Kaylyn McKenzie Kyle (born October 6, 1988) is a former Canadian soccer player who last played as a midfielder for the Orlando Pride in the National Women's Soccer League. She was also a member of Canada women's national soccer team, winning a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and is a Right To Play ambassador. She currently serves as a soccer broadcaster for MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, hosting MLS 360.

Kaylyn Kyle
Kyle in 2022
Personal information
Full name Kaylyn McKenzie Kyle[1]
Date of birth (1988-10-06) October 6, 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
2002–2003 National Training Centre
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006 Saskatchewan Huskies
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006–2008 Vancouver Whitecaps 15 (1)
2009 Piteå IF 13 (1)
2010–2012 Vancouver Whitecaps 5 (0)
2013 Seattle Reign FC 21 (3)
2014 Boston Breakers 2 (0)
2014 Houston Dash 19 (0)
2015 Portland Thorns FC 12 (0)
2016 Orlando Pride 17 (0)
International career
2004–2005 Canada U-17 7 (0)
2005–2008 Canada U-20 31 (0)
2008–2017 Canada 101 (6)
Medal record
Women's soccer
Representing  Canada
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2012 London Team
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Guadalajara Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

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Born and raised in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Kyle attended Bishop Mahoney High School, where she helped the soccer team win both the city and provincial titles.[2][3] Her father, Doug, was a professional hockey player and her mother, Pat, a competitive volleyball player.[4][5] Her older sister Courtnee also played soccer at the national level.[3]

Kyle was named Saskatchewan Soccer Association Youth Female Player of The Year in 2004, 2005 and 2006, and Senior Female Player of the Year in 2010 and 2011.[6]

University of Saskatchewan

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Kyle attended the University of Saskatchewan in 2006. In 2006, she played Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) soccer at the university, making 14 appearances and scoring three goals with three assists.[6] After only a year with the team, she was invited to play for the Canada women's national soccer team and was offered a contract to play professionally in Sweden.[3]

Playing career

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Club

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Vancouver Whitecaps

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Kyle played a total of six seasons with the Vancouver Whitecaps from 2006 to 2012, not including 2009. During her inaugural W-League season in 2006, Kyle made one appearance for the Whitecaps for a total of 78 minutes. In 2007, she made eight appearances in her second season for the Whitecaps scoring one goal. During the 2008 season, Kyle made six appearances for the blue and white with two assists. In 2010, her fourth season with the Whitecaps, Kyle made five appearances tallying two assists. She had two playoff appearances for the team contributing one goal and one assist as the Whitecaps fell in the Championship final. In 2011, Kyle made three playoff appearances for the Whitecaps. She scored two goals during those appearances including the game-winning goal against arch-rival Seattle to help the team clinch third place.[6]

Piteå IF

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In 2009, Kyle played with the Piteå IF in Sweden's top-flight women's league, Damallsvenskan.[6] She made 13 appearances for the team, scoring one goal.[7]

Seattle Reign FC

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Kyle scores a penalty kick against the Chicago Red Stars on July 25, 2013 at Starfire Stadium in Tukwila, Washington.

On January 11, 2013, as part of the NWSL Player Allocation, Kyle joined the Seattle Reign FC in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL).[8][9] After playing a few games as a midfielder, Kyle shifted to a centre back position and helped strengthen a young defensive line. As a defender, Kyle was a leading scorer for the Reign scoring three goals on the season, all of them penalty kicks.[10][11][12][13] Kyle made 21 appearances for the squad, starting in nineteen matches and tallying 1,752 minutes played.[14]

Boston Breakers

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On September 10, 2013, Seattle traded her to the Boston Breakers for fellow Canadian Carmelina Moscato.[15]

Houston Dash

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On April 29, 2014, Kyle was traded to the Houston Dash for Nikki Washington.[16]

Portland Thorns

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Kyle played 12 games for Portland in 2015.

Orlando Pride

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On October 26, 2015, Kyle was acquired by the Orlando Pride along with Alex Morgan from Portland Thorns FC. In return, Portland received Orlando's rights to their first expansion draft selection.[17] She made 17 appearances for the Pride before being released prior to the start of the 2017 season.[18]

International

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Kyle has represented Canada on the U-17 and U-20 youth teams. She participated at the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup twice in 2006 and 2008.

