Dewan Bader (born April 8, 1971) is an 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 ...

coach and former player who played as a defender.

Youth

Bader grew up in

Rockville, Maryland Rockville is a city that serves as the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fifth-largest community in ...

, where his early high school years were spent at Woodward High School. When it closed after his sophomore season, he moved to

Walter Johnson High School Walter Johnson High School (also known as Walter Johnson or WJ) is a public upper secondary school located in the census-designated place of North Bethesda, Maryland ( Bethesda postal address).Parade Magazine ''Parade'' was an American nationwide Sunday newspaper magazine, distributed in more than 700 newspapers in the United States until 2022. The most widely read magazine in the U.S., ''Parade'' had a circulation of 32 million and a readership of 5 ...

High School All American his senior season. When it came time to select a college, he decided on

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

. He played for the Wolfpack from 1989 to 1992.

Professional

In 1993, Bader turned professional with the expansion Raleigh Flyers of the

USISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

. He spent two seasons with the Flyers, then began alternating between indoor and outdoor soccer when he signed with the

Cleveland Crunch The Cleveland Crunch are an American professional indoor soccer club located in Cleveland, Ohio competing in as a charter member of the Major League Indoor Soccer (MLIS). The rebranded Crunch returned to indoor play as a member of the MASL 2 in ...

of the National Professional Soccer League in the fall of 1994. He played the 1994–1995 and 1995–1996 indoor seasons with the Crunch. In 1996, Bader and his teammates with the Crunch won the NPSL championship. In the summer of 1995, Bader moved outdoors with the

Richmond Kickers Richmond Kickers is an American professional soccer club based in Richmond, Virginia. The Kickers compete as a member of USL League One (USL-1). The club was established in 1993, and began play that same year as a United States Interregional S ...

where he won the double as the Kickers took the league and

1995 U.S. Open Cup The 1995 United States Open Cup is often considered the start of the modern era of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, although Lamar Hunt's name was not added until the 1999 U.S. Open Cup, 1999 edition. It was the 82nd edition of the soccer tournament t ...

titles. In the summer of 1996, he played for the expansion

Wilmington Hammerheads Wilmington Hammerheads FC was a semi-professional American soccer team based in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 1996, the team last competed in the Premier Development League, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid in 2017. History ...

of the

. In February 1995, Bader had signed a two-year contract extension with the Crunch. However, on September 20, 1996, the Crunch sent Bader to the Harrisburg Heat for a first-round draft pick and future considerations. He spent the next three indoor season with the Heat before returning to the outdoor game in 1999 with the

Lehigh Valley Steam Lehigh Valley Steam was a soccer club that competed in the A-League in 1999. Based in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, the club has problems securing a home stadium and folded after a single season. The club featured future U.S. national team player ...

in the

USL A-League The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

. On October 8, 1999, the Harrisburg Heat traded Bader to the

Detroit Rockers The Detroit Rockers were an indoor soccer team in the National Professional Soccer League from 1990 to 2001. They played in Joe Louis Arena and Cobo Arena in downtown Detroit, Michigan as well as The Palace of Auburn Hills and Compuware Sports A ...

for future considerations. In 2000, he played the summer season with the

Connecticut Wolves The Connecticut Wolves were an American soccer club that was founded by the Clifton Onolfo, the Onolfo Family, and several investors including Tony DiCicco. The Club's inaugural match was attended by 5,200 plus fans and competed in the United Socc ...

of the

. He then moved to the

Buffalo Blizzard The Buffalo Blizzard was a soccer club that existed from 1992 to 2001 in Buffalo, New York. History The team was originally owned by the Knox brothers who owned the Buffalo Sabres at the time, and additionally by the Riches who owned the minor l ...

for the 2000–2001 season before moving to the

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with t ...

in 2001. The Blast won the 2003 Major Indoor Soccer League championship. On July 23, 2003, the St. Louis Steamers selected Bader in the 2003 MISL Expansion Draft. A month later, the Steamers sent Bader back to the Blast as part of a three team transaction. Bader then finished his career in Baltimore, winning one more championship before retiring in 2004.

International

In 2000, Bader played for the

United States national futsal team The United States national futsal team represents the United States at international competitions. It is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and affiliated with CONCACAF. The U.S. Futsal Federation was founded in 1981 and the first ...

Post-playing career

Over his playing career, Bader frequently coached youth soccer as a means of supplementing the income from his playing. At some point, he was an assistant with the

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

soccer team. After retiring in 2004, Bader began coaching full-time with the Triangle Futbol Club. On January 25, 2008,

Carolina RailHawks North Carolina FC is an American professional soccer team in Cary, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh. Founded in 2006, the team plays in USL League One, the third tier of the American league system. The team has played its home games a ...

named Bader as the head coach of

Cary RailHawks U23's North Carolina FC U23 is an American soccer team based in Cary, North Carolina. It was founded in 2002 as the Raleigh Elite, and the current affiliate of North Carolina FC, a third division club in the United Soccer League. The team plays in ...

. The following season, he was head coach for

Cary Clarets North Carolina FC U23 is an American soccer team based in Cary, North Carolina. It was founded in 2002 as the Raleigh Elite, and the current affiliate of North Carolina FC, a third division club in the United Soccer League. The team plays in ...

of the

Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental association football, soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United Stat ...

. Bader is currently the head coach of the Triangle Futbol Club's 1993 and 1994 Navy Men's teams and, since 2010, assistant coach for Carolina RailHawks. On June 3, 2022, a group co-lead by Bader was awarded rights to bring a

USL League One USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019. The Division III league is operated by United Soccer League, the same group that operates the Division II USL Championshi ...

club to

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in and the county seat of New Hanover County in coastal southeastern North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth most populous city in the state. Wilmington is the ...

starting in 2024.

References

External links

Career Overview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bader, Dewan 1971 births Living people American soccer coaches American soccer players Baltimore Blast (2001–2008 MISL) players Buffalo Blizzard players Cleveland Crunch (NPSL) players Connecticut Wolves players Detroit Rockers players Association football defenders Harrisburg Heat (NPSL) players Lehigh Valley Steam players Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players NC State Wolfpack men's soccer players Raleigh Flyers players Richmond Kickers players Soccer players from Washington, D.C. USISL players USL Second Division players USL League Two players A-League (1995–2004) players Wilmington Hammerheads FC players American men's futsal players