Whether you’re applying for a league contract, academy trial, semi-pro club, or international opportunity, your soccer resume must clearly show:
- Position played
- Performance statistics
- Competitive level
- Leadership impact
- Tactical strengths
- Athletic profile
This guide includes specific examples, insider scouting insights, and step-by-step instructions to help you stand out and pass ATS systems used by modern clubs.
Popular CV types for soccer players
1. Soccer Striker Resume
This resume is for strikers specializing in scoring and offensive positioning. It emphasizes goal-scoring records, finishing ability, and attacking contributions.
Job Description
Strikers lead the attacking line, create scoring opportunities, and convert chances into goals. Coaches look for sharp finishing skills, positioning intelligence, speed, and composure under pressure.
Key Notes
Highlight total goals scored, shot accuracy, key matches, and offensive contributions such as assists and penalties converted.
Additional Tips
- Quantify Goals: Include season-by-season scoring records.
Emphasize Movement & Finishing: Showcase positioning and composure. - Include Big-Game Impact: Mention match-winning goals or tournament highlights.
2. Soccer Defender Resume
This resume is for defenders focused on preventing goals and maintaining defensive stability. It emphasizes tackling, interceptions, and clean sheets.
Job Description
Defenders protect their team’s goal by blocking attacks, marking opponents, and winning aerial duels. Coaches seek strong positioning, physical strength, and communication competencies among other skills.
Key Notes
Include defensive stats such as tackles won, interceptions, blocks, and clean sheets contributed to.
Additional Tips
- Show Defensive Reliability: Highlight consistency and discipline.
- Mention Leadership: Defensive organization is key.
- Add Physical Strengths: Height, strength, and aerial ability are valuable.
3. Soccer Midfielder Resume
This resume is for midfielders who control tempo and connect defense with attack. It emphasizes versatility, passing accuracy, and stamina.
Job Description
Midfielders distribute the ball, support both defense and attack, and maintain possession. Coaches value vision, endurance, and technical skill.
Key Notes
Highlight pass completion rate, assists, interceptions, and versatility in roles.
Additional Tips
- Show Playmaking Skills: Include key passes and assists.
- Demonstrate Work Rate: Mention stamina and match coverage.
- Highlight Versatility: Ability to adapt to different midfield roles.
4. Goalkeeper Resume
This resume is for goalkeepers responsible for protecting the net. It emphasizes reflexes, shot-stopping ability, and clean sheets.
Job Description
Goalkeepers prevent goals through saves, command of the penalty area, and organizing defense. Coaches look for agility, decision-making, and communication skills.
Key Notes
Include saves per match, clean sheets, penalty saves, and distribution accuracy.
Additional Tips
- Highlight Clean Sheets: Show defensive impact.
- Showcase Reflexes: Mention quick reactions and diving ability.
- Leadership Matters: Organizing defenders is essential.
5. Soccer Winger Resume
This resume is for wingers specializing in speed and wide play. It emphasizes crossing ability, dribbling, and assists.
Job Description
Wingers attack from wide positions, deliver crosses, and create scoring opportunities. Coaches value pace, creativity, and 1v1 ability.
Key Notes
Include assists, successful dribbles, and crosses completed.
Additional Tips
- Highlight Speed: Emphasize acceleration and agility.
- Show Creativity: Mention assists and key chances created.
- Add Versatility: Ability to cut inside and score.
6. Soccer Attacking Midfielder Resume
This resume is for attacking midfielders who create goal-scoring opportunities. It emphasizes creativity, vision, and offensive support.
Job Description
Attacking midfielders link midfield and attack, providing assists and scoring from advanced positions. Coaches seek strong vision and technical precision.
Key Notes
Highlight assists, goals from midfield, and key passes.
Additional Tips
- Emphasize Creativity: Showcase vision and playmaking.
- Show Offensive Contribution: Goals and assists matter.
- Mention Tactical Intelligence: Decision-making is key.
7. Soccer Defensive Midfielder Resume
This resume is for defensive midfielders who shield the defense. It emphasizes ball recovery, interceptions, and discipline.
Job Description
Defensive midfielders break up opposition plays and support defensive transitions. Coaches look for strength, awareness, and positioning.
Key Notes
Include tackles, interceptions, and ball recovery stats.
Additional Tips
- Show Defensive Awareness: Positioning is critical.
- Highlight Strength & Stamina: Physical endurance matters.
- Add Passing Ability: Transition play is important.
8. Soccer Central Midfielder Resume
This resume is for central midfielders balancing defense and attack. It emphasizes versatility and consistency.
