Kevin Politz (born March 22, 1996) 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

Politz was born in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

, but grew up in the Morganville section of

Marlboro Township, New Jersey Marlboro Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The township is located within the Raritan Valley region and is a part of the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township had a ...

, where he attended Marlboro High School and was a member of the

New York Red Bulls Academy The New York Red Bulls Academy is the multi-layered youth system of the New York Red Bulls. It is the first cost-free program in Major League Soccer that provides a professional soccer training environment for youth players in the New York Tri-Sta ...

. He was also a member of the US Soccer residency program at IMG Academy. He attended college at Wake Forest University and played on the Demon Deacons soccer team for three seasons, making 72 appearances, scoring 3 goals and tallying 1 assist. In 2017, Politz was named an All-American and the ACC Defender of the Year. While in college, Politz appeared for

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

side

New York Red Bulls U-23 The New York Red Bulls U-23 is an American soccer team based in Harrison, New Jersey. Founded in 2009, the team plays in USL League Two, a national amateur league at the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. It is part of the official Dev ...

New York Red Bulls

On January 3, 2018, Politz signed a homegrown contract with the

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The club was established in October 1994 and be ...

. On March 15, 2018, the New York Red Bulls entered into a

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

agreement with New York Red Bulls II, and Politz was listed on the Red Bulls II

2018 USL season The 2018 USL season was the eighth season of the United Soccer League and second under Division II sanctioning. The previous season, the USL had provisional Div. II sanctioning from the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) along with th ...

roster. He made his professional debut on March 17, 2018, for

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...

side New York Red Bulls II, coming on as a second half substitution in a 2–1 win over

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 ...

. Politz and Red Bull II finished in 5th place in the Eastern Conference standings. Red Bull II advanced to the USL Championship Eastern Conference finals by defeating

Charleston Battery The Charleston Battery are an American professional association football, soccer club based in Charleston, South Carolina, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 1993, the Battery are one of the oldest continuously operating professiona ...

and

FC Cincinnati Football Club Cincinnati, commonly known as FC Cincinnati, is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Cincinnati. The club plays in the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The ...

on the road by 1-0 scorelines before falling to eventual USL Championship champions, Louisville City FC. Politz was released by the Red Bulls at the end of their 2018 season.

Greenville Triumph

In February 2019 Politz signed with USL League One team Greenville Triumph SC. Politz scored the game-winning goal for Greenville in the team's inaugural home match victory over

Lansing Ignite Lansing Ignite FC was a professional soccer team based in Lansing, Michigan, United States. The club began play in the newly-formed USL League One in 2019 and ceased operations following their inaugural season. History The formation of USL Le ...

, it was Politz's first professional goal and he was named to the USL one team of the week. For the 2019 season he appeared in 27 of the team's 28 games, starting 25 of them. Greenville advanced to the USL League One final, falling to North Texas SC in the championship match.

Hartford Athletic

On December 19, 2019, Greenville transferred Politz to USL Championship team Hartford Athletic. In his second match with the team he scored his second career professional goal. Politz started 14 of 16 regular season games, helping Hartford finish with the second most points in the USL Championship. Politz started in Hartford's first ever playoff game, a 1-0 home loss to Saint Louis FC.

Toronto FC II

On May 5, 2021, Politz joined USL League One side

. He scored his first goal for the team in a 1–0 victory on October 8 against

New England Revolution II New England Revolution II is a professional soccer club based in the Greater Boston area that competes in the MLS Next Pro, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of the Major League Soccer c ...

International career

In 2012, Politz made one appearance for the United States U17 team.

Career statistics

Honors

Club

* MLS Supporters' Shield (1):

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 ...

References

External links

* *
Wake Forest University bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Politz, Kevin 1996 births Living people American soccer players Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's soccer players New York Red Bulls U-23 players New York Red Bulls players New York Red Bulls II players Association football defenders Soccer players from New Jersey USL League Two players USL Championship players Marlboro High School alumni People from Marlboro Township, New Jersey Sportspeople from New Haven, Connecticut Sportspeople from Monmouth County, New Jersey Greenville Triumph SC players USL League One players Hartford Athletic players Homegrown Players (MLS) Toronto FC II players