In 2008, she won her first cap for the senior team in a 4–0 loss to the United States. At the 2011 Pan American Games, she was a member of the gold-winning team that defeated Brazil.

Kyle won bronze at the London 2012 Olympic Games, playing a prominent role throughout the tournament in Canada's midfield. Canada defeated France 1–0 in the bronze medal game on August 9, 2012.[19]

She won her 100th cap with the senior national team at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, during the round of 16 match against Switzerland.[20]

Kyle announced her retirement from international competition via social media on April 21, 2017.[21]

Post-soccer career

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Kyle became a broadcaster for TSN in 2017.[22] She hit the headlines in June 2019 when she stated that Canada's rivals the US should not have celebrated whilst scoring the last few of their goals during the 13–0 defeat of Thailand during the Women's World Cup of that year.[23] Kyle hosts for BeIN Sports regularly. She also serves as an analyst for broadcasts on the network. In 2020, she was announced to be the sideline reporter for Inter Miami CF.[24]

Kyle joined the Apple TV MLS Season Pass broadcasting team for the 2023 season.[25]

Kyle announced on December 21, 2023 that she had become a brand ambassador for Can-i Wellness oral spray supplements. [26]

Personal life

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She married Harrison Heath in 2017. They welcomed their first child in June 2018, Hayden Jack Heath.[27]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 – List of Players: Canada" (PDF). FIFA. July 6, 2015. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 8, 2019. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
  2. ^ "Saskatoon Olympians welcomed home". CKOM News Talk 650. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c "Olympic fame and life goals". The StarPhoenix. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  4. ^ "Mom sees Olympic dream come true for Kaylyn Kyle". Metro News Canada. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  5. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle player profile". Canada Soccer. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  6. ^ a b c d "Kaylyn Kyle player profile". Whitecaps FC. Archived from the original on September 10, 2012. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  7. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle player profile". Soccer Way. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  8. ^ "Player distribution sees NWSL take shape". FIFA. Archived from the original on January 17, 2013. Retrieved January 13, 2013.
  9. ^ "New Women's League Allocates Players". New York Times. January 11, 2013. Retrieved January 25, 2013.
  10. ^ "Seattle Reign 2013". National Women's Soccer League. Archived from the original on September 3, 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  11. ^ Murray, Caitlin (August 3, 2013). "Red Stars solve Seattle, stay in playoff hunt". Equalizer Soccer. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  12. ^ "Reign FC gets fifth win in seven games with 4–1 victory over Chicago". Seattle Times. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  13. ^ "Reign out of playoff race; season ends Aug. 17". The News Tribune. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  14. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle". SoccerWay. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  15. ^ "Sources: Seattle Reign sends Kaylyn Kyle to Boston Breakers for Carmelina Moscato". Equalizer Soccer. September 10, 2013. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
  16. ^ "Houston Dash acquire midfielder Kaylyn Kyle from Boston Breakers". Archived from the original on April 30, 2014. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
  17. ^ "Orlando Pride Acquires Alex Morgan, Kaylyn Kyle and Sarah Hagen". Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  18. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle heartbroken over leaving Orlando Pride". Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  19. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle Bio, Stats, and Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
  20. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle reaches 100th cap; CBC". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. June 21, 2015.
  21. ^ "Canadian midfielder Kaylyn Kyle retires from international soccer". The Globe and Mail. April 21, 2017.
  22. ^ "2017 Canada Summer Games Broadcast and Webcast Schedules Announced - Canada Games". canadagames.ca.
  23. ^ "USWNT ripped for over-the-top soccer celebrations". nypost.com. June 12, 2019.
  24. ^ "Inter Miami announces broadcast team". intermiamicf.com.
  25. ^ "Apple and Major League Soccer Add 31 Talented On-Air Personalities to the MLS Season Pass Broadcast Team | MLSSoccer.com". mlssoccer. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  26. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle".
  27. ^ "Kaylyn Kyle Heath on Instagram: "❤️ Baby Heath coming June 2018 ❤️ . . . . #expecting #pregnant #pregnantandperfect #pregnancyannouncement #pregnancy #fitpregnancy…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021.
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