Eriq Anthony Zavaleta (born August 2, 1992) is a professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a

center-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

for

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 ...

club

LA Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pl ...

. Born in the United States, he represents the El Salvador national team.

Youth and college

Zavaleta played his freshman and senior seasons of high school soccer at

Westfield High School Westfield High School may refer to: * The Westfield School, Perry, Georgia * Westfield High School (Westfield, Indiana) * Westfield High School (Massachusetts), Westfield, Massachusetts * Westfield Technical Academy, Westfield, Massachusetts * West ...

Westfield, Indiana Westfield is a city in Hamilton County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 30,068, and in 2020 the population was 46,410. Westfield is in the Indianapolis metropolitan area. History Westfield was founded on May ...

. He scored 25 goals and nine assists as a freshman and twenty goals and ten assists as a senior. He also spent his youth career with FC Pride,

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in 20 ...

, and

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional soccer team based in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson, California. The club played from 2005 to 2014 in Major League Soccer (MLS) and was a subsidiary of Mexican club C.D. Guada ...

, and was also part of

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 ...

's USL Super-20 championship team in 2011. On February 7, 2011, Zavaleta signed a letter of intent to play college soccer at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

. In his freshman year with the Hoosiers in 2011, Zavaleta started 22 games and led the team with ten goals and five assists and was also the team leader in points with 25. He went on to be named ''College Soccer News'' All-Freshman first team, NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region first team selection, Soccer America All-Freshman first team and Chicagoland Soccer News Player of the Year. In his sophomore year, Zavaleta started all 24 matches and again was the team leader with 40 points, with 18 goals and four assists. He led the team to their eighth national title. One of the four assists came in the 2012 College Cup final against no. 3 Georgetown, when he set up teammate Nikita Kotlov for what turned out to be the title-clinching goal. He went on to be named Big Ten All-Tournament team, NSCAA third-team All-American, College Soccer News first-team All-American and the College Cup All-Tournament team. At Indiana University he was a member of the

Kappa Sigma Kappa Sigma (), commonly known as Kappa Sig, is an American collegiate social fraternity founded at the University of Virginia in 1869. Kappa Sigma is one of the five largest international fraternities with currently 318 active chapters and colo ...

fraternity.

Club career

Seattle Sounders FC

On January 5, 2013, it was announced by agent Ron Waxman that Zavaleta had 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.S. ...

contract with

, making him eligible for the

2013 MLS SuperDraft The 2013 MLS SuperDraft was the fourteenth SuperDraft presented by Major League Soccer. The draft took place on January 17, 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Indiana Convention Center. The Colorado Rapids enjoyed returns from the 2013 draft, ...

. On January 17, Zavaleta was selected 10th overall by

Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...

and immediately added to the roster. He made his professional debut on March 23, 2013, in a 1–0 loss to the

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 ...

Chivas USA

On February 28, 2014,

announced that they had added Zavaleta to their roster on loan from Seattle Sounders FC for one year. In 2014, he replaced

Bobby Burling Robert Charles Burling (born October 15, 1984) is an American soccer player who plays as a defender. Career College Burling played college soccer at Loyola Marymount University and with Colorado Springs Blizzard in the USL Premier Developme ...

as the center back was out of play after he underwent a knee surgery.

Toronto FC

On January 26, 2015,

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

announced that they had traded their

2016 MLS SuperDraft The 2016 MLS SuperDraft was the seventeenth SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held each year in conjunction with the annual National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention. The 2016 convention was held in Ba ...

second-round pick to Seattle for Zavaleta. On September 5, 2015, Zavaleta scored his first goal for Toronto in a 2–1 loss against his former club, the Seattle Sounders. In 2016, he was briefly loaned to

Toronto FC II Toronto FC II is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Toronto, Ontario, who play in MLS Next Pro, a third tier league of the United States soccer league system. It is the reserve team and minor league affiliate of Toronto FC as well as i ...

. On February 23, 2021, Zavaleta re-signed with Toronto FC. At the end of the season, his contract option was declined.

