Ross County Born in
Inverness, On 30 January 2007, he signed a pre-contract agreement with
Highland derby rivals
Inverness and officially joined them on 1 July 2007.
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Cowie's first season at the club proved fruitful as he abided so quickly to the
Scottish Premier League (SPL). He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 defeat away to
St Mirren. During Caley Thistle's poor start to the season Cowie proved to be an inspirational figure in the starting eleven. One of his best moments of the season came when he scored the third, and winning goal in Caley Thistle's 3–2 win over
Celtic, as well as a stunning 20-yard volley in a win over
Kilmarnock. He finished the season as Inverness' top scorer with nine goals and was voted Player of the Year in Caley Thistle's match program.
Watford He was set to join Championship club
Watford over the summer of 2009, as he signed a pre-contract agreement with the club on 29 January 2009. Despite this agreement, Inverness and Watford agreed a fee and he moved on transfer deadline day for a nominal fee on 2 February. He made his debut for on 14 February, in the
FA Cup fifth-round tie against
Chelsea, appearing as a 67th-minute substitute for
Lee Williamson. In the following game, he made his league debut in a 2–0 home victory against
Swansea City on 17 February. He scored his first goal for Watford against
Crystal Palace, in a league game on 28 February 2009. On 7 December 2009, Cowie became the man who has the distinction of assisting
Lloyd Doyley's first ever goal for Watford, he then himself went on to score in the same game, ending in a 3–1 victory against
Queens Park Rangers.
Cardiff City in 2011 On 1 July 2011, Cowie signed for
Cardiff City on a three-year contract, following newly appointed Cardiff manager
Malky Mackay to Wales having been convinced not to sign an improved contract at Watford so Cardiff would not have to pay for the transfer. He made his debut for the club away at
West Ham United in a shock 1–0 win on the opening day of the Championship season. Cowie scored his first and second goals for the Bluebirds in a 5–3 win over
Huddersfield Town in the
League Cup. He scored his first league goal of the season in a 1–1 draw with
Blackpool at
Bloomfield Road. Cowie scored two more goals in two goal fests which included a 4–3 loss at
Peterborough United and a 5–3 victory against
Barnsley at
Cardiff City Stadium. He made his 400th career appearance in a 1–0 win over
Crystal Palace in the
League Cup, a tie which saw Cardiff reach their first-ever
final in the competition. Cowie played the entirety of the
Wembley final against
Premier League Liverpool, but after a 2–2 draw following extra time, the Reds won the final 3–2 on penalties, a shootout in which Cowie took and converted Cardiff's second penalty. Cowie opened his goal account for the 2012–13 season on 22 September against
Crystal Palace. Cowie scored two goals and made twenty-five appearances in a season in which Cardiff won the
Championship title, securing promotion to the Premier League. The club was relegated from the Premier League after its first season in the top flight. Cowie was offered a new contract by manager
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but he decided to leave the club.
Wigan Cowie signed for
Wigan Athletic on a two-year contract in July 2014.
Hearts Cowie became the first signing of
Scottish Premiership side
Hearts during the
2015–16 winter transfer window, signing a two-a-half-year deal with the
Tynecastle club. In August 2017, his contract was extended by one year.
Ross County (second spell) Cowie rejoined Ross County in August 2018. He retired from playing in June 2020. == International career ==