Luke Stephan Sassano (born October 14, 1985 in

Orinda, California Orinda is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city's population as of the 2020 census is estimated at 19,514 residents. History Orinda is located within four Mexican land grants: Rancho Laguna de los Palos Colorados ...

) is an American former soccer player.

Career

Youth and college

Sassano began his career at Lamorinda Soccer Club. He attended Miramonte High School in

, and 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 the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. He was an All-Pac-10 Honorable Mention in 2005, a Pac-10 All-Academic Honorable Mention in 2007, and a Pac-10 1st Team in 2007. Sassano featured in a total of 64 games scoring four goals and registering 19 assists during his four-year career for the Golden Bears. During his college years Sassano also played for

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 syst ...

sides San Francisco Seals and

San Jose Frogs San Jose Frogs was an American soccer team based in San Jose, California, United States. Founded in 2005, the team played in the USL Premier Development League (PDL), the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2008, when the franchise ...

Professional

Sassano was drafted with the 32nd pick of the

2008 MLS SuperDraft The 2008 MLS SuperDraft took place on January 18, 2008 in Baltimore, Maryland. It was the ninth annual Major League Soccer SuperDraft. The first selection was made by the Kansas City Wizards, after acquiring the selection from the expansion San ...

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 ...

and made his debut on 5 April 2008 in a home game against

Columbus Crew The Columbus Crew, formerly known as Columbus Crew SC, is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one ...

. He was a valuable member of the squad in 2008 as his versatility enabled him to receive significant playing time in his rookie campaign. With the injury to starting defensive midfielder

Seth Stammler Seth Stammler (born September 29, 1981 in Columbus, Ohio) is a retired American soccer player. Career College Stammler attended Gahanna Middle School East and Gahanna Lincoln High School, and played four years of college soccer at the Univer ...

, Sassano was inserted into the starting lineup for the club's first round MLS Playoff series against the defending champion Houston Dynamo. Sassano's defensive play helped the club upset heavily favored Houston 4–1 on aggregate, helping the club reach the Western Conference Final. During his second season, Sassano featured in 17 regular season games playing primarily as a defensive midfielder. Following the

2009 Major League Soccer season The 2009 Major League Soccer season was the 14th season of Major League Soccer. The season began on March 19 and ended with MLS Cup 2009 on November 22 at Qwest Field in Seattle. Expansion team Seattle Sounders FC debuted as the league's 15 ...

, Sassano went on a three-week training stint with sister club FC Red Bull Salzburg. Sassano appeared in 3 matches in 2010 before having season-ending ankle reconstruction surgery. On December 15, 2010 Sassano was selected by

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 ...

in Stage 2 of the Re-Entry draft and subsequently traded to Sporting Kansas City. He signed with Sporting KC on January 12, 2011. On June 12, 2011 he scored his first Major League Soccer goal in a 4–1 victory over

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 le ...

. Sassano had season ending knee surgery on September 28, 2011. He re-signed with SKC on January 30, 2012. Sassano started off 2012 in promising fashion before being sidelined with his third extensive surgery in 2 years.

Post-professional

After multiple injuries, including two knee surgeries in 2012, Sassano chose to retire as a professional soccer player, but he wished to remain involved in the sport. On April 16, 2013, Sassano was named Assistant Sporting Director for the

New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independ ...

. Along with scouting for talent both domestically and internationally, he is responsible for negotiating contracts and managing the roster. On March 14, 2018, Sassano was named the technical director of

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

during their final season in the

United Soccer League 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 was heavily involved with the planning and roster selection for

as they moved up to Major League Soccer.

Career statistics

Honors

New York Red Bulls

* Major League Soccer Western Conference Championship (1):

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

References

External links

*
Cal Bears bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sassano, Luke 1985 births Living people American soccer players California Golden Bears men's soccer players San Francisco Seals (soccer) players San Jose Frogs players New York Red Bulls players Sporting Kansas City players Sportspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area North Carolina FC players USL League Two players Major League Soccer players Miramonte High School alumni North American Soccer League (2011–2017) players People from Orinda, California New York Red Bulls draft picks Soccer players from California Men's association football defenders FC Cincinnati non-playing staff Association football midfielders