Andre Jason Blake (born 21 November 1990) is a Jamaican 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, rugb ...

who plays as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring 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 intercepting ...

for the

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 2010 ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Cana ...

and the Jamaica national team.

College soccer

Blake spent three years playing

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Ki ...

UConn The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from ...

, before signing a

Generation Adidas Generation Adidas is a joint venture between Major League Soccer and U.S. Soccer aimed at raising the level of young professional soccer talent in the United States. The program, sponsored by Adidas, offers professional-ready players in the U. ...

contract with

. He registered 37 shutouts over his three years in goal for the Huskies, winning the Big East Goalkeeper of the Year Award in 2011 and 2012 and the AAC Goalkeeper of the Year Award in 2013. He was named a semifinalist for the

Hermann Trophy The Hermann Trophy is awarded annually by the Missouri Athletic Club to the United States's top men's and women's college soccer players. History In 1967, Bob Hermann, the president of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and th ...

in 2013.

Professional club career

Blake was selected by

first overall in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft. Originally anticipated to be the Union's starting goalkeeper, he was deputized to the bench when the Union signed designated player

Raïs M'Bolhi Adi Raïs Cobos Adrien Ouahab M'Bolhi ( ar, عدي رايس كوبوس أدريان وهاب مبولحي; born 25 April 1986), known as Raïs M'Bolhi, is a professional footballer who currently plays as a goalkeeper for Saudi First Division Leag ...

. Blake made his first appearance for the Union in a friendly match against

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

in July 2014. He made his first competitive start for the Union in a 1–0 win against Montreal Impact, who debuted

Didier Drogba Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (; born 11 March 1978) is an Ivorian retired professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the all-time top scorer and former captain of the Ivory Coast national team. He is best known for his career at ...

as their new designated player. Blake started for five of the remaining eight matches in the 2015 season. On 26 September 2015, playing against

New England Revolution The New England Revolution is an American professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), in the Eastern Conference of the league. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having compe ...

, Blake set a Union team record for saves in a match with 10 stops to preserve a 1–1 draw. During the 2016 season, Blake cemented himself as the clear starting goalkeeper for the Union. In July 2016, he was included in the roster for the

2016 MLS All-Star Game The 2016 Major League Soccer All-Star Game, the 21st annual Major League Soccer All-Star Game, took place on July 28, 2016 (7:30 p.m. EDT, 4:30 p.m. local time) at Avaya Stadium, the home of the San Jose Earthquakes. The game was tele ...

. He was also selected to the 2019 MLS All-Star Game as the Union's only representative. During the 2020 season, Blake earned accolades for his performances including the Golden Glove for the MLS is Back Tournament, his second MLS Goalkeeper of the Year award, and second selection to the MLS Best XI. Blake posted a 77.8 save percentage and allowed only 18 goals, leading the league in both stats for goalkeepers with 20 or more appearances. He also led the league in wins (13) and posted eight clean sheets. In July 2021, Blake signed a contract extension with the Union through the 2024 season, with a club option for 2025. In August, Blake was announced as a selection to the

2021 MLS All-Star Game The 2021 Major League Soccer All-Star Game was the 25th edition of the annual Major League Soccer All-Star Game, an exhibition soccer match in the United States. The game, featuring the MLS All-Stars taking on the Liga MX All-Stars, was played ...

versus the

Liga MX The Liga MX, officially known as the Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional football division in Mexico, holding 2 tournaments per year. The league is considered the strongest in North America, and among the strongest in a ...

All-Stars.

International career

Blake made his debut

Jamaica national football team The Jamaica national football team, nicknamed the "Reggae Boyz", represents Jamaica in international football. The team's first match was against Haiti in 1925. The squad is under the supervising body of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), ...

start on 2 March 2014, versus

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estima ...

, a 2–0 win. Blake earned his first medal for Jamaica later that year, winning the 2014 Caribbean Cup and earning the Golden Gloves award in the process. Blake started all six matches during the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, helping Jamaica advance to the final and ultimately finishing runner-up to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. Blake left the final injured due to a hand injury, but was awarded the tournament's Golden Glove (the first Jamaican to do so) and a spot in the Best XI for his performances. During the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Blake again started all matches, helping Jamaica win the group stage. The Reggae Boyz won the quarter-final match against

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

, with Blake securing his 14th career shutout via a 1–0 victory. Advancing to the semi-finals, Jamaica was knocked out of the tournament, again by the

. During the

2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 16th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the biennial international men's soccer championship of the North, Central American, and Caribbean region organized by CONCACAF. The tournament was originally scheduled t ...

, Blake was called up alongside Philadelphia Union teammates Cory Burke and

Alvas Powell Alvas Elvis Powell (born 18 July 1994) is a Jamaican professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Major League Soccer club FC Cincinnati. A native of the parish St. Thomas, he attended Paul Bogle High School and gained recognition in t ...

. Making four appearances for the Reggae Boyz during the competition, Jamaica was ultimately knocked out during the quarterfinals against the United States.

Personal life

Blake is a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

. Blake is married with two children. Blake earned his U.S. green card in the summer of 2015. This status also qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes. In 2021, Blake and his wife opened a sports bar, Blake's Kickout Sports Bar and Lounge, in his hometown of

May Pen May Pen is the capital and largest town in the parish of Clarendon in Middlesex County, Jamaica. It is located on the Rio Minho river (Jamaica's longest), and is a major market centre for the Parish. The population was 61,548 at the 2011 cen ...

. Produced by

Fulwell 73 Fulwell 73 is a British television, film and music production company based in London. It was founded in 2005 by brothers Gabe and Ben Turner, Leo Pearlman, and Ben Winston. James Corden became the fifth full time partner in January 2017. Fulwel ...

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

released ''Captains'' in 2022, an eight-part sports docuseries following six national team captains in their respective 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification campaigns. Blake, representing Jamaica, starred alongside Thiago Silva (

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

), Luka Modrić (

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = " Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capi ...

), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the nort ...

), Hassan Maatouk (

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...

) and Brian Kaltak (

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of ...

). It was released by

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...

and also shown on FIFA's own streaming platform,

FIFA+ FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Philadelphia Union *

MLS Cup The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in November and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Conferen ...

runner-up: 2022 *

Supporters' Shield The Supporters' Shield is an annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, as determined by the MLS points system. The Supporters' Shield has been annually awarded at the MLS Supporters' Summit since ...

: 2020 * U.S. Open Cup runner-up:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Jamaica * Caribbean Cup:

; runner-up

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

CONCACAF Gold Cup The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champion of North Ameri ...

runner-up:

Individual * MLS is Back Tournament Golden Glove: 2020 *MLS is Back Tournament Best XI: 2020 *

MLS All-Star The Major League Soccer All-Star Game is an annual soccer game held by Major League Soccer featuring selected players from the league against an international club or selected players from Liga MX. MLS initially adopted a traditional all-star ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

, 2022 * MLS Goalkeeper of the Year:

, 2020, 2022 * MLS Best XI:

, 2020, 2022 *

Golden Glove Award:

*CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Andre 1990 births Living people Jamaican footballers Jamaican expatriate footballers Jamaica international footballers People from Clarendon Parish, Jamaica UConn Huskies men's soccer players Philadelphia Union players Association football goalkeepers Expatriate soccer players in the United States Philadelphia Union draft picks Major League Soccer players Major League Soccer first-overall draft picks Major League Soccer All-Stars All-American men's college soccer players 2009 CONCACAF U-20 Championship players 2014 Caribbean Cup players 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Copa América Centenario players 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Jamaica youth international footballers Jamaica under-20 international footballers