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Meghan Klingenberg

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Meghan Klingenberg
Klingenberg with the Portland Thorns in 2024
Personal information
Full name Meghan Elizabeth Klingenberg[1]
Date of birth (1988-08-02) August 2, 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
Height 5 ft 2 in (1.57 m)
Position(s) Left back
Team information
Current team
 Portland Thorns
Number 25
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2007–2010 North Carolina Tar Heels 70 (18)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011 magicJack 2 (0)
2011 Boston Breakers 10 (0)
2012 Western New York Flash 3 (2)
2012–2014 Tyresö FF 32 (2)
2014–2015 Houston Dash 19 (0)
2016– Portland Thorns 151 (0)
International career‡
2004[2] United States U-16
2005[2] United States U-17
2008[2] United States U-19
2009–2010[2] United States U-23
2011–2018 United States 75 (3)
Medal record
FIFA Women's World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2015 Canada Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of September 3, 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of September 3, 2024

Meghan Elizabeth Klingenberg (born August 2, 1988) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Portland Thorns in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL).[3] A former member of the United States women's national soccer team, she is a one-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion. She has also played for three teams in the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league, for Tyresö FF in Sweden's Damallsvenskan and for the Houston Dash in the NWSL.

Early life

Klingenberg was born in Pittsburgh and raised in the suburban north hills of Gibsonia, Pennsylvania. She has a younger brother named Drew who played college soccer at Penn State. She attended Pine-Richland High School from 2003 to 2007 and was the captain of the girls soccer team. In 2005, she helped lead Pine-Richland to the Pennsylvania state high school championship and was an NSCAA All-America selection. She was also named a Parade All-American.[4]

Klingenberg claims she enhanced her soccer skills by practicing Taekwondo, and that the martial art made her a more aggressive player. She is now a black belt.[5]

University of North Carolina

Klingenberg attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was a four-year starter for the Tar Heels. She scored 18 career goals with 24 assists. Klingenberg was a highly flexible player, playing on all three lines for UNC.

As a freshman in 2007, she played in 24 games, starting 10, and earned Freshman All-ACC honors. She scored five goals with three assists and was a Soccer America First-Team All-Freshman selection. Klingenberg led UNC freshmen in all offensive categories and was an All-ACC Academic Team selection.[4]

As a sophomore in 2008, she played in 20 games, starting eight, and missed the last six games of the season playing for the US at the 2008 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Chile. She tied for second on the team with nine assists and two goals. Klingenberg was named to the ACC All-Academic women's soccer team and the ACC Honor Roll.[4]

As a junior in 2009, she played in 26 games and played 1,668 minutes while scoring five goals with one assist. Klingenberg scored the game-winning goal in a 5–2 triumph over Wake Forest in the NCAA quarterfinals.[4]

As a senior in 2010, she was an NSCAA All-American while playing in all 24 games for the Tar Heels and was fourth on the team with 23 points. She had 11 assists (second on the team), scored six goals, and was named First-Team All-ACC.[4]

Klingenberg studied business with a concentration in entrepreneurship while at UNC Chapel Hill.[6]

Club career

Klingenberg with Tyreso in 2013
Klingenberg with Portland in 2018

WPS, 2011

In 2011, Klingenberg was selected by the Washington Freedom in the first round of the WPS draft.[7] After the team was moved to Florida and renamed magicJack, she was traded in early June to the Boston Breakers. Klingenberg played 10 matches for Boston, starting them all and totaling 961 minutes for the season. She ended the season with one goal and two assists.[4] She also spent time at Western New York Flash where she won the 2012 Women's Premier Soccer League Elite.[8]

Tyresö FF, 2012–13

In 2012, Klingenberg signed with Swedish club, Tyresö.[9] During her time with Tyresö she won the 2012 Damallsvenskan.[8]

NWSL, 2013

After the WPS folded, the National Women's Soccer League was created with support from the US, Canada, and Mexico.

