Olivia García (Spanish: [oˈli.βja ɣaɾˈsi.a];[a] born September 3, 2003) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Women's Super League club Brighton & Hove Albion. She played college soccer for the Florida State Seminoles, winning the 2023 national championship. After two years in college, she started her professional career with HB Køge and was the Danish club's Player of the Year in 2024.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | September 3, 2003 | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Brighton & Hove Albion | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Las Vegas Premier | |||
| Utah Royals FC AZ | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022–2023 | Florida State Seminoles | 38 | (7) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022 | Kansas City Current II | – | (–) |
| 2024–2025 | HB Køge | 48 | (25) |
| 2026– | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | (0) |
| 2026 | → AIK (loan) | 11 | (7) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of June 24, 2026 | |||
Early life
editGarcía grew up in Las Vegas, the daughter of Juan Carlos and Lynne García. She is of Cuban descent through her father (who fled Cuba in the 1960s after the Cuban Revolution) and Spanish descent through her paternal grandfather, and is fluent in both English and Spanish.[1][2] She played club soccer for Las Vegas Premier Sports Academy and Utah Royals FC Arizona, leading the former to the USYS under-14 national title in 2017.[3][4] She attended Cimarron-Memorial High School, where she ran cross country. In her senior year in 2021, she won the NIAA Class 4A cross country state championship and was named the Nevada Gatorade Player of the Year in the sport.[5] She committed to play college soccer for the Florida State Seminoles in her junior year.[4] Before college, she spent the summer with the Kansas City Current II in the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL).[6]
College career
editGarcía played in 20 games, starting 4, and scored 3 goals for the Florida State Seminoles as a freshman in 2022. She helped the Seminoles win their fourth consecutive ACC tournament and reach the NCAA tournament semifinals, losing to North Carolina.[1][7] In her sophomore year in 2023, she played in 18 games, starting 2, and scored 4 goals. She scored twice during the NCAA tournament as the Seminoles finished the season undefeated and won their fourth national title, defeating Stanford in the final.[1][8] After two seasons in Tallahassee, she decided to turn professional and give up her remaining college eligibility.[9]
Club career
editHB Køge
editDanish Women's League club HB Køge announced on February 5, 2024, that they had signed García to her first professional contract on a two-year deal.[9] She scored two goals in her professional debut in a 3–1 win against AGF on March 17.[10] She ended the 2023–24 season with 5 goals in 10 games as HB Køge finished third in the league.[11]
On October 20, 2024, García scored her first professional hat trick in a 5–0 win over Kolding IF.[12] Having scored 13 goals during her first year with HB Køge, she was named the club's Female Player of the Year.[13] She finished the 2024–25 season with 18 goals in 24 games, second in the league behind Fortuna Hjørring's Joy Omewa.[14] She accounted for a majority of HB Køge's league goals (51%) as they again placed third.[14] She came third in the voting for the Danish Women's League Player of the Year behind AGF's Signe Baattrup and winner Omewa.[15]
On October 8, 2025, García scored her first continental goal in qualifying for the inaugural UEFA Women's Europa Cup, striking from outside the box in a 2–1 home win over Glasgow City; HB Køge were eliminated following the away leg in Glasgow.[16] She departed from HB Køge at the end of the year, having scored 28 goals in 57 games in two years at the club.[17]
Brighton & Hove Albion
editOn February 2, 2026, García signed with Women's Super League club Brighton & Hove Albion.[18] She was immediately loaned to Damallsvenskan club AIK through June.[18] On February 14, she scored a goal in her AIK debut in a 2–1 win over Gefle in the Swedish Women's Cup.[19] On April 5, she scored her first league goal for AIK to secure a 2–1 win over Rosengård in added time.[20] She finished the successful loan with 7 goals in 11 league games, topping the Damallsvenskan scoring chart alongside BK Häcken's Felicia Schröder.[21]
International career
editUnder FIFA eligibility rules, García is eligible to represent Cuba, Spain, or the United States.[2] In January 2026, she indicated that she was still pushing for a spot on the United States national team despite there being "so much talent in the US". When asked about her thoughts on playing for Cuba, she admitted it was a "complicated situation" due to her father having fled the country's communist regime, though nevertheless said she was "still counting on it" and that "maybe one day in the future it opens up". She was also in the process of acquiring a Spanish passport, which would make her eligible to play for Spain.[2]
Honors and awards
editFlorida State Seminoles
- NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament: 2023
- ACC women's soccer tournament: 2022, 2023
- Atlantic Coast Conference: 2022, 2023
Individual
Notes
edit- ↑ As pronounced in Cuban Spanish.
References
edit- 1 2 3 "Olivia Garcia". Florida State Seminoles. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- 1 2 3 "Exclusive: New Brighton signing Olivia Garcia talks European dream and international options ahead of loan move". Yahoo Sports. February 2, 2026.
- ↑ Reese, Madelyn (August 15, 2017). "Las Vegas girls soccer team takes national title". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- 1 2 Clark, Travis (December 7, 2020). "SIMA Recruiting Roundup: Dec. 7–13". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- ↑ "Gatorade 2021–2022: Player of the Year – Girls Cross Country – Nevada". Gatorade. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- ↑ "Olivia Garcia's Hat Trick Propels Kansas City Current II to Midwest Conference Title". Women's Premier Soccer League. July 8, 2022. Archived from the original on December 20, 2022.
- ↑ Kassim, Ehsan (December 2, 2022). "Florida State women's soccer: North Carolina defeats Seminoles in a thriller in NCAA semifinal". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- ↑ "Florida State beats Stanford for its fourth women's soccer national championship — all since 2014". Associated Press. December 4, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- 1 2 "Welcome, Olivia". HB Køge. February 4, 2025. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- ↑ "Rundens mål af Olivia Garcia" (in Danish). Danish Women's League. March 18, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- ↑ "Olivia Garcia 2023-2024 Match Logs". FBref.com. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- ↑ Møller, Per (October 24, 2024). "Olivia Garcia 10. HB Køge spiller til at lave hattrick" (in Danish). HB Køge. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- 1 2 "Olivia García er Årets Kvindespiller i HB Køge". HB Køge. November 27, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
- 1 2 "2024-2025 Kvindeligaen Stats". FBref.com. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
- ↑ Emmanuel, Ifeanyi (June 13, 2025). "25 goals and 6 assists: Former Falconets forward wins Player of the Year award in Denmark". allnigeriasoccer.com. Retrieved June 14, 2025.
- ↑ Lindsay, Clive (October 8, 2025). "Glasgow lose narrowly to Koge in Europa Cup first leg". BBC Sport. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
- ↑ Dalsten, Casper (December 29, 2025). "HB Køge tager afsked med Olivia Garcia". Fodbold For Piger (in Danish). Retrieved January 2, 2026.
- 1 2 "Olivia Garcia signs for Albion". Brighton & Hove Albion W.F.C. February 2, 2026. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ↑ "AIK vinnare mot Gefle". Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). February 14, 2026. Retrieved June 26, 2026.
- ↑ "AIK vände i slutminuterna borta mot Rosengård" (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. April 5, 2026. Retrieved June 26, 2026.
- ↑ "Schröder tops Swedish women's league scoring after double". Sweden Herald. June 18, 2026. Retrieved June 26, 2026.
External links
edit- Olivia Garcia at Soccerway.com
