Landon Donovan | ||
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Personal information | ||
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Full name | Landon Timothy Donovan | |
Date of birth | March 4, 1982 | |
Place of birth | Ontario, California, United States | |
Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | |
Playing position | Forward / Attacking midfielder / Winger | |
Club information | ||
Current club | Los Angeles Galaxy | |
Number | 10 | |
Youth clubs | ||
1995–1998 1998–1999 1999–2001 |
Redlands East Valley High School IMG Soccer Academy Bayer 04 Leverkusen |
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Senior clubs1 | ||
Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
2001–2005 2001–2004 2005– 2009 |
Bayer 04 Leverkusen → San Jose Earthquakes (loan) Los Angeles Galaxy → Bayern München (loan) |
87 (32) 96 (52) 0 (0) |
7 (0)
National team2 | ||
2000– | United States | 105 (37) |
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
Landon Timothy Donovan (born March 4, 1982 in Ontario, California), is an American soccer player, currently playing for FC Bayern München in the German Bundesliga, on loan from Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer. He is the all-time leading scorer for the United States,[1][2] and is the only five-time winner of the Honda Player of the Year award.[3]
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Landon, the son of Timothy Donovan and Donna Kenney-Cash, grew up in Redlands, California, and attended Redlands East Valley High School. Landon signed a professional contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen at the age of 16, but not before being part of the first class of the U-17 U.S. Soccer Residency program at Bradenton with many current international teammates including Oguchi Onyewu, DaMarcus Beasley, and Bobby Convey. The U-17 team that was formed from that class competed at the 1999 U-17 World Championship, finishing in fourth-place with Donovan receiving the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player.
Unhappy with his situation in Germany, he was loaned to the San Jose Earthquakes of Major League Soccer for the 2001 season. In MLS, Donovan had immediate success, leading the Earthquakes to MLS Cup championships in 2001 and 2003 and becoming one of the most recognizable faces of soccer in America.[4] In four years in the league, he scored 32 goals and 29 assists in league play, and 10 goals and six assists in the playoffs. Donovan was named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year in 2003.[5]
On June 3, 2004, Bayer 04 Leverkusen announced that Donovan would return to the club in 2005, and Landon followed suit, announcing his return to Germany on November 23, 2004. He then became the first man to be named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year two years in a row,[5] taking the award for that year. After playing seven games with Bayer 04 Leverkusen, only two of which were starts, Landon stated his intentions to return to MLS. Despite a late offer from English club Portsmouth, Bayer 04 Leverkusen officials agreed to respect his wishes. However, because San Jose GM Alexi Lalas had traded away Donovan's rights, the Galaxy were able to trade leading scorer Carlos Ruíz, a striker, to FC Dallas to get on top of the allocation order one week before the season started.[6]
In his first season with the Galaxy, Donovan scored 12 league goals and 10 assists and added four goals and an assist in the playoffs as the Galaxy won the MLS Cup (his third MLS championship to date). He was named to the MLS All-Time Best XI after the season.[7] In his second season with the Galaxy, Donovan scored 12 league goals and 8 assists. Donovan also scored 3 goals in the Open Cup. Despite this, Donovan and the Galaxy failed to make the playoffs and lost in the Open Cup to Chicago Fire. Donovan's playoff goals make him MLS' 2nd all-time leading scorer in the playoffs with 14, behind Carlos Ruiz with 15.[8] In the 2007 Superliga tournament, Donovan was the top scorer. Donovan scored a goal in every game except for the Final, where he missed the game winning penalty kick. Donovan now has 84 all time regular season goals putting him in seventh place on the league's all time scoring list. Although the 2008 season was a disappointment for the Galaxy, it was a banner year for Donovan as he scored 20 goals and 9 assists in 25 games, forming a strong offensive partnership with David Beckham and Edson Buddle.[8]
Since the summer of 2008, Donovan has been linked with a move back to Europe during the January 2009 transfer window. He has personally referenced a move to German side Bayern München.[9] Concerning a possible move to Europe he has said, "If the Galaxy is OK with me going, if the league is willing to accept an offer, if an offer comes. In my situation, I can't be super picky but if it's the right offer and makes sense with the right team ... there's a lot of ifs. But from my standpoint, I'm ready to take that step and I want to."[10] From November 11-21, 2008 he trained with Bayern München,[11] and at the end of his training period, Bayern München entered into negotiations to acquire him on loan from the Los Angeles Galaxy, allowing Donovan to play for the German club until at least the start of the next MLS season in mid-March.[12] The loan, which Bayern München says is the only move it will make during the January transfer window, is scheduled to end on March 15.[13]
Donovan was a member of the inaugural class at the IMG Soccer Academy, U.S. Soccer's full-time residency academy in Bradenton, Florida. He won the Golden Ball at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championships as the tournament's best player.
