Leo Stolz (born 15 February 1991) is a German former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

Career

Youth and college

Stolz began his career playing at SV Pullach. Soon he joined the youth system of 1860 Munich in 2004. He progressed in the youth system and became a regular starter for the club in the

Under 19 Bundesliga The Under 19 Bundesliga (German: ''A-Junioren Bundesliga'') is the highest level in German Under 19 football. It was created in 2003 and is divided in three divisions (Nord/Nordost, West und Süd/Südwest) with 14 teams each. The winner of each d ...

. In 2010, he joined 1860 Munich II in the Regionalliga Süd. He made his debut for the team on 15 October 2010 in a 3–1 victory over SV Wehen Wiesbaden II. In his first season with Munich II Stolz appeared in 11 league matches as a central midfielder. Stolz was offered a senior contract with Munich 1860 in 2011 but decided to play college soccer in the United States joining

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

. In his first season in the United States Stolz appeared in 18 matches and scored four goals. After a strong first season, Stolz decided to transfer to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. In three years with the Bruins, Stolz played in 63 matches and scored 20 goals and recorded 22 assists. At the end of the 2014 season, Stolz was awarded the

Hermann Trophy The Hermann Trophy is awarded annually by the Missouri Athletic Club to the United States's top men's and women's college soccer players. History In 1967, Bob Hermann, the president of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and the ...

recognizing him as the top college soccer player in the country. Stolz and his UCLA team reached their first College Championship final in December 2014, but lost to

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

on penalties. Stolz graduated from

ESADE Business School ESADE Business School is a private college and graduate school located in Barcelona, Spain. It is part of ESADE ( Catalan: ''Escola Superior d'Administració i Direcció d'Empreses'', Spanish: ''Escuela Superior de Administración y Dirección de ...

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

on 28 October 2017 successfully finishing his master's degree in international management.

New York Red Bulls

On 15 January 2015, Stolz was selected 18th overall by

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 ...

in the

2015 MLS SuperDraft The 2015 MLS SuperDraft was the sixteenth SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held each year in conjunction with the annual National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention. The 2015 convention was held Januar ...

. Stolz signed a contract with the Red Bulls on 17 January 2015. Stolz was loaned to affiliate side

New York Red Bulls II New York Red Bulls II is an American professional soccer team based in Montclair, New Jersey. They are the reserve team of the New York Red Bulls and play in MLS Next Pro, the third tier in the American soccer pyramid. History Red Bull New Yo ...

and captained the side in its first ever match on 28 March 2015 in a 0–0 draw with

Rochester Rhinos Rochester New York FC, formerly known as the Rochester Rhinos, are an American professional soccer team based in Rochester, New York, United States. Founded in 1996, as the Rochester Raging Rhinos, they changed their name to Rochester Rhinos to ...

. On 4 April 2015, Stolz scored his first goal for New York Red Bulls II in a 4–1 victory 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 a ...

, the first victory in club history. Stolz was released by Red Bulls at the end of the 2015 MLS season.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stolz, Leo 1991 births Living people German men's footballers German expatriate men's footballers George Mason Patriots men's soccer players UCLA Bruins men's soccer players TSV 1860 Munich II players New York Red Bulls players New York Red Bulls II players Men's association football midfielders Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States New York Red Bulls draft picks USL Championship players Hermann Trophy men's winners All-American college men's soccer players Footballers from Munich