Matthew Scott "Matt" Besler (; born February 11, 1987) is an American former professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player. A left-sided central defender with the ability to play left-back. Besler spent the majority of his career in MLS with

Sporting Kansas City Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional Association football, soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and t ...

. From 2013 to 2017, Besler represented 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 ...

, including at the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

Youth and college

Besler was a four-year All-Conference player at Blue Valley West High School in Overland Park within Johnson County, Kansas. He led Blue Valley West to the Kansas 5A State Championship as a senior, scoring 23 goals with 19 assists, and holds the season and career marks in total points (124), goals (40) and assists (44) at Blue Valley West. He was also a member of the KCFC Alliance club team and a key member of the Region II Olympic Developmental Program (ODP) which competed in the 2004 ESP All-Star game. Besler played college soccer at the University of Notre Dame, playing in 90 games (73 starts) and scoring 5 goals during his college career. He received All-American and Academic All-American honors as a senior, was named the NSCAA 2008 Senior College Men's Scholar All-America Player of the Year, and was named to the All Big East Team three times. He helped Notre Dame gain four straight berths in the NCAA championship, including the program's first two trips to the quarterfinals in 2006 and 2007.

Professional career

Besler was drafted in the first round (eighth overall) in the

2009 MLS SuperDraft The 2009 MLS SuperDraft took place on January 15, 2009 in St. Louis, Missouri. It was the tenth annual Major League Soccer SuperDraft. The first selection was owned by the expansion Seattle Sounders FC. Unlike previous years, the SuperDraft wa ...

by the

Kansas City Wizards Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and the team clubhouse and ...

. He made his professional debut on March 28, 2009, as an 87th-minute substitute during a 2–1 loss at the Colorado Rapids. He scored his first professional goal on March 26, 2011, in a 3–2 loss to the Chicago Fire. Besler was added to the 2011 MLS All-Star team via the fan text message vote. In 2012, Besler anchored the top defense in MLS with Sporting Kansas City and helped the club win the U.S. Open Cup by converting his attempt after the game against the Seattle Sounders went into penalty kicks. He also was named 2012 MLS Defender of the Year and part of the MLS Best XI. On December 12, 2012, Besler re-signed with Sporting Kansas City on a three-year deal, passing up trial offers from Queens Park Rangers, Southampton, and Birmingham City. Bradley vs Besler MLS AllStar 2013

Besler was voted into the 2013 All-Star Fan XI. He was included in the roster for the July

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 te ...

. Throughout the 2018 season, Besler became the all-time leader in each of the club's longevity categories, overtaking club legends such as Davy Arnaud and Kerry Zavagnin for games played, games started, and minutes played both in MLS play and in all competitions. Kansas City opted not to renew Besler's contract following their 2020 season. On January 6, 2021, Besler signed as a free agent with Austin FC ahead of their inaugural season in MLS. Following the 2021 season, Besler announced his retirement from playing professional soccer.

International career

On August 23, 2012, Besler was called up to the United States team by head coach Jürgen Klinsmann for a friendly against Mexico, but he did not appear in the match. Besler made his debut appearance for the United States on January 29, 2013, in a friendly match against Canada. Besler became the regular starting left-center back for the United States under head coach Jürgen Klinsmann. He was rated the top performer during the 2014 CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying matches. On March 26, 2013, Besler made his debut World Cup qualifying appearance in a 0–0 draw at Mexico. On June 2, Besler started as the United States defeated Germany 4-3 in an international friendly played at

RFK Stadium Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, commonly known as RFK Stadium and originally known as District of Columbia Stadium, is a defunct multi-purpose stadium in Washington, D.C. It is located about due east of the U.S. Capitol building, near the w ...

. Subsequently, Besler started in the World Cup qualifying wins against Jamaica, Panama, and

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

. After being left off of the initial roster for the

2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 12th CONCACAF Gold Cup competition and the 22nd CONCACAF regional championship overall in CONCACAF's fifty years of existence. The United States was the host nation. The competition began on 7 July 2013 at the ...

so that the team could evaluate other players, Besler was added to strengthen the squad after the United States qualified for the knockout round. Besler was selected for U.S. national team 23-man roster for the

. He started all three games of the group stage and their Round of 16 games, helping the U.S. make it through the group stage for consecutive World Cups. Following his strong performance in the World Cup, several European outfits placed offers and expressed interest in signing Besler, including Freiburg,

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

and

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

. Besler reportedly declined the offers and decided to stay in Kansas City. He scored his debut national team goal on September 2, 2016, with an assist from

teammate Graham Zusi. This was the same day his first child was born. Besler was a part of the U.S. national team that won the

2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the 14th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the biennial international men's soccer championship of the North, Central American and Caribbean region organized by CONCACAF, and 24th CONCACAF regional championship ove ...

. Besler made four appearances in the tournament, including a start in the final as the U.S. beat Jamaica 2-1 on a late goal from

Jordan Morris Jordan Perry Morris (born October 26, 1994) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a winger and forward for Major League Soccer club Seattle Sounders FC and the United States national team. He grew up on Mercer Island, Washin ...

as Besler lifted his second international title.

International goals

:''Scores and results list United States' goal tally first.''

Personal

Besler is known throughout his hometown of Kansas City for his willingness to give back to the community. On March 1, 2012, he joined forces with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) during the months of March, April and May for the Man of the Year campaign, raising funds for blood cancer research. In April 2012, Besler was named W.O.R.K.S. Humanitarian of the month by Major League Soccer. He is a fan of his hometown Kansas City Chiefs and Royals. On July 5, 2013, he threw out the first pitch before the Kansas City Royals vs. Oakland Athletics baseball game. His younger brother, Nick, was drafted 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 P ...

5th overall in the

2015 MLS SuperDraft The 2015 MLS SuperDraft was the sixteenth SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held each year in conjunction with the annual National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention. The 2015 convention was held Januar ...

, and currently plays for fellow MLS club Real Salt Lake. He is currently represented by US & Asia-based agency, Libero Sports LLC. Besler is Catholic. He was raised in a religious family; his father was Catholic and his mother converted from Methodism. Besler regularly attends church and is known to pray the rosary before each game. His favorite religious figures are

Saint Christopher Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is veneration, venerated by several Christianity, Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman Empire, Roman emperor Deciu ...

and

Blessed Blessed may refer to: * The state of having received a blessing * Blessed, a title assigned by the Roman Catholic Church to someone who has been beatified Film and television * ''Blessed'' (2004 film), a 2004 motion picture about a supernatura ...

Pier Giorgio Frassati. Besler married his wife, Amanda, at Visitation Catholic Church in December 2013, just two weeks after Besler led Sporting KC to their second ever MLS Cup title.

Career statistics

Honors

United States * CONCACAF Gold Cup:

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

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 ser ...

Sporting Kansas City * Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

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 Apri ...

* MLS Cup:

Individual * Sporting Kansas City Defensive Player of the Year: 2011 * MLS Defender of the Year: 2012 * MLS Breakout Player of the Year: 2012 * MLS Best XI: 2012, 2013 * MLS All-Star:

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

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 wat ...

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Besler, Matt 1987 births Living people American soccer players Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's soccer players Sporting Kansas City players Austin FC players People from Overland Park, Kansas Soccer players from Kansas Major League Soccer players Major League Soccer All-Stars Designated Players (MLS) United States men's under-20 international soccer players United States men's international soccer players Sporting Kansas City draft picks 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2014 FIFA World Cup players Copa América Centenario players 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup players CONCACAF Gold Cup-winning players Association football defenders Sportspeople from the Kansas City metropolitan area All-American men's college soccer players Catholics from Kansas