LA Galaxy

On March 10, 2022, Zavaleta signed a one-year deal with

. He made his debut on April 19th 2022 against the

San Diego Loyal SC San Diego Loyal Soccer Club is an American professional soccer team based in San Diego, California. The team was founded by Warren Smith and Landon Donovan. San Diego Loyal made its debut in 2020 as an expansion team in the USL Championship. ...

in the U.S. Open Cup. He later made his MLS debut against

on April 30th 2022. In February 2023, the Galaxy announced Zavaleta had signed a new two-year deal to remain with the club.

International career

Zavaleta was part of the U.S. Soccer Residency program in 2008–09 and made 23 appearances for the United States U-17 national team during that stretch, including three appearances in the

2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the thirteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup held in Nigeria from 24 October to 15 November 2009. The tournament was won by Switzerland, beating the host team and holders, Nigeria. The Golden Ball to the Be ...

. Zavaleta mostly played as a defender with the under-17s. He is eligible to play for both the United States national team and

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

. In April 2021, it was reported that Zavaleta had gained clearance from

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

to represent El Salvador. The next month on May 26, Zavaleta was called up to El Salvador ahead of their 2022 FIFA world Cup qualification matches. He debuted for El Salvador in a 7–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification win over

United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands,. Also called the ''American Virgin Islands'' and the ''U.S. Virgin Islands''. officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and an unincorporated and organized territory ...

on June 5, 2021. He scored his first goal in a 3–0 2022 World Cup qualifier win over

Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda (, ) is a sovereign country in the West Indies. It lies at the juncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles, at 17°N latitude. The country consists of two maj ...

on June 8, 2021. In his third match on June 16, he was given the captain's armband to wear, after the team's captain was substituted out.

Personal life

Zavaleta is the son of Carlos and Kristi Zavaleta. He has one sister, Alexa and one brother, Casey. His father played professionally in the United States and was also a member of the El Salvador national team. He is also the nephew of former MLS and U.S. national team defender, and his current coach at LA Galaxy and former coach at Toronto FC,

Greg Vanney Greg Vanney (born June 11, 1974) is an American former professional soccer player and head coach of the LA Galaxy in Major League Soccer. A defender and one of MLS's original players, Vanney spent 10 seasons in the league and another three-and ...

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

:''Scores and results list El Salvador's goal tally first.''

Honors

Toronto FC *

MLS Cup The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in November and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Conference ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

Supporters' Shield The Supporters' Shield is an annual award given to the Major League Soccer team with the best regular season record, as determined by the MLS points system. The Supporters' Shield has been annually awarded at the MLS Supporters' Summit since 19 ...

Canadian Championship The Canadian Championship (french: Championnat canadien) is an annual soccer tournament contested by premier Canadian professional teams. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and Canada's berth in the CONCACAF Champions League. It is contest ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Trillium Cup The Trillium Cup is an annual rivalry between the Columbus Crew and Toronto FC. The Trillium Cup is named after the trillium, which is both the official flower of the Canadian province of Ontario, and the official wildflower of the U.S. state of ...

: 2016, 2017, 2019 Indiana University *

NCAA College Cup The NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament, sometimes known as the College Cup, is an American intercollegiate soccer tournament conducted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and determines the Division I men's national champ ...

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

Individual * College Soccer News All-Freshman first team: 2011 * NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region first team: 2011 * Soccer America All-Freshman first team: 2011 * Chicagoland Soccer News Player of the Year (2): 2011, 2012 * Big Ten All-Tournament team: 2012 * NSCAA third-team All-American: 2012 * College Soccer News first-team All-American: 2012 * College Cup All-Tournament team: 2012 * Soccer America MVP first team: 2012

References

External links

*
Biography
at Indiana University. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zavaleta, Eriq 1992 births Living people Salvadoran footballers El Salvador international footballers United States men's youth international soccer players Salvadoran people of American descent American sportspeople of Salvadoran descent Citizens of El Salvador through descent Association football defenders Chivas USA players Indiana Hoosiers men's soccer players Major League Soccer players North American Soccer League players Toronto FC players Toronto FC II players People from Westfield, Indiana San Antonio Scorpions players Seattle Sounders FC draft picks Seattle Sounders FC players Soccer players from Indiana USL Championship players Salvadoran expatriate footballers American expatriate soccer players Expatriate soccer players in Canada 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup players LA Galaxy players