Matt Clare (born May 25, 1988 in

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

) 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 who last played for

Florida Tropics SC Florida Tropics SC is a professional soccer club based in Lakeland, Florida. They are owned by Central Florida Sports Ventures, LLC, led by Dr. Panos Iakovidis, and former USL commissioner and Rochester Rhinos owner Chris Economides. The organ ...

in the Major Arena Soccer League.

Career

Youth and Amateur

Clare, who did not play college soccer, played with elite youth team Charlotte Soccer, before going on to play for IMG ACADEMY.

Professional

Clare signed his first professional contract in 2011 when he signed with

FC Tampa Bay The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...

of the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

, having trialed with the team during pre-season. He made his professional debut on May 11, coming on as a late substitute in a game against FC Edmonton. Tampa Bay announced that the club exercised its 2012 contract option on Clare on October 5, 2011. The new contract also includes a club option for the 2013 season. Clare went on to play for the

Wichita Wings The Wichita Wings were a professional indoor soccer franchise based in Wichita, Kansas. The Wings were admitted to the Major Indoor Soccer League as an expansion team on August 21, 1979.

in the Major Indoor Soccer League and the

Wichita B-52s The Wichita B-52s was an American professional indoor soccer team based in Wichita, Kansas. Founded in July 2013, the team made its debut in the Professional Arena Soccer League with the 2013–14 season under head coach Larry Inlow. After begin ...

in the

MASL The Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) is a North American professional indoor soccer league. The MASL features teams playing coast-to-coast in the United States and Mexico. MASL is the highest level of arena soccer in North America. MASL players ...

. Clare signed for the San Diego Sockers in 2015 where he won 3 conference championships. Clare signed for

National Premier Soccer League The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's association football, soccer league. The NPSL is a semi-professional league, comprising some teams that have paid players and some that are entirely amateur. The league is officially ...

club

FC Wichita FC Wichita is a soccer club based in Wichita, Kansas that plays in USL League Two's Heartland Conference. The club was a member of the Heartland Conference in the National Premier Soccer League, a national semi-professional league at the fourth ...

on Feb 23, 2015 leading them to 2 conference championships. Clare has been a dominant force in the indoor game over the course of 7 years. Clare represented the United States Arena team over 4 years winning the World Cup in 2015 . Clare traveled to Tunisia to try his luck again but came up short in the quarter finals to Mexico in a heartbreaking loss. Clare made his return to Florida on 31 January 2019, signing with

. Clare has been a dominant force in the indoor game over the course of 7 years.

Personal

Matt is the son of former professional soccer player John Clare, who played for the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994), member of American Soccer League from 1988 to 1989 and American Profes ...

in the

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

in the 1990s. Matt's brother Andrew currently plays as a centerback for Tropics SC in the United Premier Soccer League.

References

External links

Tampa Bay profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clare, Matt 1988 births Living people American soccer players IMG Academy Bradenton players Tampa Bay Rowdies players West Virginia Chaos players USL League Two players North American Soccer League players St. Petersburg Kickers players Association football forwards Major Arena Soccer League players National Premier Soccer League players Major Indoor Soccer League (2008–2014) players Tacoma Stars (2003–) players Syracuse Silver Knights players Wichita Wings (2011–2013 MISL) players Wichita B-52s FC Wichita players San Diego Sockers players Florida Tropics SC players United Premier Soccer League players