When you talk about presence on the pitch, you can’t go much further than Australia’s tallest ever outfield player Harry Souttar.
The defender is one of several players racing against the clock to build fitness ahead of selection for the FIFA World Cup 2026™.
Let’s take a look back at his journey so far, from growing up in a small town in Aberdeenshire to representing the CommBank Socceroos on the biggest stage.
Early Years
Harry Souttar was born on 22 October, 1998. He was raised in a 300-strong village of Luthermuir in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
He grew up playing alongside his brother John Souttar who is currently a centre-back for Scottish Premier League side Rangers. The two of them came through Brechin City Youths – the team where their father played – before moving to Dundee United.
While he was raised in Scotland, Souttar was eligible to play for the CommBank Socceroos through his mother, Heather, who was born in Western Australia.
It was Australian goalkeeper Adam Federici who helped him on the path to representing the Socceroos, putting him in touch with then-assistant coach Rene Meulensteen.
“He didn’t have to sell anything to me because I wanted to play for Australia,” he said.
Bursting onto the scene
Souttar debuted for the national side in a FIFA World Cup 2022™ qualifier against Nepal in October 2019. The then-20-year-old scored a brace in the 5-0 win and immediately endeared himself to the Australian public.
“It was a dream come true to score the goals that I did, hopefully I can be involved in future camps and show the manager what I can do on and off the pitch,” he said at the time.
“I’m looking forward to it – hopefully it’s just the start.”
The young defender continued building momentum for club and country, where he played for Stoke City in the Championship, before disaster struck in late 2021.
The injury, and the comeback
By late 2021, Souttar was a regular in the Socceroos’ defence. He was a considerable presence in the Australian back line and his career seemed to be going in no direction but up.
In November, just over two years since his debut, serious injury struck. He sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ qualifier against Saudi Arabia and suddenly faced a race against time to reach the global finals.
He put his head down and got to work. By the time the World Cup rolled around, Souttar was ready – and he went on to play a significant role in the team’s historic Round of 16 campaign.
“My first thought as soon as I got injured was I need to get fit for the World Cup,” he said.
He not only made it back, but was a standout. Who can forget that tackle against Tunisia?
“Looking back, I think it was probably one of the best experienced of my life,” he said.
“We’ve got to be so proud as a group of what we managed to achieve.”
His strong performances at the tournament caught the eye of many potential suitors and it was then Premier League outfit Leicester City who signed the defender on a five-and-a-half-year contract for an undisclosed fee reportedly in the region of £15m, approximately A$26.3m.
History repeats?
Souttar faces another race against the clock. In December 2024, he suffered a ruptured achilles tendon while on loan at Sheffield United. Various setbacks saw him only back his return last month – playing well in two games for Leicester City. He was out for a total of 483 days.
He is currently with the team as part of the train-on squad for the FIFA World Cup 2026™ pre-camp in Sarasota, Florida.
Head Coach Tony Popovic said that he wanted to have a good look at him before deciding if he was ready to participate in the tournament.
“It’s mental resilience you can’t buy. You have to go through adversity, and they’ve done that,” he said, of Souttar and similarly positioned teammate Mathew Leckie.
“There is presence, there is aura, there is a leader. You can’t get that in a young player overnight, that takes time, and he’s done it at a World Cup when he played underdone [in 2022].”
It will be a remarkable comeback if Souttar is fit to make the squad for 2026, but if anyone can do it, he has proven that he is capable.