James Matthew "Matt" Van Oekel (born September 20, 1986) 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

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

for

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

club

Birmingham Legion FC Birmingham Legion FC is an American professional soccer club based in Birmingham, Alabama, that competes in the USL Championship, the second division of American soccer. The team was established in August 2013 and played under the name Birming ...

Career

Youth and college

Van Oekel played one year of

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 Kingd ...

Longwood University Longwood University is a public university in Farmville, Virginia. Founded in 1839, it is the third-oldest public university in Virginia and one of the hundred oldest institutions of higher education in the United States. Previously a college, Lo ...

before transferring to

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

in his sophomore year. With Rutgers, he played in 47 games and earned 20 wins.

Professional

Van Oekel signed with Minnesota out of college in 2008, after impressing staff at the Thunder combine in February 2008. He made his professional debut on September 13, 2009, in 1–1 draw with Montreal Impact, and was released at the end of the season when the Thunder failed, before being picked up by their successor

NSC Minnesota Stars NSC may refer to: Sport and competition * NSC United, an American soccer team * National Scholastics Championship, an American quiz bowl competition * National Scrabble Championship, now known as the Scrabble Players Championship * National Shoot ...

, in April 2010.

Minnesota United FC Minnesota United FC is an American professional soccer club based in Saint Paul, Minnesota that plays in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer. The club began play in 2017 as the league's 22nd club, and replaced the North American Socc ...

, now playing in 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 ...

, re-signed Van Oekel for the 2011 season on March 11, 2011. Minnesota announced in December 2011 that Van Oekel would return for the 2012 season. Van Oekel signed with

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

side

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in 20 ...

on December 22, 2016. On March 25, 2017, Van Oekel made his first MLS start with RSL, tallying three saves against

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 ...

. Van Oekel signed with

USL The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...

side

Oklahoma City Energy FC Oklahoma City Energy Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The club is a member of the USL Championship, the second division of the American soccer league system. History Oklahoma City businessman ...

on January 5, 2018. Van Oekel was acquired by

on December 12, 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Oekel, Matt 1986 births Living people American people of Dutch descent American men's soccer players Men's association football goalkeepers Birmingham Legion FC players FC Edmonton players Longwood University alumni Major League Soccer players Minnesota Thunder players Minnesota United FC (2010–2016) players North American Soccer League (2011–2017) players OKC Energy FC players Real Monarchs players Real Salt Lake players Rutgers Scarlet Knights men's soccer players Soccer players from Virginia Sportspeople from Chesapeake, Virginia USL Championship players USL First Division players USSF Division 2 Professional League players