Joseph Cannon (born January 1, 1975) is an American former professional

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. He spent the majority of his 16 professional seasons playing in

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 ...

. His 86 MLS career shutouts ranks him fourth in league history. He won the

MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Award 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 Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United St ...

twice (2002, 2004), and finished runner-up for the award three times (2000, 2001, 2005). He also earned two caps in friendlies with the

United States men's national soccer team The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT) represents the United States in men's international soccer competitions. The team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and is a member of FIFA and CONCACAF. The U.S. team ha ...

Early life and education

Cannon was born January 1, 1975, in Sun Valley, Idaho, to Barbara and Joe Cannon. As a child, he was raised in both Sun Valley, Idaho and

Los Altos Hills, California Los Altos Hills (; ''Los Altos'', Spanish for "The Heights") is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 8,489 at the 2020 census. The town is known for its affluence and expensive residential rea ...

. He attended Hemingway Elementary School in

Ketchum, Idaho Ketchum is a city in Blaine County, Idaho, located in the central part of the state. The population was 3,555 at the 2020 census, up from 2,689 in 2010. Located in the Wood River Valley, Ketchum is adjacent to Sun Valley and the communities sh ...

, before moving permanently to California at age 12. In California, he played high school soccer for Saint Francis High School. Cannon attended college at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduate ...

for his first year and was a student-athlete on the

UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer team is an NCAA Division I college soccer team composed of student-athletes attending the University of California, Santa Barbara. The Gauchos play their home matches at Harder Stadium. Like most of the ...

team. He played in 11 games for the Gauchos in 1993 and recorded 3 shutouts. He later transferred to

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...

where he played for the Broncos from 1995 to 1997. He graduated with a degree in political science.

Club career

San Diego Flash and San Jose Earthquakes

Cannon was not drafted by a

team and instead signed with the

San Diego Flash San Diego Flash was an American soccer team based in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1998, the team returned to competitive play in 2011 and most recently played in the Southern Conference of the West Division of the National ...

of the

A-League A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...

in 1998. He appeared in 28 games, posting 11 shutouts, en route to being named the Flash's Most Valuable Player. After a season with the Flash, he was signed by Major League Soccer team

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 ...

. After starting goalkeeper David Kramer tore the labrum in his shoulder, Cannon was promoted to the first team for the Quakes. He remained as the starter until 2002, leading San Jose to victory in

MLS Cup 2001 MLS Cup 2001 was the sixth edition of the MLS Cup, the championship match of Major League Soccer (MLS), which took place on October 21, 2001, at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. It was contested by the San Jose Earthquakes and the Los ...

and winning his first

in 2002.

French foray and return to MLS

Cannon's Major League Soccer contract expired following the 2002 season and he attempted to play for a European team. After an unsuccessful trial with

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after its ...

, he signed a six-month contract with

RC Lens Racing Club de Lens (, commonly referred to as RC Lens or simply Lens) is a French professional football club based in the northern city of Lens in the Pas-de-Calais department. Its nickname, ''les sang et or'' (''the blood and gold''), come ...

of France's

Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...

. He was behind

Charles Itandje Charles Hubert Itandje (born 2 November 1982) is a retired professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Born in France, Itandje represented the Cameroon national team. Club career Lens Born in Bobigny (a suburb of Paris) of Cameroonian ...

in the Lens side and was not able to break into the first team. Meanwhile, in MLS, the Earthquakes traded the rights to Cannon to 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 ...

for three draft picks—a first round 2004 pick, and third and fourth round 2005 picks—and Cannon returned to play in America. Cannon was initially behind incumbent goalkeeper Scott Garlick, but Rapids coach

Tim Hankinson Timothy Milledge Hankinson (February 18, 1955 – September 22, 2022) was an American soccer coach. He initially coached American college teams, before becoming head coach in Major League Soccer, as well as managing teams in Iceland, India, and ...

controversially promoted Cannon into the starting role for the 2003 playoffs. Although Colorado did not advance, Garlick was traded to the

Dallas Burn Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County wi ...

and Cannon kept his starting position. The following season in 2004, Cannon won his second

in addition to being named 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 as a finalist for the

MLS Most Valuable Player Award The Landon Donovan MVP Award is an annual award for MLS players. It is voted on by media, MLS players, and club management and is given to the player deemed the most valuable player in the league each season. From 1996 to 2007, the award was kno ...

. In December 2006, Cannon was traded to 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 pla ...

for

Herculez Gomez Herculez Gomez (born April 6, 1982) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a forward. He currently works as a commentator in both English and Spanish for ESPN. Early life Gomez, the oldest of five children, was born in ...

and

Ugo Ihemelu Ugochukwu "Ugo" Ihemelu (born 3 April 1983 in Enugu) is a retired Nigerian-born American association football, football player. Career College Ihemelu grew up in the United States, attended Cedar Hill High School in Cedar Hill, Texas (a suburb ...

. He made his Galaxy debut on April 8, 2007, in a 0–0 tie with the

Houston Dynamo Houston Dynamo FC (formerly officially, but still commonly, called the Houston Dynamo) is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The Dynamo compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Establi ...

. He spent one season with the club.

Later career

Cannon returned to the Earthquakes via trade with the Galaxy for allocation money in January 2008. He spent three seasons with the club. Cannon was selected by

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on Marc ...

in the 2010 MLS Expansion Draft. He re-signed with Vancouver for the 2012 Major League Soccer season. Cannon retired following the

2013 Major League Soccer season The 2013 Major League Soccer season was the 101st season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States and Canada, the 35th with a national first-division league, and the 18th season of Major League Soccer. The season featured 19 total clu ...

Refereen Jasen Anno and goalkeeper Joe Cannon

International

Cannon earned two

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

with the

. His first cap came against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in 2003 where he played the first half of a 2–1 win. In 2004 he was called into several U.S. camps without gaining any game time. In 2005 he won his second cap, playing the first half of a friendly against Honduras. Cannon's grandfather and father are Canadian, which made him eligible for the

Canada men's national soccer team The Canada men's national soccer team (french: Équipe du Canada de soccer masculin) represents Canada in international soccer competitions since 1924. They are overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association, the governing body for soccer in Cana ...

Post-playing career

In March 2014, Cannon was announced as a

color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and t ...

for San Jose Earthquakes radio broadcasts on

KLIV KLIV (1590 AM) is a broadcast radio station in the United States. Licensed to San Jose, California, KLIV serves San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley with a Vietnamese format simulcasting KVVN. It is one of the last independently owned stations in ...

Personal life

Cannon has a twin brother, Jon, who was a minor league baseball pitcher. He has two other brothers, Cody and Colt. His father, Joe Cannon Sr., was a country-western singer.

Career statistics

Honors

Club

San Jose Earthquakes *

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 ...

: 2001

Individual

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 ...

: 2002, 2004 *

: 2004

References

External links

*
US Soccer Players player profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cannon, Joe 1975 births Living people People from Sun Valley, Idaho 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players American expatriate soccer players American expatriate sportspeople in France American soccer players American sportspeople of Canadian descent Colorado Rapids players Expatriate footballers in France Expatriate soccer players in Canada Association football goalkeepers LA Galaxy players Sportspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area RC Lens players San Diego Flash players San Jose Earthquakes players Santa Clara Broncos men's soccer players Soccer players from California Soccer players from Idaho UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer players United States men's international soccer players A-League (1995–2004) players Vancouver Whitecaps FC players Major League Soccer players Major League Soccer All-Stars People from Los Altos Hills, California American soccer coaches USL League Two coaches American expatriate sportspeople in Canada