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Jonathan Rey Bornstein (born November 7, 1984) is an American 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 who plays as a left-back. He has captained and made 38 appearances for the
United States national team The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...
. In addition to also playing for Chivas USA in Major League Soccer (with whom he was the 2006
MLS Rookie of the Year The MLS Young Player of the Year Award (known as the Rookie of the Year Award from 1996 to 2019) is an annual award given to the top player in Major League Soccer under the age of 22. The award was initially awarded to a rookie, or a player who no ...
, an MLS Best XI, and a two-time MLS All-Star), he has played in
Liga MX The Liga MX, officially known as the Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional football division in Mexico, holding 2 tournaments per year. The league is considered the strongest in North America, and among the strongest in a ...
and in the Israeli Premier League. He won a
silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...
with Team USA at the
2005 Maccabiah Games The 17th Maccabiah Games ( he, המכביה ה-17 ישראל תשס"ה), held in Israel, were an incarnation of the 'Jewish Olympics.' They attracted the largest attendance of any Maccabiah Games, including more than 900 representatives from the Un ...
, in Israel.


Youth and college

Bornstein attended Los Alamitos High School, where he played soccer for all four years. He was MVP of the
Sunset League The Sunset League was a minor league baseball circuit that operated from 1947 through 1950. The Sunset League was a Class C level league, with franchises based in the United States and Mexico. The league expanded from six to eight teams from ...
, first-team all-county, and All- California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), and led the soccer team to a CIF Championship. He also played club soccer for Long Beach United, Beach Soccer Club, and the Irvine Strikers club team coached by Don Ebert. He won the Golden Boot Award as he led the Strikers to the US Youth Soccer 2002 Under-17 National Championship. He started his college soccer career at Cal Poly Pomona and played there for the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos for two years. In 2002, Bornstein was California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Freshman of the Year, first-team All-CCAA, and second-team All-Far West Region, as he led the team in scoring. In 2003, he was again first-team All-CCAA and second-team All-Far West Region, and was selected to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America College Division District VIII team with a 3.30 GPA in Business Administration, as he led Cal Poly in all scoring categories. He finished his career at Cal Poly Pomona ranked second in career assists (19), third in career points (53), and fifth in career goals (19). He then transferred to
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...
for the 2004 season as a sociology major. In 2004, Bornstein played in all of the
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...
's 20 games, with nine starts. In 2005, he started all 20 games and was named second-team All-
Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...
. Bornstein was a teammate of Benny Feilhaber at the youth (with the Irvine Strikers), college (at UCLA, where they were roommates), and national-team level, and at the
Maccabiah Games The Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the World Maccabiah Games; he, משחקי המכביה, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics"), first held in 1932, are an international Jewish and Israeli multi-s ...
in Israel. Feilhaber said he and Bornstein "definitely had a special connection" because of their religion from the beginning of their friendship.


Club career


Chivas USA

Bornstein was selected by Chivas USA in the fourth round (37th overall) at the
2006 MLS SuperDraft The 2006 MLS SuperDraft, held in Philadelphia on January 20, 2006, was the seventh incarnation of the annual Major League Soccer SuperDraft. The first selection originally belonged to Chivas USA, but they traded it to the MetroStars for the fift ...
. A forward in college, he was converted to a left back by Chivas coach Bob Bradley, and was his team's surprising starter at the position when the season opened. Injuries and suspensions forced Bornstein back into an attacking role for Chivas USA's June 3 match against
FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes as a member of the Western Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). The franchise began play in 1996 as a charter club of the leag ...
, where the rookie scored his first MLS goal. He continued his fine play in the back and also contributed to the attack during the rest of the season, finishing the year with four assists and six goals, leading all rookies. He started every game in the season, and his total of 2,878 minutes played was third-highest in the league. He was rewarded for his fine form by winning the 2006
MLS Rookie of the Year Award The MLS Young Player of the Year Award (known as the Rookie of the Year Award from 1996 to 2019) is an annual award given to the top player in Major League Soccer under the age of 22. The award was initially awarded to a rookie, or a player who n ...
. In 2007, he was an MLS All-Star, and named to the MLS Best XI as one of the best 11 players in Major League Soccer. In 2008, Bornstein suffered a knee injury that affected him throughout the spring. When he came back, Chivas coach
Preki Predrag Radosavljević ( sr-Cyrl, Предраг Радосављевић; born June 24, 1963), better known by the nickname Preki (), is a Serbian-American former soccer player and coach. He is currently an assistant coach with Seattle Soun ...
began to employ him in an attacking capacity, which Bornstein trained for in his youth. He repeated as an MLS All-Star in 2008. In summer 2008, Israeli club
Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...
was reportedly interested in Bornstein. News stories claimed that the offer involved a transfer fee of $750,000 and would increase the player's salary five-fold to around $500,000 a season. Bornstein was apparently unenthusiastic, fearing that such a move could cost him his place in the U.S. national team. In 2009, he was the Chivas USA Defender of the Year (2009) and captain. In five seasons with Chivas USA (2006–10), Bornstein made 123 regular season appearances (117 starts).


