Benjamin "Ben" Bender (born March 7, 2001) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for

Charlotte FC Charlotte FC is an American professional soccer club based in Charlotte. The team competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference. The team is owned by David Tepper, who was awarded the expansion franchise ...

of Major League Soccer. Bender was the first overall selection in the

2022 MLS SuperDraft The 2022 MLS SuperDraft was the 23rd edition of the SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held every January prior to the start of the MLS season and has been conducted via conference calls since 2020. Previously, the Su ...

Career

Youth and college

Prior to playing

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 the Philippines. The United K ...

, Bender played youth soccer, from the age of 6 through 15 for Coach Barry Stitz and Fewster FC. The one-team, independent Fewster FC Club won 4 Maryland State Cups, 2 USYSA Regional Championships and played for the U15 USYSA National Championships in 201
2015 USYSA U15 National Championships page
After USYSA changed their age categories (to birth year), Bender then played academy soccer, one season for the Philadelphia Union academy and four years for Baltimore Armour. Concurrently, Bender played high school soccer for

Calvert Hall College High School Calvert Hall College High School (also known as "Calvert Hall" or "CHC") is a Catholic college preparatory high school for boys, located in Towson, Maryland, United States. The school's mission is to make its students "men of intellect, men of ...

Towson, Maryland Towson () is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 55,197 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Baltimore County and the second-most populous unincor ...

. With Calvert Hall, Bender served as the team's captain, being named an Allstate All-American his junior year, and earning honors from TopDrawerSoccer.com, All-

Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (M.I.A.A.) is a boys' sports conference for private high schools generally located in the Baltimore metropolitan area but extending to various other regions, including the state's mostly rural Easter ...

honors, and was named a '' Baltimore Sun'' All-Metro selection. Ahead of the

2020 NCAA Division I men's soccer season The 2020 NCAA Division I men's soccer season was the 62nd season of NCAA championship men's college soccer. The season was originally slated to begin on August 28, 2020 and conclude on November 15, 2020. The season was to culminate with the 2020 ...

, Bender signed a National Letter of Intent to play collegiately for the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

and its impact on sporting events, Bender did not make his Maryland debut until February 19, 2021, starting in a 2–3 loss to Penn State. On March 27, 2021, Bender scored his first collegiate goal against

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

. Bender would finish the 2020 season appearing in all 11 matches for the Terrapins, scoring twice.

Senior

Bender spent the summer of 2021 playing for

FC Baltimore Christos FC Baltimore Christos (founded as FC Baltimore 1729) was an American soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 2018, the team played in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), a national amateur league at the fourth t ...

of the

National Premier Soccer League The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's soccer league. The NPSL is a semi-professional league, comprising some teams that have paid players and some that are entirely amateur. The league is officially affiliated to the Uni ...

, where he would appear seven times for the team, scoring six goals. He won the NPSL Young Player of the Year Award following the season.

Professional

Following his freshman season with Maryland, he signed a

Generation adidas Generation Adidas is a joint venture between Major League Soccer and U.S. Soccer aimed at raising the level of young professional soccer talent in the United States. The program, sponsored by Adidas, offers professional-ready players in the U. ...

contract with Major League Soccer, an expected top five draft pick, Bender was selected first overall in the

. Bender became the third ever player from the University of Maryland to be selected first overall in the MLS SuperDraft, and the first since

Maurice Edu Maurice Edu (born April 18, 1986) is an American former professional soccer player. A highly touted prospect, Edu was the first overall pick in the 2007 MLS SuperDraft and won the MLS Rookie of the Year Award with Toronto. His performances for ...

was selected first overall in 2007.

Honors

Individual * NPSL Young Player of the Year:

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

References

External links

Maryland Terrapins profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bender, Ben 2001 births Living people American soccer players Association football midfielders Charlotte FC draft picks Charlotte FC players Christos FC players Major League Soccer first-overall draft picks Major League Soccer players Maryland Terrapins men's soccer players National Premier Soccer League players Soccer players from Baltimore All-American men's college soccer players