Alexander Horwath (born March 27, 1987) is a retired American

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 who played as a goalkeeper.

Career

College and Amateur

Horwath began his youth career with

D.C. United D.C. United is a professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. that competes in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer, the top tier of American soccer. Domestically, the club has won four MLS Cups (league championships), four Suppo ...

, remaining with the youth squad from 2001 to 2003. In 2005, he attended college at the University of Connecticut but did not play due to an injury. In 2007, he transferred to the University of Wisconsin. While with Wisconsin, Horwath established himself as his team's starting goalkeeper, appearing in 52 matches in his three years. Horwath played in the USL Premier Development League during his collegiate career. In 2008, he played for the Northern Virginia Royals and in 2009 with

Kansas City Brass Kansas City Brass was an American soccer team based in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1997, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Heartland Division ...

. He also played with the

Madison 56ers Madison 56ers is an American soccer team based in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 2005, the team plays in the United Premier Soccer League. Prior to the 2009 season the team was known as the Princeton 56ers. Since their inception t ...

of the National Premier Soccer League in 2007.

Professional

At the conclusion of his college career, Horwath trained with

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 ...

and was signed by

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 Canada ...

in April 2010 serving as the league pool goalkeeper to help teams during a goalkeeper emergency. During August 2010 he joined

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 franchise ...

to replace the injured Joe Cannon. After remaining with San Jose for a few weeks, in October 2010 he joined Seattle Sounders and remained with the club until the end of the season. During the 2011

offseason Horwath went on trial with New York Red Bulls. On March 25, 2011, it was announced that Horwath had agreed to terms with New York. One day later Horwath made his official debut for New York starting in place of the injured Greg Sutton and

Bouna Coundoul Bouna Coundoul (born March 4, 1982) is a Senegalese former professional footballer who currently coaches New Amsterdam FC in the National Independent Soccer Association. Coundoul played as a goalkeeper. Between 2007 and 2016 he represented the ...

who was on international duty, helping his club to a 0–0 draw against Columbus Crew. Horwath was waived by New York on November 23, 2011. Horwath spent two years playing in the USL Pro, playing with the Wilmington Hammerheads in 2012 and

VSI Tampa Bay FC VSI Tampa Bay FC was an American soccer team based in Plant City, Florida. They played in USL Pro, the third tier of the American soccer pyramid, in the 2013 season. VSI Tampa Bay FC were owned by VisionPro Sports Institute and were affiliated ...

in 2013. After initially signing with the Rochester Rhinos for 2014, Horwath instead joined

Ljungskile SK Ljungskile SK is a Swedish football club located in Ljungskile, a town within Uddevalla Municipality. They currently play in the Swedish third tier, Division 1. History Ljungskile SK, formed in 1926, is famous for their promotions between 19 ...

in the second division of Sweden. On January 9, 2015, he signed for Norwegian side SK Brann, after spending some days there undergoing tests and trials. Horwath made his debut for SK Brann on April 6, 2015, against Fredrikstad FK, saving a 65th-minute penalty kick from Steffen Nystrøm in a match that ended 1–1. Horwath went on to make 8 appearances for SK Brann in the 2015 season which culminated with Brann gaining promotion to the

2016 Tippeligaen The 2016 Tippeligaen was the 72nd completed season of top-tier football in Norway. The competition began on 11 March 2016. Due to the 2016 UEFA European Championship, there was a break between the rounds played on 29 May and 3 July. The decisive ...

. Horwath started the 2016 season as SK Branns second choice goalkeeper, behind

Piotr Leciejewski Piotr Leciejewski (; born 23 March 1985) is a Polish professional football who plays as a goalkeeper for MKP Wołów. Career Leciejewski impressed instantly with his explosive reflexes, and was one of Sogndal's best players when he arrived. In ...

in the pecking order. He ended up starting four games during the season, including SK Branns infamous loss to Førde IL in the first round of Norwegian football cup. SK Brann ended the season as runners-up behind

Rosenborg BK Rosenborg Ballklub, commonly referred to simply as Rosenborg () or RBK, is a Norwegian professional football club from Trondheim that plays in Eliteserien. The club has won a record 26 league titles, a shared record 12 Norwegian Football Cup ti ...

. The 2017 season started similarly as the last for Horwath, with Leciejewski being favored in goal for SK Brann. Horwath was used as the "cup keeper", and started all four games SK Brann played in the

2017 Norwegian Football Cup The 2017 Norwegian Football Cup was the 112th season of the Norwegian annual knock-out football tournament. It began with qualification matches in March and April 2017. The first round was played on 26 April 2017 and the tournament concluded wit ...

before they lost to Mjøndalen IF on August 9, 2017. Horwath also played the second leg of SK Branns Europa League second round qualifier match against

MFK Ružomberok MFK Ružomberok () is a Slovak football club, playing in the city of Ružomberok. History Established in 1906, the club's colours have been traditionally white, yellow and red, which are also featured on the town's flag. However, the sponsor ...

. Horwath returned to the United States in February 2018 when he signed with MLS club Real Salt Lake. On November 21, 2019, it was announced that Horwath had retired from playing professional soccer.

International

Horwath played with the United States U-17 and United States U-19 national team.

References

External links

Wisconsin Badgers Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Horwath, Alex 1987 births Living people Soccer players from Maryland Sportspeople from the Baltimore metropolitan area American expatriate men's soccer players Wisconsin Badgers men's soccer players Northern Virginia FC players Kansas City Brass players New York Red Bulls players Wilmington Hammerheads FC players VSI Tampa Bay FC players Ljungskile SK players SK Brann players Real Salt Lake players Real Monarchs players USL League Two players Major League Soccer players USL Championship players Superettan players Eliteserien players People from Woodbine, Maryland Expatriate men's footballers in Sweden Expatriate men's footballers in Norway American expatriate sportspeople in Sweden American expatriate sportspeople in Norway American men's soccer players Men's association football goalkeepers National Premier Soccer League players