Liga MX

Bornstein spent the next eight seasons in Mexico's first division,
Liga MX The Liga MX, officially known as the Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional football division in Mexico, holding 2 tournaments per year. The league is considered the strongest in North America, and among the strongest in a ...
. He first played for Tigres de la UANL (2010–14). In July 2010, it was announced by Chivas USA that Bornstein would join Tigres de la UANL in January 2011, following the conclusion of the
2010 Major League Soccer season The 2010 Major League Soccer season was the 98th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer, the 32nd with a national first-division league, in the United States and Canada, and the 15th in MLS history. It began on March 25 at Seattle's Qwest Field wi ...
. Bornstein was selected by
Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at ...
in the
2010 MLS Expansion Draft The 2010 MLS Expansion Draft took place on November 24, 2010, and was a special draft for the Major League Soccer expansion teams Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer clu ...
. In doing so, Portland retained his MLS rights should he ever return to the league. On February 13, 2013, Portland traded Bornstein's MLS rights back to Chivas USA with allocation money for midfielder Ben Zemanski. Bornstein was transfer listed by Tigres on November 19, 2012. He played for Atlante F.C. (2013–14) and
Querétaro F.C. Querétaro Fútbol Club, also called ''Gallos Blancos de Querétaro'', is a Mexican professional football club based in Querétaro City. Querétaro plays in the Liga MX, the top tier of Mexican football league system. Their colors are blue, blac ...
(2014-18). On May 24, 2015, Bornstein scored the goal that sent Querétaro F.C. to their first-ever Liga MX final. Then, on June 10, 2015, it was announced that Bornstain had signed for Querétaro on a permanent basis. While playing in Mexico, he made 128 appearances and won the 2011-12 Liga MX championship, as well as the 2016-17
Copa MX The Copa MX (formerly called Copa Tower Monterrey, Copa Eliminatoria, Copa México and Copa Corona MX (for sponsorship reasons)) was a Mexican football cup competition that was established in 1907. After a lengthy hiatus that began in 1997, it ...
and
2017 Supercopa MX The 2017 Supercopa MX was a Mexican football match-up played on 16 July 2017 between the champions of the Apertura 2016 Copa MX, Querétaro, and América. Like the previous two editions, the 2017 Supercopa MX was contested in a single-leg form ...
titles.


Maccabi Netanya

In 2018, Bornstein signed with Maccabi Netanya of the Israeli Premier League ahead of the 2018-19 League campaign. Playing for Maccabi Netanya in Netanya, Israel in 2018-19, he became an
Israeli citizen Israeli citizenship law details the conditions by which a person holds citizenship of Israel. The two primary pieces of legislation governing these requirements are the 1950 Law of Return and 1952 Citizenship Law. Every Jew in the world h ...
due to his Jewish lineage. Charles Boehm (June 28, 2020). During his time with the club, Bornstein made 36 appearances with 35 starts, totaling 3,163 minutes across all competitions.


Chicago Fire

The Chicago Fire of MLS acquired him from Maccabi Netanya on July 22, 2019. The team signed Bornstein to a contract through 2020, with a 2021 club option that the team exercised in July 2020. In 2019, he played in 11 starts in his first season with the Fire. Bornstein left Chicago at the end of the 2022 season.