Job Description
Central midfielders maintain possession, support both ends, and control tempo. Coaches value adaptability and decision-making.
Key Notes
Highlight passing accuracy, assists, tackles, and stamina.
Additional Tips
- Show All-Round Ability: Balance is key.
- Mention Game Intelligence: Tactical awareness matters.
- Demonstrate Consistency: Reliable performances count.
9. Junior Soccer Player Resume
This resume is for young players beginning their competitive journey. It emphasizes development, training, and potential.
Job Description
Junior players participate in school or academy competitions while developing technical skills.
Key Notes
Focus on training programs, tournaments, and coach recommendations.
Additional Tips
- Highlight Growth: Show skill development.
- Mention Academy Participation: Training history matters.
- Keep It Simple: Focus on fundamentals.
10. Senior Soccer Player Resume
This resume is for experienced players with extensive match histories. It emphasizes leadership, performance, and achievements.
Job Description
Senior players bring experience, consistency, and mentorship to teams.
Key Notes
Include career highlights, awards, and leadership roles.
Additional Tips
- Show Experience: Years played and clubs represented.
- Highlight Leadership: Captaincy or mentoring roles.
- Add Major Achievements: Titles and recognitions.
11. Youth Soccer Player Resume
This resume is for youth-level players aiming for academy or club selection. It emphasizes training, tournaments, and skill potential.
Job Description
Youth players compete in junior leagues while developing technical foundations.
Key Notes
Include competitions, awards, and development milestones.
Additional Tips
- Show Commitment: Training frequency and dedication.
- Mention Awards: Best player recognitions help.
- Highlight Coach Feedback: Recommendations strengthen credibility.
12. Professional Soccer Player Resume
This resume is for established professionals competing at the club or league level. It emphasizes career statistics, contracts, and major achievements.
Job Description
Professional players compete in official leagues, maintain peak fitness, and represent clubs in tournaments.
Key Notes
Include league participation, trophies, awards, and performance data.
Additional Tips
- Show Career Progression: Clubs and contracts.
- Highlight Achievements: Titles and individual honors.
- Include Media or Recognition: National or international exposure.
13. Amateur Soccer Player Resume
This resume is for amateur players competing at local or semi-professional levels. It emphasizes dedication and performance.
Job Description
Amateur players compete in regional leagues while balancing other responsibilities.
Key Notes
Focus on league participation, stats, and skill development.
Additional Tips
- Highlight Commitment: Training and match frequency.
- Show Measurable Impact: Goals or defensive records.
- Keep It Professional: Even amateur resumes should look polished.
14. Captain Resume
This resume is for team captains, emphasizing leadership and performance. It highlights communication skills, team motivation, and strategic influence.
Job Description
Captains lead on and off the field, communicate with referees, motivate teammates, and set performance standards.
Key Notes
Include leadership roles, team achievements, and years of captaincy.
Additional Tips
- Highlight Leadership Impact: Team improvements under your leadership.
- Show Communication Skills: Conflict resolution and motivation.
- Add Team Achievements: Championships and milestones as captain.
How to Write a Soccer Player Resume from Scratch?
Even an intense soccer match that is totally unpredictable starts with a strategy that is planned well before the match.
Your soccer player resume needs just that – a plan to take the reader on a journey that convinces them of your worth to the team – make them want to meet you and talk further.
Millions of soccer players are registered with U.S.Soccer. And for every opening in quality teams, recruiters receive hundreds of applications – most of which are shortlisted through an Applicant Tracking System (ATS). This system is used to prioritize players based on specific criteria: match statistics, positions played, performance history, youth club experience...
As your soccer resume must get past the ATS, it has to make an impression on the scouts and coaches who decide who earns a trial.
First, we’ll pick the layout, format, and template for your resume.
The layout of a Soccer player’s Resume
The layout is the draft plan that we create with the headings, subheadings, sections, and important information that should be included on your resume.
We recommend the following layout for a soccer player’s resume:
- Header.
- Professional summary.
- On-field and off-field experience.
- Education.
- Skills.
- Additional sections (certificates, interests, and awards).
Resume Template for Soccer Players
Choose a template that suits your professional profile. As you’re applying for a position in the sports industry, you should tailor your resume template with a relevant theme.
Ensure your resume does not look like the resume of an IT candidate or a graphic designer – it should be a sports resume, and the characteristics should communicate that to the reader in an instant.
Check out these resume templates If you want to see how you could use our resume builder to create and tailor your resume to your requirements.
Soccer Player Resume Format
The format of your resume defines how you write your experience section.