Houston Dash, 2014–2015

On January 10, 2014, it was announced that the Houston Dash had selected Klingenberg with the sixth pick in the 2014 NWSL Expansion Draft.[10] She finished UEFA Women's Champions League with Tyresӧ FF, before joining the Dash mid-season. She left in October 2015 after making nineteen appearances for the club.[8]

Portland Thorns, 2016–

In October 2015, Klingenberg was part of a pingpong trade that had her join the Seattle Reign as she was traded by Houston Dash for Amber Brooks and a conditional selection in the 2017 NWSL College Draft,[11] then traded to the NWSL 2016 expansion team Orlando, who then traded her to the Portland Thorns FC for Alex Morgan and other considerations.[12]

International career

Klingenberg training with USWNT in 2012

Klingenberg has played for the United States women's national soccer team at the U-16, U-17, U-20 and U-23 levels.[13] She received her first call-up to the senior squad for the 2011 Four Nations Tournament and earned her first two caps during the event.[13][14][15] She was named an alternate for the 2012 Summer Olympics.[16][17] In March 2013, she was named to the senior team roster by US WNT coach, Tom Sermanni for upcoming exhibition matches against Germany and the Netherlands.[18] Klingenberg made her debut for senior team on January 23, 2011, at the Four Nations Tournament against Canada, coming in as a substitute at seventy-eighth minute.[19] She also played in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. The United States women's national soccer team won the tournament on July 5, 2015. Klingenberg started in every match of the tournament for the team. Despite seeing extensive playing time during the 2016 Summer Olympics, Klingenberg would receive sparse minutes throughout 2017 and has not been called up since January 2018.

Off-field

While with the Houston Dash, Klingenberg and teammate Morgan Brian lived with the family of former Houston Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy during the NWSL season, as part of the Dash's host family program.[20]

In 2018, Klingenberg participated in negotiating image and likeness rights for the United States women's national team for the U.S. Women's National Team Players Association.[6]

In 2019, Klingenberg, along with United States teammates Tobin Heath, Christen Press and Megan Rapinoe started Re-inc, a gender-neutral lifestyle brand.[21]

Klingenberg was featured with her national teammates in the EA Sports' FIFA video game series in FIFA 16, the first time women players were included in the game.[22] She appeared in the series again in FIFA 23, which added NWSL teams to the game.[23]

Following the United States' win at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, Klingenberg and her teammates became the first women's sports team to be honored with a ticker tape parade in New York City.[24] Each player received a key to the city from Mayor Bill de Blasio.[25] In October of the same year, the team was honored by President Barack Obama at the White House.[26]

Career statistics

Club

As of As of September 3, 2024.[8]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Domestic Cup[a] Other[b] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
magicJack 2011 WPS 2 0 — — 2 0
Boston Breakers 2011 11 1 — — 11 1
Western New York Flash 2012 WPSL 3 2 — — 3 2
Total 16 3 — — 16 3
Tyresö 2012 Damallsvenskan 8 1 2 0 — 10 1
2013 20 1 1 0 1[c] 0 22 1
2014 4 0 2 0 — 6 0
Total 32 2 5 0 1 0 38 2
Houston Dash 2014 NWSL 7 0 — — 7 0
2015 12 0 — — 12 0
Total 19 0 — — 19 0
Portland Thorns 2016 NWSL 14 0 — — 14 0
2017 23 0 — — 23 0
2018 20 0 — — 20 0
2019 23 0 — — 23 0
2020 — — 9 0 9 0
2021 22 0 — 5 0 27 0
2022 17 0 — 5 0 20 0
2023 21 0 — 5 0 26 0
2024 11 0 — — 11 0
Total 151 0 — 24 0 175 0
Career total 218 5 5 0 25 0 248 5

  1. ^ Includes the Svenska Cupen
  2. ^ Includes the NWSL Challenge Cup and NWSL Fall Series
  3. ^ One appearance in Svenska Supercupen

International

Scores and results list United States's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Klingenberg goal.
List of international goals scored by Meghan Klingenberg
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 October 20, 2014 Washington, D.C.  Haiti 3–0 6–0 2014 CONCACAF Women's Championship [m 1]
2 April 4, 2015 St. Louis  New Zealand 1–0 4–0 Friendly [m 2]
3 August 16, 2015 Pittsburgh  Costa Rica 7–0 8–0 Friendly [m 3]

Honors

As of May 18, 2023.[8]

