Kaila Novak: Playing for Canada, UCLA, and Being a TikTok Star
Kaila Novak is a 20-year-old soccer star at the University of California Los Angeles.
The Ontario Native isn’t a stranger to the spotlight. She’s participated in global soccer tournaments, made her mark on a major D1 university team, and influenced a large following of fans on social media platforms.
Let’s learn about Kaila Novak and why she should be on every Soccerista’s radar.
Young Sport Lover
First, some background. Novak was born in London, Ontario, Canada, on March 24, 2002. Her father is from the Czech Republic, her mother is from England, and she has a younger sister, Tai.
As a child, Novak played soccer in addition to hockey, dance, and gymnastics. She committed to soccer, which led to her championing her club and debuting for her country at a young age.
Leading Scorer For Club
Novak played for FC London. She was the leading goal scorer in the Ontario Women’s Soccer League in 2017, with 16 goals in 11 games.
Representing Canada
Novak made her debut with the Canada Women’s National Team when she was just 15 years old. Her team performed well at the 2018 Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship. They took home bronze. Novak had 11 caps and two goals at this level.
She was also on the Fifa U-17 Women’s World Cup team, which in 2018 finished in fourth place in Uruguay. More recently, Novak represented her country in the 2020 Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship. She was integral to the squad, scoring several goals and starting three of four games.
Canada qualified for the 2022 U-20 World Cup with the help of Novak’s leadership.
College Commitment
Kaila Novak entered Winter 2020, fulfilling a dream of becoming a Bruin at UCLA. She brought her international experience and love for the beautiful game with her, bolstering the Bruin’s offense and assisting on game-winning goals.
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Additionally, Novak was the FTF Canada Freshman Offensive Player of the Year and earned Pac-12 All-Freshman honors. She started 11 games and notched one goal and three assists.
Novak is majoring in neuroscience and is considering medical school or a professional soccer career post-graduation.
Overcoming Injury
In 2021, Novak started strong and played 15 games for UCLA. However, she battled some leg injuries, as soccer players do. This caused her to miss five games. Nevertheless, she was named to the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll again, a testament to her dedication and motivation to better herself every day.
Social Media Presence
Kaila Novak’s name might be familiar to TikTok fans. Novak has 1.4 million followers for her day in the life videos, being a D1 soccer athlete, and spreading body positivity. Novak’s personality shines through her videos, encouraging athletes and people not to take themselves too seriously. She’s also a part of the LGBTQ+ community and uses her platforms to be an advocate and spread love and pride.
What’s Next?
Kaila Novak is one of the rising female soccer players with a strong personal brand making her mark on the international stage. She is also an inspiration to many, crafting genuine, positive, and goofy messages on social media that spread body positivity and joy.
We love a soccer inspiration who can keep it real and bring her personality front and center! So keep an eye out for Kaila Novak dominating the field this upcoming UCLA season.
Featured image via @UCLAWSoccer on Instagram
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