International career

Bornstein has made 38 appearances for the United States national soccer team. He got his first cap, and scored his first goal on an assist from
Justin Mapp Justin Mapp (born October 18, 1984) is an American former soccer player who played as a midfielder. Mapp has been described as being versatile and known for possessing "speed and creative abilities from out wide, but also his ability to drift i ...
, for the U.S. national team on January 20, 2007 against
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establishe ...
. As 2007 continued, Bornstein became the first choice left back for Bob Bradley. He played for the U.S. in Copa América 2007. He received his first
World Cup Qualifying The FIFA World Cup qualification is a competitive match that a national association football team takes in order to qualify for one of the available berths at the final tournament of the (men's) FIFA World Cup. Qualifying tournaments are h ...
appearance in a start against Guatemala in the semifinal round of World Cup Qualifying. In 2007, he helped the USMNT win the
CONCACAF Gold Cup The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champion of North Amer ...
, making five starts during the tournament. He featured in the Concacaf Gold Cup (2007, 2011). In 2008, Bornstein lost his starting place to Heath Pearce and also struggled with injuries. He started the group stage matches at the
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup was the eighth Confederations Cup, and was held in South Africa from 14 June to 28 June 2009, as a prelude to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The draw was held on 22 November 2008 at the Sandton Convention Centre in J ...
, but was relegated back to the bench when
Carlos Bocanegra Carlos Manuel Bocanegra (born May 25, 1979) is an American sports executive and former professional soccer player. A two-time MLS Defender of the Year, Bocanegra also played professionally in England, Scotland, France, and Spain. He earned over ...
returned from injury. After the Confederations Cup, Bornstein eventually replaced Pearce as first-choice again and remained so for the rest of the qualifiers. He scored the equalizing goal in 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 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
' final World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica in the fifth minute of
injury time 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 t ...
. The goal meant that Honduras, when combined with their win over
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 by ...
, a game in which Bornstein captained the US side, qualified automatically for the
2010 World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
."Interview: USA World Cup star Jonathan Bornstein,"
''The Jewish Chronicle'', June 10, 2010.
That goal resulted in Bornstein having a level of celebrity in Honduras; he was invited to Honduras by the President of the country and he received letters of thanks for years afterwards. After sitting out the first two group-stage games for the United States in the 2010 World Cup, Bornstein started at left back against
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...
in the final group game and against
Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...
in the
round of 16 A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
. Bornstein was never recalled to the squad by Bradley's successor,
Jürgen Klinsmann Jürgen Klinsmann (, born 30 July 1964) is a German professional football manager and former player. Klinsmann played for several prominent clubs in Europe including VfB Stuttgart, Inter Milan, Monaco, Tottenham Hotspur, and Bayern Munich. ...
, by Klinsmann's successor, Bruce Arena, or by Arena's successor, interim manager
Dave Sarachan Dave Sarachan (born June 7, 1954) is an American former soccer player and coach who is currently the head coach of the Puerto Rico national team. Sarachan spent two seasons as a player in the North American Soccer League and four in Major Indo ...
.


Maccabiah Games

Bornstein played in the
2005 Maccabiah Games The 17th Maccabiah Games ( he, המכביה ה-17 ישראל תשס"ה), held in Israel, were an incarnation of the 'Jewish Olympics.' They attracted the largest attendance of any Maccabiah Games, including more than 900 representatives from the Un ...
, in
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, representing the U.S. along with Benny Feilhaber, Kevin Friedland, Matt Reiswerg, and Leo Krupnik, winning a
silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...
. He scored two goals in the team's quarterfinal win over South Africa. Because of his Jewish lineage, he had an opportunity to play in Israel and not count as a foreign player.


