Ben Olsen
Olsen, as D.C. United head coach, communicating with players during a 2011 regular season match at RFK Stadium
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||
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| Full name | Benjamin Robert Olsen | |||||||||||
| Date of birth | May 3, 1977 | |||||||||||
| Place of birth | Middletown, Pennsylvania, United States | |||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 8.5 in (1.74 m) | |||||||||||
| Playing position | Midfielder | |||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||
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Current team
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D.C. United (manager) | |||||||||||
| College career | ||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||
| 1995–1997 | Virginia Cavaliers | |||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||
| 1998–2009 | D.C. United | 221 | (29) | |||||||||
| 2000–2001 | → Nottingham Forest (loan) | 18 | (2) | |||||||||
| Total | 239 | (31) | ||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||
| 1998–2007 | United States | 37 | (6) | |||||||||
| Teams managed | ||||||||||||
| 2010 | D.C. United (assistant) | |||||||||||
| 2010– | D.C. United | |||||||||||
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Honours
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| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Benjamin Robert "Ben" Olsen (born May 3, 1977) is an American former professional soccer player and the current head coach of D.C. United. Born in Middletown, Pennsylvania, Olsen grew up playing for FC Delco, an elite club program near Philadelphia. He later attended the University of Virginia, when he was named 1997 Soccer America Player of the Year.
Olsen spent the majority of his professional career in the United States with D.C. United in Major League Soccer, which he joined straight out of college. Over the course of 12 seasons with United, Olsen made 221 appearances, scoring 29 goals and making 49 assists. During that time he won two MLS Cup titles, two MLS Supporters' Shields and one U.S. Open Cup winners medal. His individual honors include two-time MLS All-Star, 1998 MLS Rookie of the Year, MLS Cup '99 MVP and 2007 MLS Best XI.
Olsen also earned 37 caps with the United States men's national team, winning the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup and representing the United States at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Olsen announced his retirement from professional competition on November 24, 2009.
Olsen grew up in Middletown, Pennsylvania. He played his youth soccer for premier team FC Delco, where he was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame. Olsen attended Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary School and Middletown Area High School, where he was named Parade magazine's National High School Player of the Year in 1993.
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