 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Noelle Maritz[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1995-12-23)23 December 1995 (age 30) | ||
| Place of birth | Newport Beach, California, United States | ||
| Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Aston Villa | ||
| Number | 16 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999–2001 | Hillsborough FC | ||
| 2001–2005 | PDA SC | ||
| 2006–2007 | FC Amriswil | ||
| 2007–2008 | FC Staad | ||
| 2008–2011 | FC Wil 1900 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2011–2013 | FC Zürich | 28 | (1) |
| 2013–2020 | VfL Wolfsburg | 109 | (7) |
| 2020–2024 | Arsenal | 56 | (0) |
| 2024– | Aston Villa | 32 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2010–2012 | Switzerland U17 | 1 | (0) |
| 2012 | Switzerland U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2012 | Switzerland U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2013– | Switzerland | 133 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 10 May 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 18 July 2025 | |||
Noelle Maritz (Swiss Standard German:[noˈɛlˈmaːrɪts]; born 23 December 1995) is a professionalfootballer who plays as adefender forAston Villa of theFA WSL. She previously played forArsenal in the WSL,VfL Wolfsburg in the GermanBundesliga, andFC Zürich in Switzerland'sNationalliga A. Born in the United States, she representsSwitzerland at international level.[2][3]
Noelle Maritz started playing football at age four inNewport Beach, California. When her family moved to the East Coast, she transferred to the Players Development Academy inNew Jersey. After playing in the United States up to U13, she returned to her ancestral homeland, Switzerland, in the summer of 2005.[4]
There she first played for the local club FC Amriswil in theD-Jugend before moving toFC Staad in the summer of 2007.[5] There she was able to recommend herself for the Swiss youth selection and spent three years in the training center of theSwiss Football Association inHuttwil. At the same time, Maritz played atFC Wil in youth football with the boys U13, U14, and U15.[6]
After these three years, she signed her first player contract withFC Zürich for the 2011/2012 season. There she gave her senior debut in theNational League A on August 6, 2011 against SC Schwyz.[7][8] She played 28 games in two years and scored one goal for Zurich in the NLA before signing for German treble winnersVfL Wolfsburg.[9][6]
As the first transfer of the summer, Wolfsburg coachRalf Kellermann signed 17-year-old Maritz on May 20, 2013 on the strength of her first national team performances in Cyprus.[10] She made her debut for the club on October 3, taking to the field as a starter in the match won 8-1 overVfL Sindelfingen.[11] In her first year at VfL Wolfsburg, Maritz played in 15 of 22Bundesliga games and won the double with the club this season, consisting of a championship and a Champions League.
Maritz joinedArsenal FC for the2020/21 season.[12] She made her Arsenal debut in the 2-1 loss toPSG in theChampions League quarter final on 22 August 2020, before making her league debut in their opening game against Reading on 6 September 2020, playing the whole 90 minutes. On 16 May 2021, Maritz scored twice in a 9-0 defeat ofCrystal Palace in theFA Cup.
On 6 January 2024, it was announced that Maritz had signed a two-and-a-half-year deal withAston Villa with the option to extend for a further year.[13] She made her debut for the club on January 13 and played a full 90 minutes in the 3-0 loss againstEverton in theFA Cup.[14]
Noelle Maritz has been a senior Switzerland international since 2013, after taking part in the2012 U17 European Championship in Switzerland and the2017 U20 World Cup in Japan.[15] She made her senior international debut on March 6, 2013 against theCanada national team as part of theCyprus Cup.[16][17]
In 2013/14 Maritz qualified with the Swiss national team for the2015 World Cup in Canada, where she was in the starting line-up in each of the four World Cup games, but was eliminated by a 0-1 defeat in the round of 16 against the hosts. Inqualifying for the Euro 2017 she had four missions. The Swiss were also able to qualify for European Championship finals for the first time, where they played in the three group games. With one win, one draw, and one defeat each, they were eliminated after the group stage.
Inqualifying for the 2019 World Cup, she played in the twelve games played by the Swiss. They ultimately missed out on their second appearance at the World Cup after losing twice in the playoffs of the runners-up to European championsNetherlands. They had previously missed out on direct qualification due to a goalless draw in the last group match againstPoland.
Maritz took part in the2022 European Championship and was in the starting line-up for the Swiss in all three group games. Switzerland was eliminated after the preliminary round. She was in the squad for the2023 World Cup and started all four games. Switzerland was eliminated in the round of 16.
Maritz was named as part of the Switzerland squad to compete inUEFA Women's Euro 2025.[18]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 October 2021 | Letzigrund,Zurich,Switzerland |  Croatia | 2-0 | 5-0 | 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification |
Maritz was born in the United States, growing up in Newport Beach, CA and Hillsborough, NJ, and moved to Switzerland in the canton ofThurgau when she was ten. Therefore, she has dual citizenship.[citation needed]
Because she was born inCalifornia, her name is officially spelled without accents as "Noelle", instead of the usual "Noëlle", according to the state's naming laws where names should only consist of letters in the English alphabet.
FC Zürich
VfL Wolfsburg
Arsenal
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