Josh Wolff

Josh Wolff (born February 25, 1977) is an American soccer coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of Austin FC ahead of their inaugural season in Major League Soccer in 2021.[1]

Josh Wolff
Wolff playing for D.C. United in 2011
Personal information
Full name Joshua David Wolff
Date of birth (1977-02-25) February 25, 1977
Place of birth Stone Mountain, Georgia, United States
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Playing position(s) Forward
Club information
Current team
 Austin FC (head coach)
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995–1997 South Carolina Gamecocks 43 (21)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2002 Chicago Fire 84 (32)
1998 → MLS Pro-40 (loan) 18 (12)
2003–2006 Kansas City Wizards 80 (27)
2007–2008 1860 Munich 34 (2)
2008–2010 Kansas City Wizards 64 (16)
2011–2012 D.C. United 39 (5)
Total 319 (94)
National team
1997 United States U20 4 (0)
2000 United States U23 2 (1)
1999–2008 United States 52 (9)
Teams managed
2012–2013 D.C. United (assistant)
2014–2018 Columbus Crew SC (assistant)
2019 United States (assistant)
2021– Austin FC
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Career

College

Born in Stone Mountain, Georgia, Wolff played three years of college soccer at the University of South Carolina, where he scored 21 goals and eight assists in 43 games. He played at South Carolina with future United States national team star Clint Mathis. In addition, Wolff played and captained varsity soccer at Parkview High School, Lilburn, Georgia.

Professional

After his junior season, Wolff left college and signed with Major League Soccer. MLS assigned Wolff to the Chicago Fire. He set the MLS rookie scoring record (together with Jeff Cunningham, since broken by Damani Ralph) by scoring eight goals, doing so in just 14 games with only four starts. Wolff played the following four seasons for the Fire, scoring 24 goals, but suffered through multiple injuries.[2][3]

Before the 2003 MLS Superdraft, the Fire traded Wolff, in a cost-cutting move, to the Kansas City Wizards in exchange for the third overall pick, which the Fire used to select Nate Jaqua.[4] Wolff missed most of the 2003 season due to injuries. He rebounded in 2004 by scoring ten goals and seven assists during the season. Wolff scored his first career playoff goal on a penalty kick during the MLS Cup 2004. He scored ten goals and ten assists in 2005.

In September 2006, Wolff had a try out with English Championship club Derby County. The team was pleased enough with his performance to offer MLS a $500,000 transfer fee. However, British immigration officials denied Wolff a work permit based on the fact he had failed to play the required 75% of the U.S. national team's games in the previous two years.[5]

From England, Wolff traveled to Germany for a try out with 2. Fußball-Bundesliga club 1860 Munich. On December 6, 2006, 1860 Munich signed Wolff to a contract through the 2007–2008 season. Munich paid MLS a $191,000 transfer fee. Wolff joined the team during its January 2007 mid-winter training camp but was waived at the end of the 2008 season.

Wolff signed with the Kansas City Wizards on June 30, 2008. At the end of the 2010 MLS season, after two and a half seasons back in Kansas City, Wolff's contract option was declined by the club.[6]

On December 15, 2010, Wolff was selected by D.C. United in Stage 2 of the 2010 MLS Re-Entry Draft and immediately signed a one-year contract with a club option for 2012.[7]

Wolff announced his retirement on November 28, 2012, and became a full-time assistant coach with D.C. United.[8] He joined the Columbus Crew in November 2013, and remained assistant coach until 2018. In 2018, Wolff joined the staff of the United States Men's National Team under Gregg Berhalter. On July 23, 2019, Wolff was named the first coach for MLS team Austin FC, which will begin play in 2021.[1]

International
Wolff during training for the U.S. national team

Wolff has scored nine goals in fifty-two caps since his debut against Jamaica on September 8, 1999. He also starred for the US in the 2000 Summer Olympics, scoring two goals and helping the team to a fourth-place finish. As with his club teams, however, Wolff has had trouble securing a definite spot because of continual injury problems. He did play for the United States in the 2002 World Cup, assisting on the opening goal in the second-round win against Mexico. On May 2, 2006, Wolff was named to the US roster for the FIFA World Cup in Germany. Wolff played his last national team match versus Spain at Estadio El Sardinero on June 4, 2008.[9]

International goals
GoalDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1October 25, 2000Los Angeles Mexico2–02–0Friendly match
2February 28, 2001Columbus, Ohio Mexico1–02–02002 World Cup qualification
3April 25, 2001Kansas City, Missouri Costa Rica1–01–02002 World Cup qualification
4February 2, 2002Pasadena, California Costa Rica1–02–02002 CONCACAF Gold Cup
5May 16, 2002East Rutherford, New Jersey Jamaica1–05–0Friendly match
63–0
7June 20, 2004St. George's, Grenada Grenada2–13–22006 World Cup qualification
8July 16, 2005Foxborough, Massachusetts Jamaica1–03–12005 CONCACAF Gold Cup
9November 12, 2005Glasgow, Scotland Scotland1–01–1Friendly match

[10]

Honors

Chicago Fire

Kansas City Wizards

United States
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References
  1. Bogert, Tom (23 July 2019). "Austin FC name Josh Wolff first head coach". Major League Soccer. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  2. "Fire's Wolff Sidelined With a Knee Injury". New York Times. 2002-08-17. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  3. "More knee woes for Wolff". Chicago Tribune. 2003-07-09. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  4. "Chicago sends Wolff to Wizards to complete salary purge". Soccer Times. 2003-01-07. Archived from the original on 2013-05-22. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  5. "Derby fails to get work permit for striker Josh Wolff". ESPN. 2006-08-30. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  6. "Sporting KC declines Wolff's option, re-entry drafts await". Kansas City Star. 2010-12-01. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  7. "D.C. United selects veteran forward Josh Wolff with first pick in MLS re-entry draft". Washington Post. 2010-12-15. Archived from the original on 2012-10-09. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  8. "Josh Wolff announces retirement, joins D.C. United's coaching staff". D.C. United. 2012-11-28. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  9. "U.S. Men Fall to Spain, 1-0, on Late Goal at Estadio El Sardinero". U.S. Soccer. 2008-06-04. Archived from the original on 2012-08-19. Retrieved 2012-11-28.
  10. "USA Men's National Team: All-time Results, 1990-present". Archived from the original on 2011-08-11. Retrieved 2011-06-03.
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