footballer

American  

[foot-baw-ler] / ˈfʊtˌbɔ lər /

noun

• footballers
  plural

1. a football player, especially a member of a college or professional team.

2. Chiefly British. a soccer player.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• footballers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of footballer

First recorded in 1875–80; football + -er ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

footballer footballers

Her cousin’s wife is Austrian footballer Verena Hanshaw, who currently plays for FK Austria.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

He happened to be a talented footballer, too, playing a stone's throw from his idols for USO Mompiano, before joining lower-league side Lumezzane and then AC Milan at the age of 12.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

It's not as complicated as assessing whether a footballer has dived – this is a cut and dried thing that anybody can enter a debate into.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

Perhaps most importantly of all, it would mean him giving up on being a Real Madrid footballer.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

She wishes I didn’t have scabby knees from running around kicking canisters and falling down pretending I was the greatest footballer in the world.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt

The changing room is busy with footballers going through their pre-match routines.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

A return to the pitch and proof that despite exile, separation from their families and years of uncertainty, Afghanistan's women footballers refused to disappear.

From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026

One of those players is Rodri, who warned in 2024 that footballers were "close" to striking because of workload concerns.

From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026

Days ahead of Sunday's final, Messi, now 39, described Lamine Yamal as "one of the best" footballers right now.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

Us footballers all jumped up and pumped our fists and went, “Ouu! Ouu!”

From "Crash" by Jerry Spinelli