Bradley Howard Friedel (born May 18, 1971) is an American professional
soccer coach
In association football, the manager is the person who runs a Football team, football club or a national sports team, national team. They have wide-ranging responsibilities, including selecting the team, choosing the tactics, recruiting and t ...
and former
player
Player may refer to:
Role or adjective
* Player (game), a participant in a game or sport
** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games
** Athlete, a player in sports
** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who ...
who played as a
goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
.
Friedel played 84 games for the
United States national team between 1992 and 2005, and represented his country at three
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
tournaments. He is the current holder of the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
record for most consecutive appearances with 310, a feat he achieved during spells at
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
,
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
and
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
. Until he was left out of the Tottenham team on October 7, 2012, the last Premier League games Friedel missed were Blackburn's final two fixtures of the
2003–04 season against Tottenham and
Birmingham City
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...
, on May 10 and 15, 2004, respectively.
Friedel is also officially Aston Villa's oldest-ever player, a record he set on February 1, 2011, by playing in the club's Premier League fixture away at
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
. Friedel's age of 39 years and 259 days surpassed the previous record held by
Ernie Callaghan, who last played for Villa against
Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in ...
in April 1947, aged 39 years and 257 days.
Friedel's last appearance for Villa was on May 22, 2011, in a 1–0 home win against
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, aged 40 years and four days.
On May 6, 2012, Friedel also became the oldest player to appear in a competitive match for Tottenham when he played in the club's Premier League fixture at Aston Villa, beating
Jimmy Cantrell
James Cantrell (7 May 1882 – 31 July 1960) was an English professional footballer who played as a forward for Aston Villa, Notts County, Tottenham Hotspur and Sutton Town.
Football career
Cantrell began his professional career at Aston Vi ...
's near-80-year-old record. He ended his Premier League career after a total of 450 appearances, which remains a record for any North or South American player.
Youth and college career
Born in
Lakewood, Ohio
Lakewood is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, on the southern shore of Lake Erie. Established in 1889, it is one of Cleveland's historical streetcar suburbs and part of the Greater Cleveland, Greater Clevelan ...
, Friedel grew up in
Bay Village, where he attended Westerly Elementary School, Bay Middle School and
Bay High School. Growing up, Friedel played several sports, including soccer,
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
and
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
, and excelled at all three. He earned Bay High's Outstanding Athlete of the Year award in 1989. As an All-State basketball player in Ohio, he was invited to try out as a
walk-on for
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
's
basketball team
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
in 1990. He began as a
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
on his youth soccer team before moving into
goalkeeping
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
. Friedel graduated from Bay High in 1989.
In 2007, he was inducted into the Bay High Hall of Fame.
Friedel played
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 Kingd ...
at the
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
(UCLA). In 1990, he kept goal for the Bruins to the
NCAA championship
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...
. He was selected as the
first team All-American goalkeeper in 1991 and 1992, and won the
Hermann Trophy
The Hermann Trophy is awarded annually by the Missouri Athletic Club to the United States's top men's and women's college soccer players.
History
In 1967, Bob Hermann, the president of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and the ...
in 1993 as the top collegiate soccer player.
He played 66 games for the UCLA, all of which he started.
''
Soccer America
''Soccer America'', the oldest soccer-specific media publisher in the US, was founded in 1971 by Clay Berling in Albany, California. The magazine is headquartered in Oakland, California.
History and profile
The magazine was founded by Clay Ber ...
'' magazine named Friedel to its
College Team of the Century.
Professional career
Early career
Friedel left UCLA early to pursue a professional career. He began by attempting to sign with
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
under
Brian Clough
Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Englis ...
, but was denied a
work permit, the first in several such failed attempts to move to England. Following a brief trial in Scotland with
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
,
Friedel was signed by manager
Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...
of
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
, but again was denied a work permit.
While awaiting approval from the British authorities, he practiced with Newcastle as an on-loan player from the USSF.
Friedel joined
Danish Superliga
The Danish Superliga ( da, Superligaen, ) is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each yea ...
club
Brøndby IF
Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening (, usually abbreviated to Brøndby IF (), is a professional association football club based in Brøndbyvester, Capital Region of Denmark. The club was founded in 1964 as a merger between two local clubs and was p ...
in the spring of 1995.
