Juergen Peterson Sommer (born February 27, 1969) is an American former professional soccer player and coach. He became the first American goalkeeper to play in the FA Premier League, when he signed to play for Queens Park Rangers in 1995. He has served as the

United States national team The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

goalkeeping coach. Later on, Sommer coached Indy Eleven in the NASL.

Youth and college

Sommer played soccer at Culver Military Academy in Culver, Indiana where he was an All-American. After graduation, Sommer walked on at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. * Indiana Univers ...

, where he quickly became the starting goalkeeper in 1987. He was named ''Collegiate Goalkeeper of the Year'' in 1990.

Club career

Sommer left Indiana to sign with Luton Town of the First Division in 1991. Sommer played for the next seven years in England for Queens Park Rangers, Luton Town and Torquay. In 1998, he made the jump back home to sign with the

Columbus Crew The Columbus Crew, formerly known as Columbus Crew SC, is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as on ...

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 ...

, as a replacement for Brad Friedel, who had signed for

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

the previous year. Sommer became the Crew starter over the next two seasons, and after a pair of major knee injuries, he signed with the

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 compet ...

. In 2000, he played one game with the Connecticut Wolves in the

USISL A-League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

.2000 Connecticut Wolves
/ref> After another injury forced Sommer to the sidelines, and the emergence of

Adin Brown Adin Brown (born May 27, 1978) is an American soccer coach and former player. He is currently the goalkeeping coach for Chicago Fire FC in Major League Soccer. Youth and High School Born in Pleasant Hill, California, Brown attended De La Sall ...

as the Revolution's starting goalkeeper, he retired after the 2002 MLS Cup. He represented English side Bolton Wanderers for just one

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...

game against Blackburn Rovers in February 2001. Sommer answered an S.O.S. by Wanderers manager Sam Allardyce who saw his other goalkeepers either injured or ineligible but was himself injured during the match.

International career

Throughout his career, Sommer earned ten caps for the

, and was a member of the team which competed at the

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson Ma ...

and

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for th ...

s. Although many believe him to be a solid goalkeeper in his prime, the play of Brad Friedel, Kasey Keller and Tony Meola greatly reduced his chances of seeing an extended run in the national team.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sommer, Juergen 1969 births Living people 1994 FIFA World Cup players 1995 Copa América players 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 1998 FIFA World Cup players American soccer players American expatriate soccer players Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Columbus Crew players Connecticut Wolves players Expatriate footballers in England American expatriate sportspeople in the United Kingdom Association football goalkeepers Luton Town F.C. players Major League Soccer players New England Revolution players Soccer players from New York City Premier League players Queens Park Rangers F.C. players Torquay United F.C. players United States men's international soccer players USL First Division players American people of German descent North American Soccer League coaches Indy Eleven coaches Culver Academies alumni