns FC of the NWSL.

Unlike her role at PSG, Horan for Portland played in central midfield in a position similar to her national-team role.

Horan scored the only goal in Portland's 1–0 win over the North Carolina Courage in the 2017 NWSL Championship and was named NWSL Championship MVP.

Horan was named Player of the Month for July 2018, in which she scored three goals to help the Thorns to a 3–0–0 record. She was named to the 2018 NWSL Best XI, and on September 21, 2018, she was named 2018 NWSL Most Valuable Player.

In 2020, she was a key player in helping Thorns win the Fall Series and the associated Community Shield, and in 2021, did the same for the Thorns' winning the NWSL Challenge Cup, the Women's International Champions Cup, and the NWSL Shield.

On June 22, 2023, the Thorns permanently transferred Horan to Lyon for a fee of €250,000 (US$274,000) with a conditional bonus of an additional €50,000 (US$54,750).

Lyon Féminin, 2022–present
On January 27, 2022, Horan joined Olympique Lyon on loan. With Lyon, she scored 8 goals in 37 appearances, won the Division 1 Féminine league twice, the Coupe de France Feminine, and the UEFA Women's Champions League. On June 22, 2023, Lyon signed Horan to a permanent contract through June 2026. On October 14, 2023, Horan scored her first hat-trick for Lyon against Division 1 team AS Saint-Étienne.

International career
Horan played for the United States women's national under-17 soccer team and was the leading scorer for the team at the 2010 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship. She helped the United States women's national under-20 soccer team win the 2012 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship in March by scoring four goals, including a hat trick against Guatemala in the group stage. Horan was unable to play in the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup because of a knee injury that required surgery.

In February 2013, at the age of eighteen, she was named to the senior team roster for the 2013 Algarve Cup. She earned her first cap for the senior team during a group stage match against China at the Algarve on March 8, 2013. Horan was called up to the senior roster near the end of 2015, and scored her first goal for the senior team during a 'Woman of the Match' performance against Trinidad & Tobago in December 2015. She is on the roster for the 2016 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship and started the opening group stage match against Costa Rica in central midfield.

While Horan played successfully as a striker during her time at PSG, with 46 goals in 56 appearances, she played in central midfield after her return to the national team in 2016.

Horan was called up for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup, scoring her first World Cup goal in the opening game against Thailand on June 11. On January 31, 2020, she scored her first career hat-trick against Panama in the 2020 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship in addition to assisting goals scored by Lynn Williams and Tobin Heath.

On July 24, 2021, Horan played her 100th match for USWNT, and scored a goal in a 6–1 win over New Zealand in the 2020 Summer Olympics.

At the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, Horan scored in the U.S.'s opening match against Vietnam. This gave her goals in successive World Cups. Horan also scored in the U.S.'s match against the Netherlands, tying the game 1-1.

Horan was selected to the 18-player roster for the 2024 Summer Olympics in France.

Personal life
In June 2023, she announced her engagement to Tyler Heaps.

Club
Notes

International

 * Scores and results list United States's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Horan goal.

Honors
Portland Thorns FC
 * NWSL Champions: 2017
 * NWSL Shield: 2016, 2021
 * NWSL Community Shield: 2020
 * NWSL Challenge Cup: 2021
 * Women's International Champions Cup: 2021

Lyon Féminin
 * Division 1 Féminine: 2021–22, 2022–23
 * UEFA Women's Champions League: 2021–22
 * Trophée des Championnes: 2022
 * Women's International Champions Cup: 2022
 * Coupe de France féminine: 2022–23

United States U20
 * CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship: 2014

United States
 * FIFA Women's World Cup: 2019
 * Summer Olympic Games Bronze Medal: 2020
 * CONCACAF Women's Championship: 2018; 2022
 * CONCACAF W Gold Cup: 2024
 * CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament: 2016; 2020
 * SheBelieves Cup: 2016; 2018; 2020; 2021; 2023, 2024
 * Tournament of Nations: 2018

Individual
 * NWSL Second XI: 2017
 * NWSL Championship MVP: 2017
 * NWSL Best XI: 2018
 * NWSL Most Valuable Player: 2018
 * CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament Best XI: 2020
 * U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year: 2021
 * CONCACAF W Gold Cup Best XI: 2024