After starring for the U.S. team that nearly medaled in the 2000 Summer Olympics, he earned his first cap for the United States senior team on October 25, 2000 against Mexico, and scored in his debut. He was a crucial asset to the United States' run to the quarterfinals of the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, scoring two goals. Through the 2006 World Cup, he amassed 88 caps for the U.S., scoring 35 goals, including a four-goal game against Cuba in 2003. On April 11, 2006, Landon became the United States' all-time assist leader with 23 when he set up Ben Olsen; the previous all-time assist leader was Cobi Jones.[14] Donovan reached 100 caps at the age of 26 on June 8, 2008 in a friendly against Argentina that ended in a 0-0 draw, and was the fourth-youngest person to do so. He is currently the all time leading goalscorer of the U.S. men's national team with 37 goals.
Donovan wed actress Bianca Kajlich on December 31, 2006. The couple currently reside in Manhattan Beach, California.
# | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
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1 | 2000-10-25 | Los Angeles, California | ![]() |
1-0 | 2-0 | Friendly match |
2 | 2002-01-19 | Pasadena, California | ![]() |
1-0 | 2-1 | 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
3 | 2002-03-02 | Seattle, Washington | ![]() |
2-0 | 4-0 | Friendly match |
4 | 2002-03-02 | Seattle, Washington | ![]() |
4-0 | 4-0 | Friendly match |
5 | 2002-05-16 | East Rutherford, New Jersey | ![]() |
4-0 | 5-0 | Friendly match |
6 | 2002-06-14 | Daejeon, South Korea | ![]() |
1-3 | 1-3 | 2002 FIFA World Cup |
7 | 2002-06-17 | Jeonju, South Korea | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup |
8 | 2003-03-29 | Seattle, Washington | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-0 | Friendly match |
9 | 2003-05-26 | San Jose, California | ![]() |
1-0 | 2-0 | Friendly match |
10 | 2003-07-06 | Columbus, Ohio | ![]() |
1-0 | 2-0 | Friendly match |
11 | 2003-07-19 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
1-0 | 5-0 | 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
12 | 2003-07-19 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
2-0 | 5-0 | 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
13 | 2003-07-19 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
4-0 | 5-0 | 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
14 | 2003-07-19 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
5-0 | 5-0 | 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
15 | 2004-01-18 | Carson, California | ![]() |
1-1 | 1-1 | Friendly match |
16 | 2004-06-20 | St. George's, Grenada | ![]() |
1-0 | 3-2 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
17 | 2004-09-04 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
18 | 2004-10-13 | Washington, D.C. | ![]() |
1-0 | 6-0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
19 | 2004-10-13 | Washington, D.C. | ![]() |
2-0 | 6-0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
20 | 2005-06-04 | Salt Lake City, Utah | ![]() |
1-0 | 3-0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
21 | 2005-06-04 | Salt Lake City, Utah | ![]() |
2-0 | 3-0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
22 | 2005-06-08 | Panama City, Panama | ![]() |
2-0 | 3-0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
23 | 2005-07-07 | Seattle, Washington | ![]() |
2-1 | 4-1 | 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
24 | 2005-07-07 | Seattle, Washington | ![]() |
4-1 | 4-1 | 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
25 | 2005-07-09 | Seattle, Washington | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-0 | 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
26 | 2007-01-20 | Carson, California | ![]() |
1-1 | 3-1 | Friendly match |
27 | 2007-02-07 | Glendale, Arizona | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-0 | Friendly match |
28 | 2007-03-25 | Tampa, Florida | ![]() |
1-0 | 3-1 | Friendly match |
29 | 2007-03-25 | Tampa, Florida | ![]() |
2-1 | 3-1 | Friendly match |
30 | 2007-03-25 | Tampa, Florida | ![]() |
3-1 | 3-1 | Friendly match |
31 | 2007-06-12 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
4-0 | 4-0 | 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
32 | 2007-06-16 | Foxboro, Massachusetts | ![]() |
1-0 | 2-1 | 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
33 | 2007-06-21 | Chicago, Illinois | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-1 | 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
34 | 2007-06-24 | Chicago, Illinois | ![]() |
1-1 | 2-1 | 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
35 | 2008-01-19 | Carson, California | ![]() |
2-0 | 2-0 | Friendly match |
36 | 2008-06-15 | Carson, California | ![]() |
4-0 | 8-0 | 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
37 | 2008-10-11 | Washington, D.C. | ![]() |
3-1 | 6-1 | 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying |
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Persondata | |
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NAME | Donovan, Landon |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
SHORT DESCRIPTION | Professional soccer player |
DATE OF BIRTH | March 4, 1982 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Ontario, California |
DATE OF DEATH | |
PLACE OF DEATH |