Matt Napoleon

Matt Napoleon
Personal information
Date of birth	August 18, 1977 (age 47)
Place of birth	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Youth career
1995–1997	Columbia Lions
Senior career*
Years	Team
1998	Miami Fusion
1998	→ MLS Pro-40 (loan)
1999–2000	Columbus Crew
2000	→ MLS Pro-40 (loan)
2001–2002	Portland Timbers
2001	→ Dallas Burn (loan)
2002	→ Colorado Rapids (loan)
2003	Charlotte Eagles
International career
1997	United States U20
1998–1999	United States U23
Managerial career
2001	Portland State Vikings (assistant)
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Matt Napoleon (born August 18, 1977) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper who played professionally in Major League Soccer and the USL A-League. He was a member of the United States men's national under-20 soccer team at the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship.

Player

Youth

Growing up, Napoleon played for the FC Delco youth club and graduated from Neshaminy High School in 1995.^[1] He attended Columbia University, playing on the men's soccer team for three seasons.

Professional

On January 15, 1998, Napoleon signed a professional contract with MLS Project 40.^[2] The league placed him with the Miami Fusion. He played four games for the Fusion in 1998 in addition to playing for the Project 40 team which competed in the USISL A-League. On January 19, 1999, the Fusion traded Napoleon to the Columbus Crew for Tim Sahaydak.^[3] Napoleon spent two seasons with the Crew before moving to the Colorado Rapids. On April 14, 2001, the Rapids waived Napoleon.^[4] In May 2001, he signed with the Portland Timbers of the USL A-League.^[5] He went on loan to the Dallas Burn during the 2001 season. In 2002, Napoleon remained with the Timbers, going on loan to the Dallas Burn on July 13, 2002, for a U.S. Open Cup game. In August and September 2002, he went repeatedly on loan to the Colorado Rapids, but never entered a league game. Napoleon retired in January 2003.^[6] However, he came out of retirement and made an appearance for the Charlotte Eagles in 2003 before retiring again.^[7]

International

In 1997, Napoleon earned three caps with the United States men's national under-20 soccer team. He played another nine non-international games with the U-20 team as it prepared for the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship. In that tournament, Napoleon backed up Andy Kirk. In 1998 and 1999, Napoleon played for the United States men's national under-23 soccer team as it prepared for the 2000 Summer Olympics. Napoleon was an unused alternate for the team at the Olympics.

Coach

While with the Portland Timbers, Napoleon also served as an assistant coach with the Portland State University women's soccer team.

References

^ FC Delco Hall of Fame
^ January 15, 1998 Transactions
^ Goalie Napoleon Dealt For A Young Defender
^ 2001 MLS transactions
^ Timbers find answer in goal: Matt Napoleon Archived 2011-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
^ January 25, 2003 Transactions
^ www.uslsoccer.com https://web.archive.org/web/20030430113647/http://www.uslsoccer.com/scripts/runisa.dll?m2%3Agp%3A%3A72011+Elements%2FDisplay+E+47107+Stats%2F+22761. Archived from the original on 2003-04-30. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

External links

Matt Napoleon at Major League Soccer
Matt Napoleon – FIFA competition record (archived)

[1] FC Delco Hall of Fame

[2] January 15, 1998 Transactions

[3] Goalie Napoleon Dealt For A Young Defender

[4] 2001 MLS transactions

[5] Timbers find answer in goal: Matt Napoleon Archived 2011-10-08 at the Wayback Machine

[6] January 25, 2003 Transactions

[7] www.uslsoccer.com https://web.archive.org/web/20030430113647/http://www.uslsoccer.com/scripts/runisa.dll?m2%3Agp%3A%3A72011+Elements%2FDisplay+E+47107+Stats%2F+22761. Archived from the original on 2003-04-30. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

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