Mark Stephen Howard (born 21 September 1986) is an English professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who plays as a
goalkeeper
In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...
for club
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...
.
Born in
Southwark
Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
, London, Howard was part of
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
's youth team, but having failed to make the step up to the senior squad he departed for
Cardiff City
Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...
. He moved to Scotland, with spells at St Mirren and
Aberdeen
Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...
, before moving back to England to play for
Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
,
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...
(for whom he holds the club's consecutive clean-sheet record of eight games) and
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...
. He returned to Blackpool in 2018 and remained there for two years, during which he had a loan spell at Salford City. He has since had spells at
Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system.
The club was formed in ...
,
Carlisle United
Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system.
They have played their ...
and Wrexham.
He acquired the nickname "Chomp" from John Potter while playing for St Mirren when he sat next to another player nicknamed "Champ".
Career
Early career
Howard started his career with
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
, but he never made an appearance for the first team, although he was an unused substitute during the
2005 FA Community Shield
The 2005 FA Community Shield (also known as The FA Community Shield in partnership with McDonald's for sponsorship reasons) was the 83rd staging of the FA Community Shield, an annual football match contested by the reigning champions of the Premie ...
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the Scottish football league system, top-level league competition for professional Association football, football clubs in Scotland. The league was founded in 1998, when it broke away from the Scottish Foo ...
club
Falkirk
Falkirk ( ; ; ) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow.
Falkirk had a resident population of 32,422 at the ...
in January 2006, for whom he made eight appearances. After his loan period ended in the summer, Howard was released by Arsenal.
Cardiff City
Following his release by the Gunners, Howard was offered a permanent contract with Falkirk, but he instead decided to join
Cardiff City
Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...
. He provided backup as a second-choice keeper that season to
Neil Alexander
James Neil Alexander (born 10 March 1978) is a Scottish association football, football coach and former professional player. He began his career in the Scottish Football League with spells at Stenhousemuir F.C., Stenhousemuir and Livingston F. ...
. He made his debut for ''The Bluebirds'' in a League Cup tie against
Barnet
Barnet may refer to:
People
*Barnet (surname)
*Barnet (given name)
Places United Kingdom
*Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below.
*East Barnet, a district of the borough below; anc ...
.
After a month's loan with
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...
, as cover in January 2007, he was released by Cardiff at the end of the 2006–07 season.
St Mirren
Howard joined Scottish club St Mirren and made his debut on 13 February 2008, keeping a clean sheet against
Dundee United
Dundee United Football Club is a Scotland, Scottish professional association football, football club based in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923. United are nickname ...
in a
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Chris Smith, and his performances led to him signing a new two-year contract in April 2009. The following season, however, Howard made only two appearances, after losing his first-choice status to new signing
Paul Gallacher
Paul James Gallacher (born 16 August 1979) is a Scottish former professional footballer who currently is the goalkeeping coach for Heart of Midlothian. Gallacher made eight appearances for the Scotland national team between 2002 and 2004. He ...
, and left the club after three seasons and 52 games.
Aberdeen
In July 2010, Howard signed a one-year deal with
Aberdeen
Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...
and made his debut on 14 August 2010, keeping a clean sheet in a 4–0 win over
Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, who currently compete in . They were established in 1874 from the school football team at Hamilto ...
. As the season progressed, Howard slipped to second-choice behind
Jamie Langfield
James Robert Langfield (born 22 December 1979) is a Scottish football player and coach, who is currently the goalkeeping coach at St Mirren. Langfield, who played as a goalkeeper, started his career with Dundee. He then played for Partick Thist ...
and left the club when the season ended.
Blackpool
Howard signed a five-month contract with
Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
in September 2011 as cover after fitness concerns over
Matt Gilks
Matthew Gilks (born 4 June 1982) is a former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
He played for Blackpool, Burnley, Norwich City, Rochdale, Rangers, Wigan Athletic, Shrewsbury Town, Scunthorpe United, Lincoln City, Fleetwood T ...
and Mark Halstead. He had to wait until Boxing Day later that year to make his full début for the club, in a 3–1 victory at
Barnsley
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...
. He went on to make three more appearances, his performances prompting manager
Ian Holloway
Ian Scott Holloway (born 12 March 1963) is an English professional football manager, former player, media personality and television pundit who is the manager of club Swindon Town.