Depending on the order in which the information is listed in your experience section, there are three standard resume formats:
- The functional (skill-based): Under this format, you should list your key skills and describe the work and achievements associated with each skill.
- Reverse chronological format: In this format, you should list your most recent experience first, and the rest should be listed in chronological order.
- Hybrid (combination) format: This is a combination of the above two formats.
We highly recommend you use a reverse chronological resume format to write your experience section. It is, in fact, the most commonly used resume format. This format is also familiar to hiring managers, so they don't get confused when reading it.
If you have any confusion about how these layouts, formats, and templates come together, read further. We start to write each section of your soccer resume step-by-step with examples.
Kickoff Your Soccer Resume with the Header
The header - also known as the title of the resume - is where you should begin your soccer resume, unlike in the game, where the kicker starts from the center pitch.
Write your name in a bigger font to make it stand out like your goalkeeper. Include your contact details.
Here's what to include and what to leave out of your header
A good & a bad header
CORRECT
Tim Cook
Professional soccer player
timcook@gmail.com
(253)827-2873
https://www.instagram.com/timk
Height: 5’9”
Weight: 72kg
Age: 23
INCORRECTTim Cook
timcook@gmail.com
(253)827-2873
304, Main Street, KCT Apt Bldg 12,
Washington DC
USA
Consider the following points when writing your header:
- Write your first name and last name.
- Include the job title – this is an important keyword on your resume.
- Put the link to a social media profile that you’re active in.
- State a mobile number and your email address.
- Put the most recently measured height and weight.
- State your age.
- Do not include a physical address.
Pitch with an Excellent Professional Summary
A professional summary is a sales pitch to hook the reader at the beginning – a short statement demonstrating the candidate’s relevant experience, key skills, and expertise.
For an athlete, this would be a great space to showcase why they should have you on their team. Answer that question properly, and you will be in.
Keep your professional summary to two or three sentences at most. Highlight the biggest achievements in your soccer career.
Professional summary for an experienced soccer player
CORRECT
A passionate athlete with over 7 years of professional soccer experience, looking for an exciting opportunity to join a new team. 43 goals and assists in 202,1 winning the most impressive player at Unity Squad.
INCORRECT
A soccer player with 7 years of experience looking to join a new club to further my career. I have the ability to play in multiple positions and would like to join at any level.
Professional objective for an entry-level soccer player
Consider writing an objective summary if you’re an entry-level player.
CORRECT
A dedicated soccer player with 3 years of inter-school and inter-provincial club-level experience seeks to get me into the professional game. As a forward striker, I have always aspired to join Hooligans FC, and winning the 2021 inter-school championship significantly boosted my confidence.
INCORRECT
I am a passionate soccer player with inter-school soccer experience who seeks to join a professional club to advance my career. I am confident that I could be a great addition to your team.
Demonstrate Your Soccer Experience
This is, in fact, the most important section on your soccer resume – the section that defines your pay for the upcoming series.
How well you write your experience section will determine whether you stay in a 5-figure or 6-figure salary.
Read this guide carefully and follow the soccer experience examples we have given to write an awesome experience section.
Example Work Experience Section for an Experienced Soccer Player
CORRECT
Soccer player
Team name: Hooligans FC
Years played: Aug 2020 to Feb 2022
Positions played: Right Fullback/ Center Back/ Right Midfielder
Number of goals and assists: 21 (2020), 23 (2021)
- Devised operational strategies with team coaches, managers, and players.
- Analyzed competitor team players with their statistics and video records to determine our strategies.
- Participated in training sessions up to 4 days a week consistently for the last 4 years.
- Awarded the player of the series in the last School Soccer Championship 2021.
- Participated in over 6 media events and briefings representing the club.
- Worked as the technical team advisor for the junior team with 15 players.
INCORRECTAug 2016 to Present
Soccer player
Hooligans FC
- Worked with the team leader to assist the team.
- Completing media obligations.
- Attended scheduled practices.
- Assistant coach for the junior team.
A senior soccer player should demonstrate their leadership skills throughout their experience section.
Also, it’s vital to state clearly the name of the team, the number of years you played, the positions you played, and the number of goals & assists at the beginning of each experience section.
Make it easy for the recruiter to realize your value even without reading your full resume. Most hiring managers will straightaway land on your athletic experience section to find out your key achievements.
Example Work Experience for an Entry-Level Soccer Player
CORRECT
Soccer player
Team name: Thunder FC
Years played: Aug 2021 to June 2022
Positions played: Goalkeeper/ Right Fullback
Number of saves: 34 (2021)
- Passed the 2021 club performance assessment with an 80% score.