Personal life

Bornstein was born in
Torrance, California Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay region of the metropolitan area. Torrance has of beachfront on the Pacific Oc ...
, and later lived in
Los Alamitos, California Los Alamitos () is a city in Orange County, California. The city was incorporated in March 1960. The population was 11,780 at the 2020 census, up from 11,449 at the 2010 census. The adjacent unincorporated community of Rossmoor uses the same 9 ...
. His father is Jeff Bornstein, who is Jewish and was born in Torrance into an Orthodox family, and worked for Hostess until his death in 2014. His mother is from
Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...
, and is not Jewish. Bornstein's parents divorced when he was three years old, and he lived with his father. His step-mother, Rochelle Bornstein, works as a deli supervisor and cashier at a grocery store in
Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...
. His father's family were
Romanian Jews The history of the Jews in Romania concerns the Jews both of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is present-day Romanian territory. Minimal until the 18th century, the size of the Jewish population increased after ...
. Bornstein grew up observing
Rosh Hashanah Rosh HaShanah ( he, רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה, , literally "head of the year") is the Jewish New Year. The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , lit. "day of shouting/blasting") It is the first of the Jewish High Holy Days (, , ...
and
Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan, the first month of Aviv, or spring. ...
with relatives, and said of his experience representing the U.S. in the 2005 Maccabiah Games reinforcing his Jewish identity: "I was able to explore my Jewish identity in the
Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...
, at
Masada Masada ( he, מְצָדָה ', "fortress") is an ancient fortification in the Southern District of Israel situated on top of an isolated rock plateau, akin to a mesa. It is located on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert, overlooking the ...
, at the
Dead Sea The Dead Sea ( he, יַם הַמֶּלַח, ''Yam hamMelaḥ''; ar, اَلْبَحْرُ الْمَيْتُ, ''Āl-Baḥrū l-Maytū''), also known by other names, is a salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank ...
." In 2006 he said: "in the past couple years, I’ve felt more Jewish than ever." He found faith in Christianity when he met his wife, and was baptized, while in Mexico. He told ESPN, "Just experiencing both cultures, sometimes I felt like I didn't know where I belonged. It's still a soul-searching kind of thing, trying to figure out exactly where you come from or which heritage you relate to. I still kind of feel lost even to this day, but it's something that I just deal with, and it makes me a stronger person having both of those heritages." His brother Andrew played soccer at Cal Poly Pomona, and is now a marketing director. He has a third brother, Taylor. His wife, Juliana, is from Brazil, and he has two daughters.


Career statistics


Club


International


International goals


Honors

UANL * Mexican Primera División: Apertura 2011 Querétaro *
Copa MX The Copa MX (formerly called Copa Tower Monterrey, Copa Eliminatoria, Copa México and Copa Corona MX (for sponsorship reasons)) was a Mexican football cup competition that was established in 1907. After a lengthy hiatus that began in 1997, it ...
: Apertura 2016 * Supercopa MX:
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 ...
United States *
CONCACAF Gold Cup The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champion of North Amer ...
:
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...
Individual *
MLS Rookie of the Year The MLS Young Player of the Year Award (known as the Rookie of the Year Award from 1996 to 2019) is an annual award given to the top player in Major League Soccer under the age of 22. The award was initially awarded to a rookie, or a player who no ...
: 2006 * MLS Best XI: 2007 * MLS All-Star: 2007, 2008 *Inducted into the
Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, in Beverly Hills, California, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring American Jewish athletes, other sports personalities, and teams from Southern California who have distinguished themselves ...
: 2008.


See also

* List of select Jewish football (association; soccer) players


References


External links

* * *
Jonathan Bornstein Stats and biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bornstein, Jonathan 1984 births Living people American soccer players Jewish American sportspeople Jewish footballers American sportspeople of Mexican descent American people of Romanian-Jewish descent California State Polytechnic University, Pomona alumni Cal Poly Pomona Broncos UCLA Bruins men's soccer players Maccabiah Games medalists in football Maccabiah Games silver medalists for the United States Competitors at the 2005 Maccabiah Games Chivas USA players Tigres UANL footballers Atlante F.C. footballers Querétaro F.C. footballers Maccabi Netanya F.C. players Chicago Fire FC players United States men's international soccer players Expatriate footballers in Mexico Chivas USA draft picks CONCACAF Gold Cup-winning players 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2007 Copa América players 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2010 FIFA World Cup players 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Major League Soccer players Major League Soccer All-Stars Liga MX players American expatriate sportspeople in Mexico American expatriate sportspeople in Israel Association football defenders Israeli Premier League players Israeli American Israeli people of Romanian-Jewish descent People from Los Alamitos, California Sportspeople from Orange County, California Soccer players from Torrance, California 21st-century American Jews