Neill, Lucas (1978-…), is a former Australian professional soccer player. Soccer is called football in much of the world. Neill served as captain of the Australian national soccer team, commonly known as the Socceroos, from 2006 to 2014. He also played for a number of professional teams. Neill was a consistent and versatile defender. For a discussion of soccer positions and formations, see Soccer (Players and officials) .
Lucas Edward Neill was born on March 9, 1978, in Sydney . He began playing soccer as a youth and trained at Canberra ’s prestigious Australian Institute of Sport (now the Centre of Excellence).
Neill began his professional career in 1996 with Millwall FC in London . FC stands for football club. In 2001, he transferred to Lancashire ’s Blackburn Rovers FC. In 2007, he signed with London’s West Ham United FC. After that, Neill played for Everton FC in Liverpool , Galatasaray in Turkey , Al Jazira Club in Abu Dhabi , Al Wasl FC in Dubai , Sydney FC, Omiya Ardija in Japan , Watford FC in Hertfordshire , and Doncaster Rovers FC in South Yorkshire .
Neill debuted for the Socceroos in 1996. In 2000, he competed for Australia in the Olympic Games . In 2006, Neill helped the Socceroos qualify for their first FIFA World Cup tournament since 1974. FIFA stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football). FIFA is soccer’s world governing body. As Socceroo captain, Neill led the squad during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa .
