Eddie Soto (born June 14, 1972) is a former American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

. Soto spent five seasons in the

USISL The United States Interregional Soccer League (USISL) was a semi-professional men's outdoor soccer league that played six seasons from 1989 to 1994. It was the first outdoor league to be operated by the organization known today as the United ...

and has served as an assistant men's and women's collegiate soccer coach for eight seasons.

Youth

Soto played for the North Huntington Beach youth club, winning the 1991 James McGuire Trophy as the U.S. U-19 national champion. He was also a member of the U-18 and U-20 national teams. In addition to his national team and club commitments, Soto attended

Cerritos High School Cerritos High School, also called CHS, is a comprehensive, four-year public high school located in Cerritos, California, serving grades 9–12. It is part of the ABC Unified School District. As of the 2014–15 school year, the school had an ...

where he was a two time

Parade Magazine ''Parade'' was an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 700 newspapers nationwide in the United States until 2022. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., ''Parade'' had a circulation of 32 million and a read ...

high school All-American and the 1990 California 3A Player of the Year. Soto graduated from Cerritos in 1991 and entered

Chapman University Chapman University is a private research university in Orange, California, United States. Encompassing eleven colleges, the university is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". The school maintains its foundi ...

that fall. He played one season at Chapman before transferring to

Cal State Fullerton California State University, Fullerton (CSUF or Cal State Fullerton) is a public research university in Fullerton, California, United States. With a total enrollment of more than 41,000, it has the largest student body of the California State ...

where he played from 1992 to 1994. He scored thirty-eight goals in his three seasons, earning second team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n recognition in 1992. His thirty-eight goals places him second on the school's career goals list. He graduated in 1995 with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, Biomechanics, biomechanical, Pathology, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kines ...

Professional

In 1994, Soto spent the collegiate off-season playing for the Montclair Standard Falcons of the

. In the spring of 1995, Soto signed with the

Anaheim Splash The Anaheim Splash was a U.S. indoor soccer team that played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL). It was founded in 1992 as the Los Angeles United, but was sold after the season. The new ownership moved the team to Anaheim, Californi ...

of the

Continental Indoor Soccer League The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) was a professional indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997. History In the summer of 1989 Dr Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and California Sports, told his executive Vice ...

, but the team released him before he entered a game. In June 1995, Soto signed with the Los Angeles Salsa U-23 in the

. In February 1996, the MetroStars of

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

selected Soto in the eighth round (79th overall) of the Inaugural Player Draft. The team waived him on March 26, 1996. Soto returned to Southern California where he played for U.S. Beach Soccer and worked as a machinist. In 1997, he signed with the

Orange County Zodiac Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower ** Orange juice *Orange (colour), the color of an orange fruit, occurs between red and yellow in the vi ...

of the

USL A-League The USL First Division (USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It was organized by the United Soccer League as its premier league for men from 1996 to 2010, above the USL Second Di ...

. In March 1998, the San Jose Clash selected Soto in the second round (23d overall) in the 1998 MLS Supplemental Draft. Once again, the team released him in the preseason. In 2000, the Zodiac was renamed the Wave. Soto left the Wave at the end of 2000 season and spent some time with the USA Pro Beach Soccer Team before retiring from playing.

Coaching

In addition to playing, Soto also coached at the collegiate and youth soccer levels. In 1997, he was the assistant coach with the

Long Beach City College Long Beach City College (LBCC) is a public community college in Long Beach, California, United States. It was established in 1927 and is divided into two campuses, the Liberal Arts Campus (LAC) in Lakewood Village and the Trades, Technology, an ...

women's soccer team when they won the California State Championship. In 2001, he was hired as an assistant coach at

. In 2004, he moved to

Long Beach State California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

as an assistant. On July 12, 2006,

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

hired Soto as an assistant coach, but he also spent that season with

. On April 15, 2009, Soto also became the head coach of the

United States national beach soccer team The United States men's national beach soccer team represents the United States in international beach soccer competitions and is controlled by the USSF, the governing body for soccer in the United States. The national team competes in multip ...

In 2012, the

Los Angeles Galaxy The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Gal ...

hired Soto to coach its U-18 Academy team. In January 2013, Soto became the head of the U-15 team.

References

External links

UCLA Bruins coaching profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soto, Eddie 1972 births Living people American soccer coaches American men's soccer players Cal State Fullerton Titans men's soccer players Fontana Falcons players Los Angeles Salsa U-23 players Orange County Blue Star players UCLA Bruins men's soccer coaches USISL players A-League (1995–2004) players Chapman University alumni Los Angeles Salsa players San Jose Earthquakes draft picks LA Galaxy non-playing staff San Francisco Dons men's soccer coaches Men's association football forwards American beach soccer players Sportspeople from Artesia, California Chapman Panthers Long Beach City Vikings coaches Cal State Fullerton Titans men's soccer coaches Cal State Dominguez Hills Toros men's soccer coaches College women's soccer coaches in the United States Long Beach State Beach coaches Soccer players from Los Angeles County, California 20th-century American sportsmen