Matthew Sheldon (born August 23, 1992) 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 currently plays for USL Championship side Hartford Athletic.

Early life

Sheldon was born on 23 August 1992 in Bellevue, Washington, United States. He grew up in Portland, Oregon with his brother, sister and parents. He played recreational soccer until 5th grade, when he joined his first club team. At the time, soccer was just one of many sports that Sheldon played - he played basketball, baseball and American football as well Sheldon attended Lincoln High School in Portland, Oregon. Alongside high school soccer, he played for Westside Metros Remix club (now known as Westside Timbers).

College career

During his senior year, Sheldon received athletic scholarships from both UC Davis and Oregon State, as well as a roster spot from

Gonzaga Gonzaga may refer to: Places * Gonzaga, Lombardy, commune in the province of Mantua, Italy * Gonzaga, Cagayan, municipality in the Philippines *Gonzaga, Minas Gerais, town in Brazil *Forte Gonzaga, fort in Messina, Sicily People with the surna ...

. He committed to play for UC Davis.

Club career

Sheldon played college soccer at UC Davis between 2011 and 2014. He spent time in the

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 ...

with San Jose Earthquakes U23 in 2014, Ventura County Fusion in 2015, and briefly with Orange County Blues U-23 in 2016, before moving to Germany with sixth-tier side SG Kinzenbach. Sheldon signed with United Soccer League club

Orange County Blues Orange County Soccer Club is an American soccer team based in the Orange County, California city of Irvine. Founded in 2010 as the Los Angeles Blues, the team currently plays in the second tier USL Championship. The team plays its home games ...

in July 2016, making his professional debut on July 10, 2016, in a 3–3 draw with

Sacramento Republic Sacramento Republic FC is an American professional soccer team based in Sacramento, California, that plays in the Western Conference of the USL Championship, the second level in US soccer. Co-founded by Warren Smith and Joe Wagoner in 2012, th ...

. In November 2016, Sheldon announced that he would play for Saint Louis FC for the 2017 USL season. In March 2018, it was announced Sheldon would play for amateur club side

Waterside Karori Waterside Karori AFC is an association football club in Karori, a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. They currently play in the Capital Football (New Zealand), Capital Football Central League (New Zealand), Central League. History Waterside Ka ...

in Wellington, New Zealand. On January 14, 2019, the

Tulsa Roughnecks FC Tulsa Roughnecks may refer to any of four distinct professional soccer teams: *Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984), the original top-flight team that played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1984. *Tulsa Roughnecks (1993–2000), the team ...

announced that they had signed Sheldon for their 2019 season. On December 10, 2019, it was announced that Tulsa, now rebranded as FC Tulsa, had re-signed Sheldon to their roster for the

2020 USL Championship season The 2020 USL Championship season was the tenth season of the USL Championship and fourth under Division II sanctioning. This was the second season under the name "USL Championship", having used the name "United Soccer League" through 2018. Rea ...

. On December 15, 2020, it was announced that FC Tulsa, had re-signed Sheldon to their roster for the

2021 USL Championship season The 2021 USL Championship season was the eleventh season of the USL Championship and the fifth season under Division II sanctioning. This was the third season under the name "USL Championship", having used the name "United Soccer League" throug ...

following a successful campaign with the club in 2020. On December 30, 2021, it was announced that Sheldon had signed a contract with the Charleston Battery ahead of the

2022 USL Championship season The 2022 USL Championship season is the twelfth season of the USL Championship and the sixth season under Division II sanctioning. The 2022 season sees 27 teams participate in two conferences during the regular season. This season will be the las ...

. Following the 2022 season, Sheldon was released by Charleston. On January 31, 2023, Sheldon was announced as a new signing for USL Championship side Hartford Athletic on a one-year deal.

Media

Sheldon also operates two notable YouTube channels called ''Become Elite'' as well as the ''Against All Odds Podcast'' which combined currently have over 530,000 subscribers. Both channels give a behind the scenes look into the life of a professional soccer player.

References

External links

* * 1992 births Living people American soccer players American expatriate soccer players Association football defenders Charleston Battery players Hartford Athletic players Orange County SC players Saint Louis FC players San Jose Earthquakes U23 players Soccer players from Portland, Oregon Sportspeople from Bellevue, Washington FC Tulsa players UC Davis Aggies men's soccer players USL Championship players USL League Two players Ventura County Fusion players Waterside Karori players Expatriate association footballers in New Zealand American expatriate sportspeople in New Zealand American expatriate soccer players in Germany American YouTubers {{US-footy-midfielder-stub