Photo courtesy Chandler Hoffman.
Chandler Hoffman
Chandler Hoffman kisses the 2014 MLS Cup.
Major League Soccer’s Chandler Hoffman wants to give kids an opportunity to see that someone who grew up in Alabama can make it to the highest level of American soccer.
He wants to provide an opportunity to learn drills and skills that will improve their individual performance.
More than anything, the former Oak Mountain standout wants to help them have fun, and enjoy “the beautiful game.”
He will be doing just that in December when he holds a pair of camps for aspiring soccer players at SportsBlast. The boys camp for ages 8-16 will be Dec. 21 from 9-11 a.m. The girls camp will be Dec. 22 at the same times. The camp is $50.
Born in Birmingham, Hoffman played high school soccer at Oak Mountain High from 2006-2009. He led Oak Mountain to two state championships and was a two-time Gatorade Alabama Player of the Year and NSCAA High School All-American.
Hoffman became the first player from the state to play at UCLA, where he starred from 2009-2011. Hoffman was a M.A.C. Hermann Trophy semifinalist, NSCAA Third-team All-American, First-team NSCAA All-Far West selection, First-team All-Pac-12 honoree, Second-team CoSIDA Academic All-American, First-team Academic All-District and Pac-12 All-Academic.
After his outstanding junior season at UCLA, Hoffman was offered a Generation Adidas contract by Major League Soccer, which he accepted. He attended the MLS Player Combine, January 2012 in Fort Lauderdale, then headed to Kansas City, Missouri, for the 2012 MLS SuperDraft. He was selected in the first round (as the 13th overall pick) by the Philadelphia Union, becoming the first player from Alabama ever selected in the MLS SuperDraft.
Hoffman made his professional debut on March 31, 2012, when he started for the Philadelphia Union in a regular season home game at PPL Park against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Hoffman scored the game-winning goal in a friendly on May 9, 2012 vs. the popular European club FC Schalke 04.
On the eve of the 2013 season, Hoffman was traded to Los Angeles Galaxy for a conditional 2014 MLS SuperDraft pick. He played two seasons with the LA Galaxy and won the 2014 MLS Cup while there. He was picked by Houston Dynamo in the 2014 re-entry draft and spent the 2015 season with Houston.
