Mile Sterjovski

Junior Club

Sterjovski began playing as a junior with the Wollongong Olympic Junior Soccer Club and Lake Height Junior Football Club.

Early career

Sterjovski began his career in Australia at Wollongong Wolves and briefly played for Illawarra Lions before making a name for himself with successful spells at Sydney United and Parramatta Power.

Lille

Sterjovski's performances and record of 31 goals in 68 games in three National Soccer League (NSL) seasons earned him a move to French Ligue 1 side Lille in 2000. After four seasons at Lille, Sterjovski moved to Swiss side FC Basel.

FC Basel

On 14 May 2004, it was announced that Sterjovski had signed a three-year contract with FC Basel. He joined Basel's first team during their 2004–05 season under head coach Christian Gross. After playing in five test games Sterjovski played his domestic league debut for his new club in the home game in the St. Jakob-Park on 17 July as Basel won 6–0 against Aarau. As reigning Swiss champions, Basel entered the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League in the third qualifying round and their aim was to reach the group stage. However, they were drawn against Internazionale. Sterjovski scored his first goal for his new club on 24 August in the away game in the San Siro, Milan, as Basel were defeated 4–1 by Inter and Inter won the qualifier 5–2 on aggregate. Basel subsequently dropped into the 2004–05 UEFA Cup. Beating Terek Grozny in the first round, Basel qualified for the…

Sterjovski made his Australia national team debut against Scotland in 2000. Sterjovski was selected to represent Australia at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. In the build-up, he made an appearance in the Australia vs. Greece friendly at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and also played against Liechtenstein, scoring the first goal for the Socceroos in a 3–1 win. In the finals he started in the games against Brazil and against Croatia. Sterjovski was selected for the first group match in Australia's 2007 Asian Cup campaign, starting against Oman and substituted in the 46th minute, which Australia drew 1–1. Due to illness Sterjovski did not feature further in Australia's failed campaign in its first Asian Cup. Sterjovski scored against Ghana during a friendly match at the Sydney Football Stadium, but was sent off in the 85th minute after receiving a second yellow card for a tackle on Ghana's Richard Manu. He scored again on 20 August in a friendly against South Africa in which the Socceroos drew 2–2. On 10 June 2009, Sterjovski notched his 9th goal for Australia in a 2–0 win over Bahrain at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney, in his 41st appearance for his national side.

Club

International

Scores and results list Australia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Sterjovski goal.

Sterjovski and his wife, Sharon, have three children — Luka, Sonny, and Lilly — all of whom have followed the family path into football. Sonny and Lilly currently represent the Bulls Academy in Macarthur FC’s men’s and women’s programs, while Luka plays his football with Hills United in NPL NSW League One.