A midfielder, he notably played in the Premier League with ...
to offer him an extension for the rest of the season, but Howard failed to agree terms and left
Bloomfield Road
Bloomfield Road is a association football, football stadium in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Blackpool F.C., Blackpool Football Club since 1901. It is the third stadium in the club's existence, the previous two be ...
when his short-term deal expired.
Sheffield United
In February 2012, Howard joined
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...
on a free transfer, signing a -year contract after a successful two-week trial period, arriving as cover for
Steve Simonsen
Steven Preben Arthur Simonsen (born 3 April 1979) is an English former professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He started his senior career at Tranmere Rovers F.C., Tranmere Ro ...
. He did not make a first-team appearance that season. When Simonsen was released the following summer, Howard made his United debut, against
Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1886, the club were inaugur ...
on 18 August 2012, keeping a clean sheet in a single-goal victory. Howard remained first-choice keeper until he suffered a thigh injury in the eleventh minute at Matchroom Stadium against
Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...
in October 2012, an injury that kept him out of the side for twelve weeks. Replaced by George Long, Howard was unable to regain his place in the team, despite having started the 2012–13 season as first-choice. The following season initially saw Howard continue to play understudy to Long, making only a handful of appearances until he was recalled to the starting lineup by new manager
Nigel Clough
Nigel Howard Clough (born 19 March 1966) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Mansfield Town. Playing predominantly as a forward, but later in his career used as a midfielder, Clough was capped by ...
for an
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
tie against
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
in February 2014. Having kept a clean sheet in that fixture, Howard retained his place and was virtually ever-present until the end of the season, missing only one game. With his current deal set to expire, United opted to take up a one-year extension in May 2014.
Bolton Wanderers
On 13 July 2016, Howard signed a two-year contract with
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...
after leaving Sheffield United at the end of the previous season. On 24 May 2018, Bolton confirmed that Howard would leave the club on 30 June, when his contract came to an end.
Blackpool
Howard re-joined
Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
following his release from Bolton. On 5 July 2018, he signed a two-year deal with ''the Tangerines''. He was released in June 2020.
Salford City
Howard joined Salford City in a seven-day emergency loan on 22 October 2019. The loan was renewed on 29 October.
Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system.
The club was formed in ...
on a deal until the end of the season.
Carlisle United
Howard signed for
Carlisle United
Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system.
They have played their ...
on 14 October 2021. Howard was released at the end of the 2021–22 season, despite having won the Player of the Season award 12 hours before.
Wrexham
Howard signed a one-year deal at
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...
on 5 July 2022 following the expiry of his contract at Carlisle. He's been part of the team during both promotions to
EFL League Two
The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...
in 2023 and to
EFL League One
The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...
in 2024.
Howard also represented Wrexham in
The Soccer Tournament
The Soccer Tournament (TST) is a seven-a-side association football tournament played in the United States, established by TBT Enterprises, creator of The Basketball Tournament (TBT). TST was announced on October 11, 2022 to feature 32 teams with ...
(TST) in 2023 and 2024, even scoring 2 goals in back-to-back games in 2024. On 7 June 2024, Howard scored the game-winning goal in the TST Round of 32 game.
On 19 June 2024 he signed a one-year extension with the club.
International career
Although Howard did not win any official caps for either
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, or any of its youth teams, he did appear as a substitute in an unofficial England fixture in 2004, as part of a testimonial for former
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
defender
Martin Keown
Martin Raymond Keown ( ; born 24 July 1966) is an English football pundit and former professional footballer. A defender, he played from 1984 to 2005, notably in the Premier League for Arsenal, where he made over 400 appearances for the club an ...
. England lost 6–0.
YouTube
Howard has a podcast
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel called ''Yours, Mine, Away!''. The first episode of the podcast commenced with his interview with
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
's goalkeeper
Aaron Ramsdale
Aaron Christopher Ramsdale (born 14 May 1998) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Southampton and the England national team.
Ramsdale began his senior club career playing for Sheffield United and signed fo ...
in January 2023.
Personal life
Howard pursued a degree in
journalism
Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...
and
media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Interactive media, media that is inter ...
and achieved his BA from
Staffordshire University
The University of Staffordshire is a public research university in Staffordshire, England. It has its main campus in Stoke-on-Trent and four other campuses in Stafford, Lichfield, Shrewsbury, and London.
History
In 1901, industrialist Alfred ...
in Professional Sports Writing and Broadcasting in November 2023.
Career statistics
Honours
Bolton Wanderers
*
EFL League One
The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
:
2022–23
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
*
EFL League Two
The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...
Carlisle United
Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system.
They have played their ...