Vital Zina Kats (Hebrew: ויטאל זינה קאטס; born 18 November 1999) is an Israeli footballer who plays as a midfielder for Portuguese club S.C. Braga in the Campeonato Nacional Feminino and the Israel women's national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vital Zina Kats[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1999-11-18) 18 November 1999 (age 22) | ||
| Place of birth | Netanya, Israel | ||
| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | SC Braga | ||
| 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 | ||
| 2016 | Aurora United FC | 2 | (2) |
| 2018–2019 | DeRo United FC | 10 | (2) |
| 2021–2022 | Glasgow City | ||
| 2022– | SC Braga | 2 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2016 | Canada U17 | 8 | (2) |
| 2015–2016 | Canada U20 | 4 | (1) |
| 2020– | Israel | 6 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 September 2022 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 12 April 2022 | |||
Born in Israel, Kats moved to Toronto, Canada at the age of seven. She began playing soccer at the sage 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]
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]
In 2015, she briefly played with ProStars FC in League1 Ontario.[8]
In 2016, she played with Aurora United FC in League1 Ontario, making two appearances.[9] She scored two goals in her debut on August 13 against Durham United FA.[10] She was a finalist for the Goal of the Year award.[11]
In 2018 and 2019, she played with DeRo United FC.[12][13] She scored her first goal for DeRo United in a League Cup victory on June 24 against North Mississauga SC.[14] She scored her first league goal on July 8 against Toronto Azzurri Blizzard.[15]
In August 2021, Kats signed her first professional contract with Scottish Women's Premier League side Glasgow City F.C.[16][17][18][19] 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.[20] She departed the club after the season.[21]
In July 2022, she joined Portuguese club S.C. Braga in the Campeonato Nacional Feminino.[22] She made her debut for Braga in the Supertaça de Portugal semi-finals against Benfica on 10 August, coming on as a substitute.[23]
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.[24] 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,[25] 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.[26]
Kats' parents were born in Minsk, Soviet Union (now Belarus)[2] and, being Jewish, made aliyah to Israel, where she was born.