Vital Kats
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Vital Zina Kats[1] | ||
Date of birth | 18 November 1999 | ||
Place of birth | Netanya, Israel | ||
Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||
Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Kiryat Gat | ||
Youth career | |||
El Salvador SC | |||
Unionville Milliken SC | |||
Scarborough GS United | |||
College career | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2017–2021 | Kent State Golden Flashes | 58 | (22) |
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2015 | ProStars FC | (3) | |
2016 | Aurora United FC | 2 | (2) |
2018–2019 | DeRo United FC | 10 | (2) |
2021–2022 | Glasgow City | 7 | (4) |
2022–2023 | SC Braga | 6 | (1) |
2023 | → SC Braga B | 1 | (0) |
2023–2024 | Kiryat Gat | 12 | (4) |
International career‡ | |||
2016 | Canada U17 | 8 | (2) |
2015–2016 | Canada U20 | 4 | (1) |
2020– | Israel | 12 | (2) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 April 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 14 July 2024 |
Vital Zina Kats (Hebrew: ויטאל זינה קאטס; born 18 November 1999) is an Israeli footballer who plays as a midfielder for Kiryat Gat in the Israeli Ligat Nashim and the Israel women's national team.
Early life
[edit]Born in Israel, Kats moved to Toronto, Canada at the age of seven. She began playing soccer at the age of 9 with El Salvador SC in Toronto, before later playing with Unionville Milliken SC and Scarborough GS United.[2] With GS United, she won the 2016 Ontario Cup as women's provincial amateur champions.[3]
College career
[edit]In 2017, she began attending Kent State University, where she played for the women's soccer team. She scored a goal in her debut on August 20, 2017 against the Cleveland State Vikings.[4] As a freshman in 2017, Kats led all MAC freshmen in scoring with six goals and four assists, also leading the team in scoring.[5] She was named the MAC Freshman of The Year, and was named to the All-MAC Second Team, MAC All-Freshman Team, First Team All-Ohio, and USC All-Midwest Region Second Team.[6] In 2018, she once again led the team in scoring and was named to the USC All-Midwest Region First Team, All-MAC First Team, CoSIDA Academic All-District Second Team, OCSA All-Ohio First Team, and was a MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-MAC.[6] In 2019, she was named to the USC All-Midwest Region Third Team, All-MAC First Team, CoSIDA Academic All-District Second Team, OCSA All-Ohio First Team, and was a MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-MAC.[6] During the Spring 2021 season (delayed from the 2020 Fall), she was named a All-MAC Second Team, CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team, MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete, and Academic All-MAC.[6][7]
Club career
[edit]In 2015, she briefly played with ProStars FC in League1 Ontario,[8] with whom she scored 3 goals.[9]
In 2016, she played with Aurora United FC in League1 Ontario, making two appearances.[10] She scored two goals in her debut on August 13 against Durham United FA.[11] She was a finalist for the Goal of the Year award.[12]
In 2018 and 2019, she played with DeRo United FC.[13][14] She scored her first goal for DeRo United in a League Cup victory on June 24 against North Mississauga SC.[15] She scored her first league goal on July 8 against Toronto Azzurri Blizzard.[16]
In August 2021, Kats signed her first professional contract with Scottish Women's Premier League side Glasgow City F.C.[17][18][19][20] She scored her first goal for the club on August 18, 2021 during a 2021–22 UEFA Women's Champions League qualifying match against Maltese club Birkirkara.[21] She departed the club after the season.[22]
In July 2022, she joined Portuguese club S.C. Braga in the Campeonato Nacional Feminino.[23] She made her debut for Braga in the Supertaça de Portugal semi-finals against Benfica on 10 August, coming on as a substitute.[24]
International career
[edit]In 2014, Kats attended a training camp with the Canada U15 team for her Canadian youth program debut.[2] In December 2015, she won a silver medal with the Canada U20 at the 2015 CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship,[2] where she scored in her debut in a 7-0 victory over Jamaica U20 on December 6.[25] In 2016, she played with the Canada U17 at the 2016 CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship, where they finished third, and the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup,[26] and also played in the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.[2]
She made her senior debut for Israel on 21 October 2020 during the UEFA Women's Euro 2022 qualifying.[27]
International goals
[edit]No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 26 September 2023 | Tamme Stadium, Tartu, Estonia | ![]() |
4–0 | 5–0 | 2023–24 UEFA Women's Nations League |
2. | 9 April 2024 | Ménfői úti Stadion, Győr, Hungary | ![]() |
1–1 | 2–4 | UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying |
Personal life
[edit]Kats' parents were born in Minsk, Soviet Union (now Belarus)[2] and, being Jewish, made aliyah to Israel, where she was born.
