Julia Lester (soccer)
_014.jpg) Lester with the Seattle Reign in 2025 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Julia Nicole Lester | ||
| Date of birth | January 16, 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Tampa, Florida, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team |
Sporting JAX (on loan from Seattle Reign FC) | ||
| Number | 20 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Tampa Bay United | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2019 | Florida Gators | 86 | (3) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2022 | Apollon Ladies | ||
| 2022–2023 | Racing Louisville | 33 | (0) |
| 2024– | Seattle Reign | 5 | (0) |
| 2025– | → Sporting JAX (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of July 9, 2025 | |||
Julia Nicole Lester (born January 16, 1998) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Sporting Club Jacksonville of the USL Super League, on loan from Seattle Reign FC.
Collegiate career
A family youth and community sciences major, Lester played for the Florida Gators from 2016 to 2019.[1]
Club career
Apollon Ladies F.C.
After graduating from the University of Florida in August 2020, Lester signed for Cypriot club Apollon Ladies and played in the UEFA Women's Champions League.[2] She was named to the league's Best XI in 2021 and captained the team.[3]
Racing Louisville
In March 2022, Lester followed Apollon Ladies' former manager Kim Björkegren and signed for Racing Louisville of the American NWSL.[4]
Seattle Reign FC
In January 2024, Lester was traded to fellow NWSL club Seattle Reign.[5] She subsequently extended her contract with the Reign until 2025.[6]
Sporting Club Jacksonville
On July 9, 2025, Lester returned to her home state of Florida on a loan to USL Super League team Sporting Club Jacksonville through the end of 2025.[7]
Career statistics
College statistics
| Season | Games | Scoring | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | G | A | PTS | SH | SOG | |||
| Florida Gators | |||||||||
| 2016 | 22 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 5 | ||
| 2017 | 24 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 2018 | 19 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2019 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Career | |||||||||
| Career Total | 86 | 69 | 3 | 5 | 11 | 17 | 7 | ||
Club statistics
- As of match played July 11, 2025[8]
| Club | Season | Division | League | Cup | Playoffs | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Apollon Ladies F.C. | 2020–2021 | Cypriot First Division | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021–2022 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Racing Louisville FC | 2022 | NWSL | 20 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 25 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 18 | 0 | |||
| Seattle Reign FC | 2024 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| Sporting JAX | 2025 | USLS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 38 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 0 | ||
* Apollon Ladies stats reflect ≥ 6 league/Champions League appearances based on available data. Table will be updated when Sporting JAX plays in 2025.
References
- ^ "Julia Lester - Soccer". Florida Gators.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com.
- ^ "Julia Lester".
- ^ "Racing signs European champion defender Lester".
- ^ "Julia Lester joins Seattle Reign FC, Sam Hiatt goes to Gotham FC in three-team trade". Sounder at Heart. January 24, 2024.
- ^ "Seattle Reign FC Extends Defender Julia Lester". Seattle Reign FC.
- ^ "Seattle Reign FC Loans Defender Julia Lester to Sporting Jax". Seattle Reign FC. Retrieved July 9, 2025.
- ^ "Julia Lester – Player Info". globalsportsarchive.com.