Eric Brunner (born February 12, 1986) is a retired American soccer player who played as a defender.

Career

Professional

Following his college career Brunner was selected 16th in the

2008 MLS SuperDraft The 2008 MLS SuperDraft took place on January 18, 2008 in Baltimore, Maryland. It was the ninth annual Major League Soccer SuperDraft. The first selection was made by the Kansas City Wizards, after acquiring the selection from the expansion San ...

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The club was established in October 1994 and be ...

. He initially signed a senior contract, but when the Red Bulls signed Andrew Boyens, they tried to move him down to the developmental roster. However, Brunner refused to take the pay cut and left the team. He signed with

Miami FC The Miami FC is an American professional soccer team based in Miami, Florida that competes in the USL Championship, the second tier of the American soccer pyramid. The club began play in the North American Soccer League (NASL) in the 2016 s ...

of the

USL First Division The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States and Canada from 2005 to 2010. During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system ...

of May 20, 2008. Brunner made his first appearance for Miami on June 14, 2008, when he came on as a substitute and played for five minutes. He made his Columbus debut against

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, ...

on April 11, 2009, and scored his first career professional goal on June 20, 2009, against

FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes as a member of the Western Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). The franchise began play in 1996 as a charter club of the leag ...

. On November 24, 2010, he was selected by the

Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at ...

in the 2011 MLS Expansion Draft. He was a frequent starter for the Timbers until suffering a concussion on May 26, 2012, after which he sat out much of the remainder of the 2012 season. On December 3, 2012, he was traded to the Houston Dynamo in exchange for allocation money. He retired following the 2014 season.

International

Brunner was called up to play for the United States under-23 men's national soccer team at the

2008 Toulon Tournament The 2008 Toulon Tournament was the 36th edition of the Toulon Tournament, and was held from 20 May to 29 May 2008. Tournament finished with the final between Italy and Chile at Stade Mayol in Toulon as Italy had the title after the final score of ...

Personal life

Brunner is a

gamer A gamer is a proactive hobbyist who plays interactive games, especially video games, tabletop role-playing games, and skill-based card games, and who plays for usually long periods of time. Some gamers are competitive, meaning they routinely ...

, and streams live gameplay under the pseudonym "Broomsweeper" on

Twitch Twitch may refer to: Biology * Muscle contraction ** Convulsion, rapid and repeated muscle contraction and relaxation ** Fasciculation, a small, local, involuntary muscle contraction ** Myoclonic twitch, a jerk usually caused by sudden muscle co ...

. As of 24 December 2014, he has over 8,400 followers and primarily plays Counter-Strike: Global Offensive on his channel.

References

External links

*
Ohio State bio
1986 births Living people American soccer players Maryland Terrapins men's soccer players Ohio State Buckeyes men's soccer players Flint City Bucks players New York Red Bulls players Miami FC (2006) players Columbus Crew players Portland Timbers players Houston Dynamo FC players People from Dublin, Ohio Soccer players from Ohio USL League Two players USL First Division players Major League Soccer players United States men's under-23 international soccer players New York Red Bulls draft picks All-American men's college soccer players Association football defenders {{US-footy-defender-stub