References
[edit]- ^ Vital Kats at Soccerway. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Vital Kats at the Canadian Soccer Association
- ^ "Scarborough GS win fourth straight women's Ontario Cup". Ontario Soccer Association. September 9, 2016.
- ^ "Soccer Bested by Cleveland State 2-1 in Home Opener". Kent State Golden Flashes. August 20, 2017.
- ^ Moff, Allen (November 5, 2017). "Six Kent State women's soccer stars earn All-MAC honors". Record-Courier.
- ^ a b c d "Vital Kats Kent State profile". Kent State Golden Flashes.
- ^ "Kats Named Academic All-American". Kent State Golden Flashes. July 5, 2021.
- ^ "Three League1 Ontario Players Called To Canada U20 Women's Team". League1 Ontario. December 3, 2015.
- ^ "Scoring leaders". League1 Ontario. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016.
- ^ "Vital Kats 2016 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Vital Kats Brace Helps Aurora Topple Durham 4-1". League1 Ontario. August 14, 2016.
- ^ Glover, Robin (November 28, 2016). "League1 Ontario 2016 Awards Luncheon". Northern Starting XI. Archived from the original on December 13, 2016.
- ^ "Vital Kats 2018 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Vital Kats 2019 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ Cerjanec, Robert (June 25, 2018). "Sribny, Kats And Norman-Minnis Goals Send DeRo To L1 Cup Semis". League1 Ontario.
- ^ Whyte, Kacian (July 9, 2018). "Kirton And Kats Carry DeRo To 3-1 Win Over Blizzard". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Glasgow City welcome Vital Kats". Glasgow City F.C. August 5, 2021.
- ^ Falk, Graham (August 5, 2021). "Vital Kats: Glasgow City confirm signing of Israeli international". The Scotsman.
- ^ Frith, Wilf (August 5, 2021). "Glasgow City sign Vital Kats". She Kicks.
- ^ "Vital Kats: SWPL1 champions Glasgow City sign Israel midfielder". BBC Sport. 5 August 2021.
- ^ "Glasgow City 3-0 Birkirkara: Hosts ease to victory in Women's Champions League qualifier". Ghana SoccerNet. August 18, 2021.
- ^ "Glasgow City FC: Squad update". Glasgow City F.C. June 17, 2022.
- ^ "Início de pré-época" [Pre-season start]. SC Braga (in Portuguese). July 4, 2022.
- ^ "Derrota no Benfica Campus" [Defeat at Benfica Campus]. SC Braga. 10 August 2022.
- ^ "Canada routs Jamaica at CONCACAF women's U20". Sportsnet. December 6, 2015.
- ^ Gallo, Anthony (December 31, 2016). "Forty-Nine League1 Players (Incl. Alumni) Represented Canada In 2016". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Vital Kats". Senior CLASS Award.
External links
[edit]- Vital Kats — Israeli Football Association national team player details (in Hebrew)
- Vital Kats at Soccerway
- Vital Kats Stats at Playmaker Stats
- 1999 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Netanya
- Israeli women's footballers
- Women's association football midfielders
- Kent State Golden Flashes women's soccer players
- Israel women's international footballers
- Israeli people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
- Jewish Israeli sportspeople
- Israeli expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
- Jewish footballers
- Israeli expatriate women's footballers
- Israeli expatriate sportspeople in the United States
- Expatriate women's soccer players in the United States
- Israeli emigrants to Canada
- Naturalized citizens of Canada
- Canadian women's soccer players
- Canada women's youth international soccer players
- Canadian people of Belarusian-Jewish descent
- Jewish Canadian sportspeople
- Canadian expatriate women's soccer players
- Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States
- Glasgow City F.C. players
- Scottish Women's Premier League players
- Unionville Milliken SC (women) players
- ProStars FC (women) players
- DeRo United Futbol Academy players
- S.C. Braga (women) players
- Aurora FC (women) players
- League1 Ontario (women) players
- Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Scotland
- Israeli expatriate sportspeople in Scotland
- Expatriate women's footballers in Scotland
- Expatriate women's footballers in Portugal
- Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
- F.C. Kiryat Gat (women) players