He stayed with that club for several months in 1995, as back-up to
Mogens Krogh
Mogens Krogh (; born 31 October 1963) is a Danish former professional football player who was most recently manager of Næstved BK. In his playing career, Krogh was the first choice goalkeeper of Ikast fS between 1981 and 1991 and of Brøndby f ...
. Friedel remained with Brøndby until he returned to the U.S. to rejoin the national team, then preparing for the
1995 U.S. Cup
The 1995 U.S. Cup was a four nation invitational tournament organized by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) in June 1995. USSF began the U.S. Cup in 1992 and it was played annually until 2000, except for the World Cup years of 1994 and ...
and
Copa America
Copa or COPA may refer to:
COPA
COPA may refer to:
* Computer Operator Programming Assistant. trade of ITI
* Child Online Protection Act, a former U.S. law to protect minors from certain material on the internet
* Canadian Owners and Pilots Asso ...
.
After the two tournaments, Friedel attempted a third time to join an English club, this time
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
.
While awaiting a decision regarding his latest application for a work permit, Friedel spent time training with
League of Ireland
The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally us ...
side
St. Patrick's Athletic, who were managed at the time by
Brian Kerr, a friend of Sunderland manager
Peter Reid
Peter Reid (born 20 June 1956) is an English football manager, pundit and former player.
A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career. He built his reputation as one of England's brightest midfield tale ...
's. When Friedel again failed to receive a British work permit, his agent negotiated a $1.1 million transfer from the USSF to leading
Turkish team
Galatasaray
Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...
in 1995. Galatasaray were managed by Friedel's future
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
manager
Graeme Souness
Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit.
A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...
. In July 1996, following the end of the Turkish season, Friedel moved to the
Columbus Crew
The Columbus Crew, formerly known as Columbus Crew SC, is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one ...
of
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 ...
(MLS). In February 1997, he signed a three-year contract with the Crew as he was named the team's starter. That season, he was selected to the
MLS Best XI The MLS Best XI is an annual acknowledgment of the best eleven players in Major League Soccer.
Winners
*Players in bold were awarded the Landon Donovan MVP Award for that season.
Most appearances by a player
The following players have appeared ...
and named the
MLS Goalkeeper of the Year
MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Award, known as the Allstate MLS Goalkepeer of the Year Award for sponsorship purposes, is an annual Major League Soccer award established in 1996. It is voted on by media, MLS players and club management based on regula ...
.
Liverpool
Friedel completed a transfer to
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, worth £1.7 million, in 1997. On December 23, 1997, Liverpool gained a work permit for Friedel on appeal after the first request was denied.
He made his debut against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
on February 28, 1998. While Friedel had some initial success with the Reds, he soon had a difficult time, managing just over 30 games in almost three years, including two appearances in the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
, as he sat behind first
David James and later
Sander Westerveld
Sander Westerveld (born 23 October 1974) is a Dutch football coach and former professional player who played as a goalkeeper. He was the goalkeeping coach of South African Premier Soccer League club Ajax Cape Town.
The highlight of his playing ...
.
Blackburn Rovers
Friedel was signed to
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
by
Graeme Souness
Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit.
A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...
on a
free transfer in November 2000 after a work permit was secured. Joining during Rovers' promotion-winning
2000–01 season, Friedel's consistently-assured performances helped ensure Blackburn's return to the Premiership and then consolidate their top division status in the following seasons.
Friedel's memorable performances for Blackburn include playing against
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
in the
League Cup Final in early 2002, when he was named
Man of the Match
In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
. In a 2–1 win over
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
at
Highbury
Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington
in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads.
The manor house was situ ...
, Friedel made several immense saves and was only beaten by a deflected
free kick
A free kick is an action used in several codes of football to restart play with the kicking of a ball into the field of play.
Association football
In association football, the free kick is a method of restarting the game following an offence ...
. A stunning performance away at
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
prompted
Gordon Strachan
Gordon David Strachan ( born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish former football coach and player. He played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. He has since managed Cove ...
to liken him to
Superman
Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
: "Friedel must have got changed in a telephone box. I wouldn't be surprised if when he takes his shirt off there's a blue jersey with an 'S' on underneath it."
At the end of the
2002–03 season, Friedel's 15
clean sheets
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball.
Shutouts are usuall ...
earned him Blackburn's Player of the Year award, as well as selection to the Premiership Starting XI. On February 21, 2004, in an away game against
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
, Friedel scored a goal from open play in the 90th minute, from a corner kick. Friedel's goal equalized the game at 2–2, but seconds later Charlton scored again through
Claus Jensen
Claus William Jensen (born 29 April 1977) is a Danish professional football manager, and former player who is the manager of Danish 1st Division club Nykøbing FC. During his active playing career, he played as an attacking midfielder. Jensen ...
