Julie Beth Ertz (née Johnston; born April 6, 1992) is an American former professional soccer player. From 2014 to 2021, she played for National Women's Soccer League club Chicago Red Stars, and in 2023 she played for Angel City FC. A member of the United States women's national team from 2013 to 2023, she first appeared for the United States national team during an international friendly against Scotland on February 9, 2013, eventually making 123 total appearances for the team.
Ertz played collegiate soccer with the Santa Clara University Broncos from 2010 to 2013. Following her collegiate career, Ertz was selected third overall by the Chicago Red Stars in the 2014 NWSL College Draft and was named NWSL Rookie of the Year. Ertz helped the United States win their titles at the 2015 and 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. At 23, she was the second youngest member of the 2015 team behind 22-year-old Morgan Brian. Ertz played every minute of all seven games of the 2015 tournament and was subsequently named to the FIFA Women's World Cup All-Star Team. After the 2023 World Cup, Ertz retired from international soccer.
After moving to center midfield for club and country in 2017, Ertz was awarded U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year.
Ertz was again nominated for U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year in 2018 and won the U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year in 2019. Her husband Zach plays in the National Football League (NFL).
Born and raised in Mesa, Arizona, to Kristi and David Johnston, Ertz was raised with her sister Melanie Johnston. Julie was introduced to soccer through her local AYSO region. The Johnston sisters played for Sereno Soccer Club in Phoenix; Julie played for the 1992 side and Melanie played for the 1990s. Regarding Julie's switch to the team, Ertz stated that "it ended up being the best decision [she's] ever made." Sereno was a nationally known club with alumni that have gone on to play in college, on professional teams and for national teams. Ertz played with the team from 2004 to 2010 on the U13 through U19 teams. She won the state title nine times during her time there and was captain of the team.
Ertz attended Dobson High School in Mesa from 2006 to 2010, where she volunteered as a student athletic trainer all four years. She never played for the soccer team at the school, instead opting to devote her time to playing for Sereno. While at Dobson, Ertz was a member of the National Honor Society.
Santa Clara Broncos, 2010–2013
Ertz attended Santa Clara University, where she majored in communications and played as a midfielder for the Broncos women's soccer team. In 2010, as a college freshman, she played in 20 games, starting 16 and accumulating 1,519 minutes of playing time. At the end of the season, she led the team in assists with five and recorded the third-most shots on the team with 31. She was named WCC Freshman of the Year and received NSCAA All-West Region Second-Team, Soccer America All-Freshman First-Team, All-WCC Second-Team, and WCC All-Freshman team honors.
As a sophomore in 2011, Ertz started all 21 games with nine goals and four assists for the Broncos. She scored four game-winning goals in matches away to Cal Poly, and at home to Washington State, California and Nevada. She was a WCC Hermann Trophy semi-finalist and was named to the NSCAA All-American First-Team as well as the All-WCC First-Team.
In 2012, which was her junior year, Ertz started 14 of the 15 games she played and led the Broncos with eight goals and was second on the team with five assists. She scored three game-winning goals and recorded an assist in the first round of the NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament in a match against Long Beach State. She was subsequently named to the All-WCC First Team and NCAA Division I Women All-West Region First Team. She was a MAC Hermann Trophy semi-finalist and was named U.S. Soccer Young Female Athlete of the Year.
In 2013, Ertz played in 22 games and led the team with eight assists and four game-winning goals. She made a total of 12 goals in the season and recorded an assist in the first round of the NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament in a match against University of California at Berkeley. At the end of the season, she was named to the NSCAA All-American First Team, NSCAA All-West Region First Team, All-WCC First Team and College Sports Madness All-WCC First Team. She was also named WCC Player of the Year and College Sports Madness WCC Player of the Year. Overall, Ertz made 79 appearances and scored 31 goals with the Broncos.
On January 17, 2014, Ertz was selected third overall in the first round of the 2014 NWSL College Draft by the Chicago Red Stars. She subsequently signed with the team for the 2014 season. She made her first appearance for the team on April 19 in a match against the Western New York Flash. She scored the only goal of the match in the 59th minute. In the 2014 season, Ertz started in 21 matches and scored two goals. The Red Stars finished fifth in the regular season with a 9–7–8 record and did not advance to the playoffs. Following the 2014 season, Ertz was named NWSL Rookie of the Year and came second in voting (tied with Ali Krieger) behind Becky Sauerbrunn for NWSL Defender of the Year.
In 2015, Ertz missed almost half of the NWSL season due to commitments with the United States women's national team at the FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada. She returned to the Red Stars on July 22 during a match against the Boston Breakers, which ended in 2–1 victory for the Red Stars. She made 11 appearances for the Red Stars during the 2015 season, playing 990 minutes. The Red Stars finished second in the regular season with an 8–3–9 record and advanced to the playoffs. The Red Stars faced FC Kansas City in the semi-finals of the playoffs on September 13. Ertz started in the match, which ended in a 0–3 defeat for the Red Stars and they were eliminated from the playoffs. Following the 2015 season, Ertz was named to the NWSL Best XI and was again a finalist for Defender of the Year.
Ertz made twelve appearances for the Red Stars during the 2016 season before joining the national team in preparation for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She was a finalist for Defender of the Year for a third time.
In the 2017 season, Ertz debuted in a new role in attacking midfield, scoring the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over FC Kansas City in week 2. Ertz was named to the NWSL Second XI for the season after leading Chicago to the championship semi-final, where they lost out for the third consecutive season.
Ertz missed the beginning of the 2018 NWSL season as she was recovering from a knee injury suffered at the 2018 SheBelieves Cup. She made her first appearance of the season on April 28 in a 1–1 draw against the Washington Spirit. Ertz played in 15 games for the Red Stars in 2018 as they qualified for the playoffs for the fourth straight season. The semi-final was a rematch with the North Carolina Courage; Chicago lost 2–0 which was their fourth consecutive semi-final loss. Ertz was named the 2018 NWSL Second XI and was a finalist for Defender of the Year for a fourth time.
At the end of the 2019 season, Ertz and the Chicago Red Stars made their first appearance in the NWSL Championship against the North Carolina Courage.
On December 3, 2021, Ertz's rights were traded to Angel City FC ahead of the upcoming expansion draft.