Stephanie Catley

Melbourne Victory, 2009–14

Catley was a talented youngster who played for the South East Cougars in Football Federation Victoria's Victorian Champions League program. She made her senior debut with Melbourne Victory in October 2009 at the age of 15. Originally used as a midfielder, Catley was a key figure at her club and scored her first goal in her second season three days before her birthday in January 2011, again against Perth Glory. Following a switch to defence for the 2011/12 season, Catley had her most impressive season to date and was named Female Footballer of the Year. She later became captain of the Victory, making 51 appearances, scoring 7 goals in her first 5 years playing for the club.

Portland Thorns FC, 2014–15

Catley signed with Portland Thorns in the United States' National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) for the 2014 season. Catley made 14 starts in 15 matches as a defender during the 2014 season. Portland finished in third place with a 10–8–6 record. The third-place finish earned the team a berth to the semi-finals where the Thorns were defeated 2–0 by eventual champions FC Kansas City. Catley was named to the league's Second XI team at the end of the season for her five assists. During the 2015 season, Catley played in three games for the Thorns as much of her time was usurped by the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. Portland finished in sixth place with a 6–9–5 record.

Melbourne Victory (loan), 2014–15

During the NWSL offseason,…

Having spent years playing in the youth teams of Australia, Catley made her international senior debut against New Zealand in June 2012, along with her childhood friend Ashley Brown. Catley made 32 appearances for the Matildas leading into her first World Cup campaign. In the summer of 2015 at age 21, Catley competed with the Matildas at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada. During the tournament, Catley played every minute of all five of Australia's matches in the left back position, tallying a total of 450 minutes. She made eight tackles and won them all. Catley also made 12 interceptions and won 13 duels. Her passing accuracy was measured at 72.4%. The Matildas lost 3–1 to the United States during their first group stage match. Catley helped hold Nigeria to a 2–0 shutout in the team's second group stage match and a 1–1 draw against Sweden. Australia finished second in the "Group of Death" and advanced to the Round of 16 where they faced Brazil and won 1–0 as the underdog team. The Matildas faced 2011 champions, Japan in the quarterfinals and narrowly lost 1–0 after Japan scored a last–minute goal in the 87th minute. After qualifying for the 2016 Rio Olympics in Japan, the Matildas faced Canada in their first group stage match and lost 2–0 with Catley subbing in for Sam Kerr at halftime. The team tied their next group stage match against Germany 2–2. After defeating Zimbabwe 6–1, the team finished third in Group F and top ranking in the third place teams advancing to…

Born and raised in Melbourne by her parents Lesley and Stephen, Catley was educated at Bentleigh Secondary College and joined her first soccer team at age six. She was the only girl in the East Bentleigh FC squad, the same team her older brother Daniel had played on, and described herself as a tomboy growing up. She noted, "I fell in love with the game and with the idea of making myself the best footballer that I could be. I trained by myself, with my brother and with the other boys in the team until I made my first representative team." At age 13, she started playing for Sandringham, one of the largest soccer clubs in Victoria. When she was 15, Catley made her first state team and was chosen for the under-17 national team.

In January 2023, Catley announced that she was engaged to her long-time partner and fellow soccer player Dean Bouzanis. The pair had met when both played at Melbourne City and were dating by 2017. Catley and Bouzanis separated in 2024. Catley is a fan of the St Kilda Saints in the Australian Football League (AFL). Her favourite player of all time is Lenny Hayes, who she met and did a jersey swap with in July 2023. As a child, she supported Liverpool in the Premier League. According to Matildas teammate Mackenzie Arnold, her favourite song is reportedly "Strawberry Kisses" by Nikki Webster. Arnold revealed in 2023 that the song was a "team favourite" during the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, held in Australia and New Zealand. This led to the song becoming associated with the team, even being described as the Matildas' unofficial team song, and after the World Cup ended, Webster surprised the team and audience by performing the song at the Matildas' public reception at Riverstage in Brisbane.