, and went on to win the match 3–2. He became just the
second goalkeeper in Premier League history (excluding own goals) to score, after
Peter Schmeichel
Peter may refer to:
People
* List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Peter (given name)
** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church
* Peter (surname), a sur ...
for Aston Villa in 2001.
Friedel extended his contract with Blackburn Rovers on April 14, 2006, stating his love for the club as a reason. Two years later, on February 5, 2008, he again signed an extension to his Rovers contract, stating that, "I am delighted to have extended the agreement. It was not a difficult decision to make. Blackburn Rovers is home to me. This is my club and I have a special affinity with it." He would, however, leave the club at the end of that season to join Aston Villa, just two league appearances short of
Terry Gennoe
Terence William Gennoe (born 16 March 1953) is an English former professional footballer who made more than 400 appearances in the Football League playing as a goalkeeper for Bury, Halifax Town, Southampton and on loan at Crystal Palace, befor ...
's club record of 289 for a goalkeeper.
In February 2019 he was one of the first seven players to be inducted into the club's Hall of Fame.
[Rovers legends inducted into Hall of Fame]
rovers.co.uk, July 17, 2019
Aston Villa
Friedel had asked Blackburn for permission to let him speak with Aston Villa if an offer was accepted, with
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
reportedly interested in signing the American. The club accepted a transfer bid for Friedel, thought to be in the region of £2.5 million, subject to Blackburn themselves having a bid accepted for a replacement goalkeeper. Villa held talks with Friedel on July 25, and he signed a three-year contract with Villa the day after. He was unveiled at
half-time
In several team sports, matches are played in two halves. Half-time (also written halftime or half time) is the name given to the interval between the two halves of the match. Typically, after half-time, teams swap ends of the field of play in or ...
during Villa's
Intertoto Cup
The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
match against
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 20 ...
, and made his debut against
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
on August 2 at the
Madejski Stadium
The Madejski Stadium (currently known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Reading. It is the home of Reading Football Club, who play in the EFL Championship. It also provides the finish for the Rea ...
; just ten minutes in, the hosts were awarded a penalty, which Friedel then saved. His competitive debut came in the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
second qualifying round, first leg, against
Hafnarfjorður away from home. Villa won the match 4–1. Friedel played his first league match for Villa on August 17, 2008, the first match for Villa in the
2008–09 season, in which Villa beat Manchester City 4–2 at home.
He broke the record for continuous games played in the Premier League on November 30, 2008, after his 167th finished in a 0–0 draw with
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
. He was sent off against former club Liverpool at
Anfield
Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
by referee
Martin Atkinson
Martin Atkinson (born 31 March 1971) is an English referee coach and retired professional football referee who officiated primarily in the Premier League. He is a member of the West Riding County Football Association.
Atkinson made his first ...
. Liverpool were awarded a penalty that
Steven Gerrard
Steven George Gerrard (born 30 May 1980) is an English professional football manager and former player, who most recently managed club Aston Villa. Described by pundits and fellow professionals as one of his generation's greatest players, Ge ...
converted against Villa's second-choice goalkeeper,
Brad Guzan
Bradley Edwin Guzan (; born September 9, 1984) is an American professional Association football, soccer player who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Atlanta United FC.
A college soccer second ...
. Friedel's
red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction.
Red card may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers
* Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or d ...
, which he received on the Sunday beforehand, was overturned by the FA on March 24, meaning that he was able to continue his streak of consecutive Premiership appearances. On January 16, 2011, he reached the landmark of 250 consecutive league games. Friedel became the oldest player ever to play for Villa following their 3–1 loss to
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
on February 1.
Tottenham Hotspur
Friedel's contract with Aston Villa expired after the 2010–11 season. On June 3, 2011,
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
announced that they had signed Friedel on a two-year deal. On August 22, 2011, Friedel started in goal for Tottenham at
Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
against Manchester United, after Tottenham's first home fixture of the season against
Everton the previous week was rescheduled due to
rioting in North London. This meant that Friedel further extended his run of consecutive games in the Premier League after his transfer from Aston Villa. During the
2011–12 campaign, Friedel also became the oldest player to make an appearance in the Premier League.
