Ely Allen (born June 12, 1986 in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

) 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 ...

player.

Career

Youth

Allen grew up in

Kent, Washington Kent is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is part of the Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue metropolitan area and had a population of 136,588 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest municipality in greater Seattle and t ...

, attended

Kentridge High School Kentridge High School is a (senior) high school that is located on in Kent, Washington. It is the second-oldest and second-largest high school by area (while the largest by population) in the Kent School District. It primarily serves students ...

. He played youth soccer for Emerald City Football Club in Seattle, Washington.

College

Allen 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 Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

from 2004 to 2007.

Professional

Allen was the 21st overall pick in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft, selected by the

Los Angeles 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 play ...

. During Galaxy's pre-season, in only his second professional appearance, Allen scored a goal (assisted by

David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending fr ...

) against

Sydney FC Sydney Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The club was fo ...

in the

Pan-Pacific Championship The Pan-Pacific Football Championship was an inter-confederation football tournament between teams from A-League (Australia and New Zealand), Chinese Super League (China), J. League (Japan), K-League (Korea), and Major League Soccer (United State ...

on February 23, 2008. Allen made his MLS debut in the Galaxy's first match of the 2008 season against the

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, la ...

on March 29, 2008. He scored his first MLS goal on June 7, 2008, also against the

. On February 25, 2009, Allen was waived by the Galaxy due to frequent injury. Following an unsuccessful trial with MLS expansion side

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 ...

due to illness, and having been unable to secure a professional contract elsewhere, Allen joined the

Seattle Wolves Crossfire Redmond, previously the Seattle Wolves and Washington Crossfire, is an American soccer organization based in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 2009, the team plays in the National Premier Soccer League, the fourth tier of ...

of the

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

on May 6, 2009. He went on to score 6 goals and contribute 6 assists in the 16 games he played for them. On July 24, 2009, D.C. United announced it had signed Allen. He made his United debut in a friendly against

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

on August 9, 2009, and made a couple of appearances for the team in the

CONCACAF Champions League The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...

, but did not feature in league play, and was waived at the end of the season. On March 31, 2010, Allen was signed as a player for the newly formed club

NSC Minnesota Stars NSC may refer to: Sport and competition * NSC United, an American soccer team * National Scholastics Championship, an American quiz bowl competition * National Scrabble Championship, now known as the Scrabble Players Championship * National Shoot ...

. As of March 14, 2012, the Stars announced that Allen had been released from the team for unspecified reasons.

References

External links

Washington Huskies profile

UW soccer star’s road to the MLS
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Ely 1986 births Living people American soccer players Soccer players from Alaska Association football midfielders Washington Huskies men's soccer players University of Washington alumni Sportspeople from Anchorage, Alaska LA Galaxy players Washington Crossfire players D.C. United players Minnesota United FC (2010–2016) players Major League Soccer players USL League Two players USSF Division 2 Professional League players North American Soccer League players LA Galaxy draft picks United States men's youth international soccer players