Kupono Low (born December 27, 1978) is an American former

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.

Career

College and amateur

Low attended Irvington High School in

Fremont, California Fremont () is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area, Fremont has a population of 230,504 as of 2020, making it the fourth List of cities and towns in the San F ...

, and played

college soccer College soccer, called college football in some countries, is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. While it is most widespread in the United States, it is also prominent in Japan, South Kore ...

California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

from 1999 to 2002, where he was selected for the Pac-10 Men's Soccer All-Conference First Team in 2002. In 2000, also played with the Central Coast Roadrunners in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

Professional

Low began his professional career with the California Gold in the third division USL Pro Select League in 2003. He moved to the Syracuse Salty Dogs 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 2004, before signing with Irish side

Sligo Rovers Sligo Rovers Football Club is an Irish professional association football, football club playing in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. The club is based in Sligo in the west of Ireland. The club was founded in 1928 and have been in ...

, whom he helped win promotion to the Premier Division. He was also a firm fan favorite at Rovers, and in recognition of his performance with the team he was named to eleven-a-side.com's Eircom FAI First Division Team of the Year for 2005. In the spring of 2005, Low returned to the United States and joined the

Virginia Beach Mariners The Virginia Beach Mariners were an American soccer club, who formerly played in the USL First Division of the United Soccer Leagues, the second division in the US Soccer hierarchy behind Major League Soccer. On March 30, 2007 the team folded due ...

. He played two seasons with the Mariners, but after the team suspended operations in 2007, Low signed with the

Carolina RailHawks North Carolina FC is an American professional soccer team in Cary, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 2006, the team previously was named the Carolina Railhawks. On December 6, 2016, the RailH ...

of the

USL First Division 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 ...

, scoring the first goal in the team's history in their inaugural game. He finished the season as a second team USL-1 All Star and the team's MVP. While still playing for Carolina, the

California Cougars The California Cougars were an indoor soccer team, founded in 2004. The team was a charter member of the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL-Pro), the first division of arena (indoor) soccer in North America. They played their home matches a ...

of Major Indoor Soccer League drafted Low in the first round (fourth overall) of the 2007 MISL Supplemental Draft; he subsequently played in four games for the Cougars in 2007–2008, during the USL off-season. Low has remained a mainstay in Carolina since signing in 2007. Since then Low has earned All NASL Best 11 Team of the Year in 2011 and Defender of the year in 2012.

International

Despite being born in Hawaii, Low was called up to and made his debut for the

Puerto Rico national football team The Puerto Rico national football team () represents Puerto Rico in men's international Association football, football, and are governed by the Federación Puertorriqueña de Fútbol (). The team's nickname is ''El Huracán Azul'' meaning The ...

in January 2008, in a friendly match against

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

. Low scored his first international goal against

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

in January 2008 in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. Low earned his three caps before the Federación Puertorriqueña de Fútbol modified its eligibility requirement. All U.S. citizens used to be eligible for Puerto Rico national teams, but now the player pool is restricted to players who have lived on the island for at least two years, meaning that Low is no longer eligible for the Puerto Rico national team per federation rules.

International goals

:''Scores and results list Puerto Rico's goal tally first.''

References

External links

Carolina RailHawks profile

California Cougars profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Low, Kupono 1978 births Living people Puerto Rican men's footballers Puerto Rico men's international footballers American expatriate men's soccer players American men's soccer players California Cougars players California Gold players North Carolina FC players Central Coast Roadrunners players Expatriate men's association footballers in the Republic of Ireland Fresno State Bulldogs men's soccer players League of Ireland players Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) players North American Soccer League (2011–2017) players Sligo Rovers F.C. players Soccer players from Honolulu Syracuse Salty Dogs players A-League (1995–2004) players USL First Division players USL Second Division players USL League Two players Virginia Beach Mariners players USSF Division 2 Professional League players Men's association football midfielders