Sheanon Antoine Williams (born March 17, 1990) is an American soccer player.

Career

College and amateur

Weston, Massachusetts Weston is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, about 15 miles west of Boston. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, the population of Weston was 11,851. Weston was incorporated in 1713, and protection of the town's historic resour ...

and played club soccer for FC Greater Boston Bolts before being offered a place at the

IMG Soccer Academy IMG Academy is a preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. IMG Academy is set across over 600 acres and features programs consisting of sport camps for youth athletes, adult camps, a boar ...

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...

in 2005 as a member of the U.S. Under-17 National Team Residency Program. He earned NSCAA/adidas Youth All-America honors in 2006 and 2007, and was named to the 2007 PARADE High School All-America squad. Williams enrolled at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sys ...

in January 2008, and subsequently played one year of

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and Philippines, the Philippines. Th ...

for the Tar Heels, before leaving school a year early to attempt to secure a professional contract in Europe. Despite performing well on trial with teams such as

Vfl Wolfsburg Verein für Leibesübungen Wolfsburg e. V., commonly known as VfL Wolfsburg () or Wolfsburg, is a German professional sports club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The club grew out of a multi-sports club for Volkswagen workers in the city of W ...

, Williams was unable to secure a contract, and returned to the United States in 2009. He played with the

Carolina Dynamo North Carolina Fusion U-23, formerly known as Carolina Dynamo, is an American soccer team based in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1993, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. T ...

of the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league sy ...

, earning All-Eastern Conference honors after scoring six goals and 16 points in 12 games.

Professional

After training with

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 ...

club

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in ...

during the latter half of 2009 and early 2010, Williams turned professional in 2010 when he joined the

Harrisburg City Islanders Penn FC (formerly the Harrisburg City Islanders) was an American professional soccer team based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 2003, the team most recently played in the USL Pro, the second tier of the United States soc ...

in the

USL Second Division The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...

. He made his professional debut and scored his first professional goal in Harrisburg's opening day 2–2 draw with the

Richmond Kickers Richmond Kickers is an American professional soccer club based in Richmond, Virginia. The Kickers compete as a member of USL League One (USL-1). The club was established in 1993, and began play that same year as a United States Interregional S ...

. After training with the

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 2010 ...

, Williams eventually signed with the team in August 2010. In Week 7 of the 2011 MLS season, Williams was named to the MLS Team of the Week for his performance against the

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete as a member club of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). Originally as the San Jose Clash, the franchis ...

. He again gained Team of the Week honors in Week 16 of the season. In February 2012, Philadelphia signed Williams to a contract extension through the 2015 season. In July 2015, Philadelphia traded Williams, along with an international roster slot, to Houston Dynamo in exchange for allocation money and future considerations. On December 13, 2016 Williams was traded by the

Dynamo "Dynamo Electric Machine" (end view, partly section, ) A dynamo is an electrical generator that creates direct current using a commutator. Dynamos were the first electrical generators capable of delivering power for industry, and the foundat ...

to the

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on Marc ...

in exchange for general allocation money. Williams was suspended from the team on June 16, 2017 for an off-field assault earlier in the day, but the charges were stayed three days later. Williams joined

LA Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pla ...

as a free agent in June 2018. Williams was released by LA Galaxy at the end of their 2018 season.

International

Williams played with the US National U-17 team from 2005 to 2007, and was a member of the United States squad at the

2007 CONCACAF U17 Tournament The 2007 CONCACAF U17 Tournament was played in Honduras and Jamaica. Qualification United States, Canada received automatic qualification to the finals. Honduras and Jamaica qualified as hosts. Nonetheless, Jamaica participated the CFU Yout ...

and the

2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup The FIFA U-17 World Cup 2007, the twelfth edition of the tournament, was held in South Korea between 18 August and 9 September 2007. For this event, the number of teams had been expanded from 16 to 24, with the top two of each group and the four ...

in Korea. He moved on to play for the US National U-20 team in 2008, and played at the

2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 17th edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which was hosted by Egypt from 24 September to 16 October 2009. The tournament was initially going to take place between 10 and 31 July. However, the 2009 FIFA Confedera ...

in Egypt.

Career statistics

Club

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Sheanon 1990 births Living people American soccer players Association football defenders North Carolina Fusion U23 players Penn FC players Philadelphia Union players Houston Dynamo FC players LA Galaxy players LA Galaxy II players Major League Soccer players North Carolina Tar Heels men's soccer players Soccer players from Boston USL Championship players United States men's under-20 international soccer players United States men's youth international soccer players USL League Two players USL Second Division players Vancouver Whitecaps FC players