How did Sophia Smith and Michael Wilson meet? Relationship explored as soccer star announces pregnancy with Cardinals player

Portland Thorns FC striker, Sophia Smith, and her husband, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson, are expecting a baby. The couple made the announcement on Instagram on March 5, posing together alongside ultrasound scans.

The sporting couple first met in Stanford University, where Sophia Smith and Michael Wilson played collegiate soccer and football respectively. According to USA Today, the couple started dating in 2018 during their first year at Stanford. Wilson had debuted the relationship on Instagram, in a post of the couple on vacation in San Francisco.

Smith and Wilson have stood strongly by each other over the years. Wilson features heavily on Smith’s Instagram posts, and Smith has emphasized that Wilson is her partner as well as best friend. In a post dating back to 2019, Smith wrote:

“life is fun when you’re in love with your bestfriend”

Wilson is also appreciative of Smith on social media, pointing out in one his posts that he and Smith have been together through thick and thin. This is apparent, as Smith was seen waiting anxiously and then celebrating enthusiastically alongside Wilson when he was picked in the 2023 NFL draft. Fans of the couple cannot help but draw a comparison between Olympian Simone Biles and her NFL star husband, Jonathan Owens.

In July 2024, Wilson took to Instagram to announce that he has proposed to Smith and she said yes. Wilson posted a video of the engagement where he and Smith could be seen impeccably dressed, with Smith moved to tears as Wilson bent down on one knee to pop the question. The couple celebrated with champagne as their parents arrived to share their special moment with them.

In a 2024 story by Arizona Cardinals’ website, Sophia Smith had confessed that the couple had to navigate through being away from each other for long periods due to their respective careers. She said:

“More of our relationship has been long distance than actually together… We felt like the first two years we built a strong enough foundation that any distance or any time, we'd be fine. But, obviously, it's not ideal.”

On January 28, 2025, the young couple shared that they had tied the knot in a quaint California ceremony. The couple was radiant with happiness as they began a new chapter of their lives surrounded by the warm presence of their family members. Wilson and Smith re-introduced themselves as 'the Wilsons' to the world.

In the interview with Arizona Cardinals, Sophia Smith had expressed her desire to be a mother, stating:

“I feel like, aside from soccer, that's what I feel is my calling, to be a mom… My career, it has to stop for a period of time when I am pregnant so that's not something we can just let happen at any moment. (But) we've been patient for a long time.”

The couple’s pregnancy news has left their fans and supporters beaming with joy, while Sophia Smith’s team, Portland Thorns FC took to X to wish Smith a hearty congratulations. They wrote:

“We are overjoyed to share that @sophsssmith and her husband Michael are expecting their first child! The Thorns are proud to support her through this incredible new chapter”

Sophia Smith and Michael Wilson’s sporting careers

Sophia Smith, who was honored by Nike's Just Do It' T-shirt featuring women athletes, has become somewhat of a soccer legend since getting drafted by the Portland Thorns FC as a forward in the 2020 NWSL Draft, as the no. 1 pick. She was also called into the US women’s national team in 2019, according to Go Stanford.

During the US women’s soccer team’s Paris Olympics gold campaign, Smith played an essential role. She scored a semi final goal against Germany, which secured the US team’s final spot.

Meanwhile, Smith’s husband Wilson was picked by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2023 NFL draft. In a failed October 2023 campaign against San Francisco 49ers, Wilson nonetheless scored a 16 yard pass. He has played 16 games in the 2024 season.