Henry Kessler (soccer)

Henry Kessler
Personal information
Full name Frederick Henry Kessler[1]
Date of birth (1998-06-25) June 25, 1998 (age 26)
Place of birth New York City, New York, United States
Height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)[2]
Position(s) Center-back
Team information
Current team
 St. Louis City SC
Number 5
Youth career
2011–2015 New York Red Bulls
2015–2017 Beachside SC
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2019 Virginia Cavaliers 52 (1)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2018 AC Connecticut 18 (0)
2020–2024 New England Revolution 98 (4)
2024– St. Louis City SC 7 (1)
International career‡
2021 United States U23 3 (0)
2021 United States 2 (0)
Medal record
Representing  United States
Men's soccer
CONCACAF Gold Cup
Winner 2021
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 6, 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of December 18, 2021

Frederick Henry Kessler (born June 25, 1998) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center-back for Major League Soccer club St. Louis City SC.

Club career

Born in New York City, New York, Kessler began playing soccer in the New York Red Bulls academy, where he played for five years before moving to Beachside Soccer Club in Norwalk, Connecticut.[3]

Prior to college, Kessler considered entering Harvard University but elected to join the University of Virginia after being recruited to play for the Virginia Cavaliers.[3] While in college, Kessler also played two seasons with USL Premier Development League side AC Connecticut.[3]

New England Revolution

On December 30, 2019, Kessler signed a Generation Adidas contract with Major League Soccer and entered the 2020 MLS SuperDraft.[4] On January 9, 2020, Kessler was selected 6th overall in the draft by the New England Revolution.[5]

Kessler made his professional debut for the Revolution on February 29, 2020, in their opening match against the Montreal Impact.[6] He scored his first career professional goal, also against the Montreal Impact, on September 23, 2020.[7]

On October 11, 2023, Kessler signed a 2-year contract extension with the New England Revolution.[8]

St. Louis City SC

On August 3, 2024, Kessler was traded to St. Louis City SC, in exchange for Tim Parker plus $600,000 in General Allocation Money.[9]

International career

Kessler was named to the final 20-player United States U23 roster for the 2020 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship in March 2021.[10] He was previously eligible for the Republic of Ireland national team with his mother being an Irish citizen.[11]

Kessler was added to the United States national team for the quarterfinal round of the 2021 Gold Cup, pending CONCACAF approval, replacing an injured Walker Zimmerman.[12] Kessler was cap-tied to the United States by making his senior debut as an extra-time substitute to close out their 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final victory over Mexico.

Career statistics

Club

As of July 14, 2024[13]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
AC Connecticut 2017 Premier Development League 9 0 — — — 9 0
2018 9 0 — — — 9 0
Total 18 0 — — — 18 0
New England Revolution 2020 MLS 22 1 — — 4[a] 0 26 1
2021 28 1 — — 1[a] 0 29 1
2022 22 1 1 0 — — 23 1
2023 9 1 — — 1[a] 0 10 1
2024 17 0 — 4[b] 0 — 21 0
Total 98 4 1 0 4 0 6 0 109 4
Career total 116 4 1 0 4 0 6 0 127 4
  1. ^ a b c Appearance(s) in MLS Cup Playoffs
  2. ^ Appearances in CONCACAF Champions Cup

International

As of match played December 18, 2021[14]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
United States 2021 2 0
Total 2 0

Honors

New England Revolution

United States

References

  1. ^ "National team roster, 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup: USA" (PDF). CONCACAF. June 18, 2021. p. 1. Retrieved June 18, 2021.
  2. ^ "Henry Kessler". New England Revolution. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c Dell' Apa, Frank (January 15, 2020). "Revolution got their man in Virginia's Henry Kessler". The Boston Globe. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  4. ^ "UVA Soccer: Kessler inks MLS Generation adidas contract". Augusta Free Press. December 30, 2019. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  5. ^ Darney, Caroline (January 9, 2020). "Virginia's Darryl Dike, Henry Kessler selected in top-6 of MLS Draft". Streaking the Lawn. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  6. ^ "Montreal Impact vs New England Revolution". Major League Soccer.
  7. ^ "Kessler gets first MLS goal, Revolution cruise by Impact 3-1". Associated Press. September 23, 2020.
  8. ^ Geagan, Matt (October 11, 2023). "Revolution sign Henry Kessler to two-year contract extension". CBS News. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  9. ^ "New England acquire Tim Parker, St. Louis acquire Henry Kessler". MLSsoccer.com. August 3, 2024. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
  10. ^ "U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team Head Coach Jason Kreis Names Roster for Concacaf Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship". www.ussoccer.com. March 11, 2021.
  11. ^ "MLS defender expresses interest in declaring for Ireland". May 24, 2021.
  12. ^ "Kessler to replace injured Zimmerman on US Gold Cup roster". Seattle Times. July 24, 2021.
  13. ^ Henry Kessler at Soccerway
  14. ^ Henry Kessler at National-Football-Teams.com
  15. ^ "United States beats Mexico in Gold Cup final on late Miles Robinson header". ESPN. August 1, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2023.