Jodi Ülkekul

Jodi Ülkekul
Personal information
Full name Jodi Sevim Ülkekul
Date of birth (1997-07-23) July 23, 1997
Height 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)
Position Forward
Team information
Current team
 Sydney FC
Number 9
Youth career
2006–2015 Crossfire Premier
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2018 Gonzaga Bulldogs 74 (7)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Seattle Sounders Women
2019–2021 Roma CF
2021–2022 CD Castellón
2022 OL Reign 0 (0)
2024–2025 Spokane Zephyr 15 (0)
2025– Sydney FC 6 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 00:12, December 28, 2025 (UTC)

Jodi Sevim Ülkekul (born July 23, 1997) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Australian A-League club Sydney FC. She played college soccer for the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

Early life

The youngest of three sisters, Ülkekul grew up in a soccer-geared family in Sammamish, Washington.[1] She joined youth soccer team Crossfire Premier in 2006 and helped the club's A team reach the quarterfinals of the Washington state championship in 2012. Ülkekul attended Eastlake High School and made it onto the school's varsity soccer team as a freshman. She went on to be a two-time team MVP and was an all-conference first team honoree as a senior.[2]

College career

Ülkekul was originally not offered a soccer scholarship by Gonzaga University, so she joined the school's team as a walk-on in 2015.[1] She went on to play in all 74 of the Bulldogs' matches over the next four years.[2] In her junior and senior seasons, she co-captained the team,[3] assuming a passionate leadership role not dissimilar to the one she had filled in high school.[4][1] Although she would go on to play as a forward professionally, Ülkekul primarily played as a defender in her four years at Gonzaga.[5][6] She still managed to record 7 goals and 8 assists from the backline,[7] including a pair of goals against San Diego in September 2019 that would prove to comprise the only multi-goal game of her college career.[1][2]

Club career

Ülkekul has played for the Seattle Sounders Women in the amateur Women's Premier Soccer League.[8] She started her professional career overseas with Italian second-division club Roma CF, where she played from 2019 to 2021.[9] On 15 July 2021, she was announced to have joined Spanish Reto Iberdrola side CD Castellón on a one-year deal.[8] Castellón went on to have an unsuccessful season, finishing last in the league and getting relegated to the Spanish third tier.[10]

On July 1, 2022, National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) team OL Reign announced that they had signed Ülkekul to a short-term national team replacement player contract.[11] On August 17, the Reign extended Ülkekul through the end of the 2022 NWSL season.[12] She played in one game for the Reign, a non-competitive appearance in The Women's Cup, before sustaining a season-ending ACL rupture in September 2022.[13][14] The Reign waived Ülkekul at the end of the season.[15]

Ülkekul's ACL rehab journey was fraught with post-operation complications.[13] During her recovery, she came into contact with USL Spokane head of performance Josh McAllister, who was searching for potential players for the Spokane Zephyr FC squad ahead of the inaugural USL Super League season. After a year and a half, Ülkekul decided to join the Zephyr.[16] She was officially announced to have signed for the club on June 4, 2024;[17] the move reunited her with former Gonzaga teammate Sophia Braun.[18] On September 8, she made her first competitive appearance in over two years, coming on as a substitute for Taryn Ries in the Zephyr's second-ever match.[16][19] She played in 15 matches for the Zephyr before departing from Spokane at the end of the season.[19]

In August 2025, Ülkekul was announced to have signed for Australian club Sydney FC.[9] She made her A-League debut on October 31, 2025, participating in Sydney's season-opening draw with Melbourne City FC.[20]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Bond, Trevor (October 24, 2018). "Once a walk-on, senior Ulkekul guides Gonzaga women's soccer". The Gonzaga Bulletin. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "Jodi Ulkekul". Gonzaga Bulldogs. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  3. ^ Krueger, Henry (June 30, 2024). "Former Gonzaga women's soccer star Jodi Ülkekul joins Spokane Zephyr FC". The Gonzaga Bulletin. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  4. ^ Scott, Shaun (October 13, 2014). "A stalemate on the soccer field". Issaquah Reporter. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  5. ^ Teneyck, Alexa (August 16, 2024). "Learn more about the 6 Spokane Zephyr FC players with history in the Pacific Northwest". SWX Sports. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  6. ^ "Jodi Ulkekul excited to begin new Sydney FC chapter". Sydney FC. October 31, 2025. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  7. ^ "The Lilac City welcomes back former Gonzaga Bulldog to Spokane Zephyr FC". KREM. June 4, 2024. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  8. ^ a b "Jodi Ülkekul, cuarta cara nueva para el Femenino del CD Castellón". Fundació Albinegra (in Spanish). July 15, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  9. ^ a b "Sydney FC Sign American Attacker Jodi Ulkekul". Sydney FC. August 15, 2025. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  10. ^ Sastriques, Jorge (May 16, 2023). "La caída sin fin del equipo femenino del Castellón". El Periódico Mediterráneo (in Spanish). Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  11. ^ "OL Reign Signs Ryanne Brown, Elli Reed, and Jodi Ulkekul as National Team Replacement Players". Seattle Reign FC. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  12. ^ "OL Reign Signs Forward Jodi Ulkekul Through 2022 Season". Seattle Reign FC. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  13. ^ a b "Zephyr player returns to the city that shaped her". KXLY 920 News. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  14. ^ "Forward Jodi Ulkekul Placed on Season-Ending Injury List". Seattle Reign FC. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  15. ^ "OL Reign Announces Offseason Roster Moves" (Press release). OL Reign. November 15, 2022. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  16. ^ a b Reed, Justin (August 15, 2024). "Zags to Zephyr: Former GU standouts Sophia Braun, Jodi Ulkekul delighted to be part of Spokane's first pro women's team". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  17. ^ "Former Gonzaga University star Jodi Ülkekul to join Spokane Zephyr FC". USL Spokane. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  18. ^ "Zags Turned Pros: Two Alums Reunite at Spokane Zephyr FC". Gonzaga. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  19. ^ a b Jodi Ülkekul at Soccerway
  20. ^ "Sydney FC Earn Solid Draw With Premiers". Sydney FC. November 1, 2025. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
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