The arrival of the
French national team's goalkeeper and captain,
Hugo Lloris
Hugo Hadrien Dominique Lloris (born 26 December 1986) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Tottenham Hotspur and the France national team. He is a three-time winner of the National Union of Professional Footbal ...
, to the end of the
2012 summer transfer window cast some doubt on Friedel's status as Tottenham's first-choice goalkeeper for the
2012–13 season. However, following an impressive display by Friedel against
Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
on September 1, 2012, manager
André Villas-Boas
Luís André de Pina Cabral e Villas-Boas (; born 17 October 1977) is a Portuguese football manager, who most recently was the manager of Ligue 1 club Marseille. He is one of a growing number of top-level managers who have never played football ...
said that Friedel would remain number one. Friedel's run of 310 consecutive Premier League games was ended on October 7, 2012, when he was named on the bench behind Lloris against Aston Villa. Friedel, however, returned in goal for the next match on October 20, 2012, against
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
.
On December 26, 2012, it was announced that Friedel had signed a new contract with Spurs, keeping him at the club until 2014.
Following Lloris' failure to fully recover from a
head injury
A head injury is any injury that results in trauma to the skull or brain. The terms ''traumatic brain injury'' and ''head injury'' are often used interchangeably in the medical literature. Because head injuries cover such a broad scope of inju ...
, Friedel returned to the starting lineup in a league match on November 10, 2013, but was unable to prevent Tottenham from losing 1–0 to
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
, with the winning goal being scored by
Loïc Rémy
Loïc Alex Teliére Hubert Rémy (born 2 January 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Brest.
Rémy began his career playing for a local youth club in his home city of Lyon, before joining the bigge ...
.
On June 9, 2014, Friedel signed a one-year contract extension with Tottenham, which would keep him at the club until 2015. In addition, Friedel also became a club ambassador, focusing on Tottenham's presence in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, a role he continues to serve as. On May 14, 2015, Friedel announced that he would be retiring at the end of the
2014–15 season.
International career
Friedel is the fourth-most
capped
In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...
goalkeeper in U.S. national team history, and gained his first international cap against
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
in 1992, a game in which he managed to keep a
clean sheet
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball.
Shutouts are usuall ...
. He was the first-choice goalkeeper for the U.S.
1992 Olympic team; however, he was unable to beat out
Tony Meola
Antonio Michael "Tony" Meola (; ; born February 21, 1969) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a goalkeeper. He represented the United States national team at the 1990, 1994, and 2002 World Cups. From 1996 to 2006, he ...
as first-choice keeper for the U.S. team at the
1994 World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football, soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the countr ...
. His chance came, and Friedel made his World Cup debut, in the
1998 World Cup, where he conceded one goal as the U.S. lost to
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
. He lived up to his growing reputation in the
2002 World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
as the U.S. went on a surprising run to the quarter-finals, which included a 3–2 victory over
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
in group play, and a 2–0 second-round win over arch-rival
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
before a loss to
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
(the eventual runner-up). He also became the second keeper (after
Jan Tomaszewski
Jan Tomaszewski (Polish pronunciation: ; born 9 January 1948) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the 1970s. He kept goal for the Poland national teams that came third at the 1974 World Cup, where he was na ...
) to save two
penalty kick
A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...
s during regular play (as opposed to
penalty shootouts) in a World Cup finals tournament. He was dubbed "The Human Wall" by fans during the spectacular 2002 World Cup run.
Friedel announced his retirement from international soccer on February 7, 2005.
Media career
Brad Friedel was a studio pundit for
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
after returning home. For the 2014–15 season, he appeared on BBC's ''
''.
On January 5, 2016, Friedel was named the United States under 19s head coach. He won the
as assistant coach of the U.S. team with
.
On November 9, 2017, Friedel was named head coach of the New England Revolution, replacing
who was fired by the club in September 2017.
On May 9, 2019, Friedel was fired by the Revolution after a 12-21-13 career record and a 2-8-2 record to open the 2019 season.
after having lived in the north of that country for more than a decade. "The English don't think I have an accent at all. They think I sound American. And Americans think I sound English. I think I'm caught in the middle."
Friedel is a fan of the
owned until August 2012.
Friedel also names former American international goalkeeper
as his all-time soccer hero. Friedel credits Harris as "the person who started my journey."
In 2007, Friedel launched a non-profit soccer academy in
basis to youths aged 12 and older.