Lucy Bronze enters her fifth major tournament with the England Lionesses for the home Euro 2022 tournament. One of the highest regarded footballers in the women’s game, Bronze played 90 minutes for Sarina Wiegman’s side in their opening day 1-0 win against Austria at Old Trafford.
Over 160 domestic senior appearances has been met with consistently majestic performances for her national team. For England to reach the latter stages of this tournament, Bronze will likely have to play a major role from both a defensive and offensive perspective.
Here is everything you need to know about the football star.
Read more: Who is England's Ella Toone and what to expect during Women's Euro 2022
Who is Lucy Bronze?
At 30 years of age, Lucy Bronze is one of the more experienced members of the Lionesses squad. Since making her debut in June 2013, Bronze has made over 80 appearances for her country, including making the 2015 and 2019 World Cup squads, scoring 10 goals in the process.
She has become widely recognised as the best right-back on the planet. Although that hasn’t stopped her from playing in almost every outfield position due to her impressive versatility. Despite this, it is in the back-line where she has really excelled.
Initially Steph Houghton’s centre-back partner, Bronze eventually established herself in the number two jersey, courtesy of countless typical swashbuckling displays. Throughout her decade-and-a-half in the game, she has won every domestic honour England has to offer and even tested herself across the continent, eventually earning her a high-profile move to Barcelona.
Lucy Bronze’s early life
Born in Berwick to a Portuguese father and an English mother, Bronze has two siblings, an elder brother called Jorge and a younger sister named Sophie. The now-30-year-old went to the Duchess’s Community High School in Alnwick before moving to North Carolina to study at UNC.
Lucy started playing football from a young age, joining Sunderland's under-12 academy. Impressive performances propelled her to the senior team in 2007, as captain at the age of 16.
That same year she was named the Manager’s Player of the Year as she guided the team to third place in the FA Women’s Premier League Northern Division. In 2009, she truly burst into the limelight as Sunderland appeared in the FA Women’s Cup Final against Arsenal.
Her performance earned her the Player of the Match award. Bronze also played for England at all levels of youth football.
Lucy Bronze’s career
Once her Sunderland career came to an end in 2010, Bronze made the move to Everton before making the controversial move to Merseyside rivals Liverpool in 2012, where she won the FA Women’s Super League in 2013 and 2014. During this time, she was even awarded the PFA Women’s Players’ Player of the Year.
Her Liverpool stint was short-lived as she soon departed to Manchester City, helping them qualify for the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time. At the heart of their defence, the Sky Blues went unbeaten for the entire league season in her second year, conceding just four league goals.
A second PFA Women’s Players’ Player of the Year duly followed, as well as nominations for the UEFA Women's Player of the Year Award and The Best FIFA Women's Player Award. In 2017, she signed a three-year contract with Olympique Lyonnais, where she helped the French giants win the Champions League in her debut season, also retaining the trophy a further two times.
Towards the end of her Lyon venture, the defender finished as runner-up for the Women's Ballon d'Or. A return to Manchester City followed in 2020, a year which also saw her become the first defender and first English footballer to win The Best FIFA Women's Player Award after beginning the year with a treble triumph at Lyon. After her contract expired in June 2022, she agreed to join Spanish giants Barcelona on a two-year contract.
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