- Became a sports representative to promote soccer in school and the local community.
- Got professional club representation at the age of 17.
- Received a first-string athletic scholarship from the school in 2019.
- Participated in 12 exhibition matches and sponsorship events in 2020.
INCORRECTJan 2020 to Present
Thunder FC
Soccer player
- Playing soccer for the last 4 years.
- Took part in competitive games in school.
- Participated in team-building exercises and daily practices.
- Improve footwork techniques, working with the coaching staff.
As an entry-level player, your athletic experience should demonstrate technical skills as well as teamwork skills.
Follow these guidelines while writing this section:
- Use numbers wherever appropriate – make your achievements do the talking.
- Provide key information about each different club appearance (dates, positions, performance).
- Start each sentence with a power word. Eg: Received, Developed, Achieved, Participated in.
Shine with Your Education
Most hiring managers, when recruiting soccer players, would not mind someone with no proper academic background.
However, if you come from a solid academic background, it says a story about your profile. So make your profile stand out with your education. In a short section, clearly state your most important educational qualifications.Your responsibilities as a soccer player would extend to more team management, analysis, and communication when you become a senior partner in the club. Therefore, your education would come in handy.
Education
Bachelor’s degree in business management, 2015-2017
Columbia University, NY
High school diploma, 2011-2015
International Academy
Skills for a Soccer Player Resume
Write a mix of soft skills and technical skills (hard skills) relevant to the sport.
Soccer is a game of strength, stamina, and strategy – pick your skills.
Soft skills: these are the personal traits required for an athlete to become successful in the game and to show good sportsmanship.
Hard skills: These are the technical skills a player should practice for success on the field.
Carry out keyword research to pick the right skills required to become successful as a player in your new team. These skills should have been listed in the job advertisement.
Soft skills:
- Interpersonal skills
- Endurance
- Time management
- Communication skills
- Ability to work under pressure
- Teamwork
- Problem-solving
- Leadership
- Decision making
Hard skills:
- Ball control
- Footwork
- Aim shooting
- Ball dribbling
- Touch and ball control
Additional Sections for Your Soccer Player Resume Sample
These sections are as valuable as the main sections on your soccer resume. To harness the full potential of your resume, you should choose the most relevant additional sections.
Here are some of the example sections you could include:
- Computer skills.
- Hobbies & interests.
- Language skills.
- Awards & recognitions.
Computing Skills
Having basic computer literacy would come in handy for you as you’ll be involved in working with different software and systems along the way.
Remember, soccer is not just about getting down to the ground and playing with the ball – there’s more to it, including management, communication, securing sponsorships, and a lot more.
Languages
If you’re fluent in a couple of languages, that would put you at an advantage. State each language together with the level of proficiency.
Being fluent in different languages will help you communicate with sponsors, players, and understand opponents.
Awards and recognitions
This is a very important section if you have information to put together. Your awards & recognitions are as important as your experience – a great way to captivate the hiring manager.
In listing your awards & recognitions, state clearly the date, the awarding body, and a short description of the award.
If you have impressive information to write in this section, consider placing this just after your professional summary.
Tips to Write an Excellent Soccer Resume
The following tips will help you further improve your resume:
- Tailor your resume to each position you’re applying for – this way, you can concentrate on what they value the most and prioritize them.
- Use the job description to carry out the initial keyword research. Also, read industry blogs and forums to understand the upcoming series and mention how you’ll be a great asset to them in the future.
- Pick a modern resume template to suit your personal profile.
- For an error-free resume, use a tool like Grammarly.
Checklist:
- Start your soccer resume with the header – apart from your name and contact information, state your height, weight, and age.
- Write a stunning professional summary to hook the reader.
- State your greatest achievements in your athletic experience section. Showcase your leadership, teamwork, and communication skills throughout.
- Write a short section about your highest academic qualifications.
- List a mix of soft skills and hard skills.
- Include a couple of additional sections to provide a pleasant surprise to the hiring manager.
Complement your resume with a Cover letter
Write a cover letter demonstrating your interest further. Use about half a page to one page. This will be an extension of your professional summary.
State your achievements, awards, and recognitions.
Understand the team management’s biggest reason for the recruitment. Go through the history and check the team composition – who they’re looking for, who left the team recently, and the positions they played.
Also, check the upcoming matches and the opponents. If you have played with those opponents, you may state that information.
However, make it short and to the point.
Check out the cover letter templates we have created to match each of our resume templates. Make your life easy. Save your cover letter in one of our templates and tailor it to different positions.
