Louie Watson

Louie Shaun Watson (born 7 June 2001) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for EFL League Two club Crawley Town.^[2]

Louie Watson

Personal information
Full name	Louie Shaun Watson[1]
Date of birth	(2001-06-07) 7 June 2001 (age 24)[1]
Place of birth	Croydon, England
Position	Attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team	Crawley Town
Number	27
Youth career
2012–2020	West Ham United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2020–2022	Derby County	13	(0)
2022–2024	Luton Town	5	(0)
2023–2024	→ Charlton Athletic (loan)	21	(0)
2025–	Crawley Town	15	(0)
International career‡
2016	England U15	2	(0)
2019	Republic of Ireland U18	2	(0)
2021	Republic of Ireland U21	5	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 12:45, 12 October 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 17:10, 30 April 2024 (UTC)

Club career

Early career

Born in Croydon,^[3] Watson began playing youth football with Junior Elite FC in Beckenham aged 9 before joining West Ham United's academy at under-11 level.^[4] He signed his first professional contract with West Ham in May 2019.^[5]

Derby County

Watson joined Derby County in summer 2020 on a two-year contract.^[6][7] He was named in a Derby first team squad for the first-time for a match against Preston North End on 26 December 2020,^[6] and made his debut for Derby County in the following match as a substitute in a 4–0 win against Birmingham City on 29 December.^[8][9] He made his full debut for the club in a 2–2 draw with Brentford in March 2021,^[3] and made nine appearances in total during the 2020–21 season for Derby.^[10]

Luton Town

On 1 July 2022, Watson joined Championship club Luton Town for an undisclosed fee.^[11]

Charlton Athletic (loan)

On 1 September 2023, Watson signed for League One club Charlton Athletic on a season-long loan.^[12]

On 30 August 2024, Watson departed Luton Town having had his contract terminated by mutual consent.^[13]

Crawley Town

On 21 February 2025, Watson joined Crawley Town on a deal until the end of the 2025–2026 season.^[14][15]

International career

Watson was capped twice for England U15 in two friendlies against United States U15, before playing for the Republic of Ireland at U18 level.^[16] On March 26, 2021, Watson made his Republic of Ireland U21 debut playing 73 minutes in a 2–1 away win over Wales U21s. He made a total of 5 appearances for the 21s.

Personal life

He is the son of former footballer Steve Watson, who played non-League football for clubs including Sutton United and Aldershot Town.^[4]

Career statistics

As of match played on 11 October 2025

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
West Ham United U23	2019–20[17]	—							1[a]	0	1	0
Derby County	2020–21[10]	Championship	9	0	0	0	0	0	—		9	0
	2021–22[18]	Championship	4	0	0	0	2	0	—		6	0
	Total		13	0	0	0	2	0	—		15	0
Luton Town	2022–23[19]	Championship	5	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	9	0
	2023–24[20]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		5	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	9	0
Charlton Athletic (loan)	2023–24[20]	League One	21	0	2	0	0	0	4[a]	1	27	1
Crawley Town	2024–25[21]	League One	7	0	—		—		—		7	0
	2025–26[22]	League Two	8	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	9	0
	Total		15	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	9	0
Career total			54	0	5	0	4	0	5	1	68	1

1. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy