Evan Dylan Whitfield (born June 23, 1977) is a retired American
soccer player who spent seven seasons in
Major League Soccer.
Player
Youth
Whitfield graduated from
Brophy College Preparatory
Brophy College Preparatory is a Jesuit high school in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. The school has an all-male enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. It is operated independently of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix.
The school has ...
in
Phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
. He was the 1995 Arizona 5A Player of the Year as he took Brophy to the Arizona high school soccer championship. Whitfield was also a Parade Magazine All American. In 1997, Whitfield played for the
Tucson Amigos in 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 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 K ...
at
Duke University from 1995 to 1998. In seventy-five games, he scored one goal and added fifteen assists.
Professional
On February 6, 1999, the
Chicago Fire selected Whitfield in the first round (eleventh overall) of the
1999 MLS College Draft. He did not join the Fire, but signed with
Belgian
Belgian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Belgium
* Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent
* Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German
*Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...
club
KAA Gent
Koninklijke Atletiek Associatie Gent (, English: ''Royal Athletic Association Ghent''), often simply known as Ghent or by their nickname ' ( en, The Buffalos), is a Belgian sports club, based in the city of Ghent, East Flanders. Their football ...
. Not being able to break into the first team in Europe, he came back to MLS and joined the Fire midway through the 1999 soccer season. He missed most of the 2002 season with a torn
ACL). In 2000 and 2003, the Fire to the
US Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in that country.
The 2023 U.S. Op ...
in 2000 and 2003. In December 2004, the Fire traded Whitfield and Dipsy Selolwane to the expansion
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 2 ...
in exchange for Salt Lake's
2005 third round and 2006 second round draft picks. He played five games for Salt Lake before being released mid-season.
International
Whitfield played for 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 territori ...
in the
2000 Summer Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 ( Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from ...
,
Post playing career
In May 2006, Whitfield graduated from
DePaul Law. He then worked as an associate at Schiller, DuCanto & Fleck LLP. In 2011, Whitfield became a commentator for Chicago Fire games.
Dan Kelly, Evan Whitfield and Oscar Guzman Named Official Chicago Fire Broadcast Team
/ref>
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitfield, Evan
1977 births
American soccer coaches
American soccer players
American expatriate soccer players
Chicago Fire FC players
DePaul University College of Law alumni
Duke University alumni
Duke Blue Devils men's soccer players
Footballers at the 2000 Summer Olympics
K.A.A. Gent players
Living people
Major League Soccer players
Olympic soccer players of the United States
Real Salt Lake players
Soccer players from Arizona
Tucson Amigos players
USL League Two players
United States men's under-23 international soccer players
Chicago Fire FC draft picks
Association football defenders
Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States
Footballers at the 1999 Pan American Games
Medalists at the 1999 Pan American Games
Pan American Games medalists in football