Western New York Flash

Tyresö

Portland Thorns FC

United States

Individual

References

  1. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015 – List of Players: USA" (PDF). FIFA. July 6, 2015. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 2, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d "Meghan Klingenberg". U.S. Soccer. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved February 2, 2011.
  3. ^ Meghan Klingenberg's US Soccer Profile Archived August 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Meghan Klingenberg player profile". US Soccer. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  5. ^ "Meet the U.S. women's soccer team seeking World Cup glory". www.cbsnews.com. June 9, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
  6. ^ a b Murray, Caitlin. "Meghan Klingenberg's new, off-field role with the USWNT: helping the players monetize their success". The Athletic. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  7. ^ "Lauletta's League Lowdown". Archived from the original on February 9, 2011.
  8. ^ a b c d e [1] Soccerway. October 26, 2015. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  9. ^ "Meghan Klingenberg to Tyresö FF". Tyreso FF. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
  10. ^ "Houston Dash select 10 players in 2014 NWSL Expansion Draft". Houston Dash Communications. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
  11. ^ "Houston Dash acquire rights to midfielder Amber Brooks, first-round draft pick from Seattle Reign FC". Houston Dash. October 26, 2015. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  12. ^ Wahl, Grant (October 21, 2015). "Source: Alex Morgan in NWSL trade to Orlando". Sports Illustrated.
  13. ^ a b Heim, David (June 11, 2015). "Meet The 10 USWNT World Cup First Timers". CBS Local. Archived from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  14. ^ "U.S. Women Rebound to Defeat Canada 2–1 at Four Nations Tournament in China". U.S. Soccer. January 23, 2011. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  15. ^ "U.S. Defeats China 2–0 to Win Four Nations Tournament". U.S. Soccer. January 25, 2011. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  16. ^ "Meghan Klingenberg set for Summer Olympics". Trib Total Media, LLC. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  17. ^ "Meghan Klingenberg". London 2012 Olympic Games. Archived from the original on September 15, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  18. ^ "Franch, Johnston, Klingenberg on US women's roster for games at Germany, Netherlands". Fox News. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
  19. ^ "U.S. Women Rebound to Defeat Canada 2–1 at Four Nations Tournament in China". U.S.Soccer.
  20. ^ "USWNT stars Morgan Brian and Meghan Klingenberg are living with Jeff Van Gundy". FTW.usatoday.com. June 25, 2015.
  21. ^ Schwab, Katharine (July 1, 2019). "Megan Rapinoe's new lifestyle brand is built on inclusive design". Fast Company.
  22. ^ Barnes, Katie (September 28, 2015). "Why 'FIFA 16' is a Landmark for Women". ESPN. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  23. ^ Clarke, Ryan (March 10, 2023). "EA Sports unveils "FIFA 23" ratings for Portland Thorns, rest of NWSL". The Oregonian. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  24. ^ "U.S. women celebrate World Cup with ticker-tape parade in New York City". USA Today. July 11, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  25. ^ "Team USA parades NYC's "Canyon of Heroes"". CBS News. July 10, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  26. ^ Wagner, Laura (October 27, 2015). "Obama To U.S. Women's Soccer Team: 'Playing Like A Girl Means You're A Badass'". NPR. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  27. ^ Azzi, Alex (October 30, 2022). "Portland Thorns win 2022 NWSL Championship, MVP Smith scores game winner". On Her Turf. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  28. ^ Snipes, Tyler (August 22, 2021). "The Portland Thorns are WICC Champions!". International Champions Cup.
  29. ^ "2015 FIFPro Award". Fifpro.org. February 18, 2016. Archived from the original on July 28, 2017. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
Match reports
  1. ^ "WNT Defeats Haiti 6–0 to Earn Top Seed in Semifinals of 2014 CONCACAF Women's Championship". U.S.Soccer. Archived from the original on October 21, 2014.
  2. ^ "WNT Cruises to 4–0 Win against New Zealand before Record-Setting Crowd in St. Louis". U.S.Soccer. Archived from the original on April 6, 2015.
  3. ^ "World Champion U.S. WNT Opens Victory Tour with 8–0 Win Against Costa Rica in Front of Record Crowd in Pittsburgh". U.S.Soccer. Archived from the original on August 18, 2015.
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