Howard, Tim (1979-… ), was an outstanding American soccer player. Howard starred for the United States international team as well as in Major League Soccer (MLS) and in the Premier League , England’s highest soccer league. Howard was a goalkeeper. Goalkeepers defend their team’s goal against scoring attempts by the opposing team. For a discussion of soccer positions and formations, see Soccer (Players and officials) .
Howard first kept goal for the U.S. Men’s National Team in 2002. He gained special praise as the U.S. goalkeeper during the 2014 FIFA World Cup . FIFA stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football). FIFA is soccer’s world governing body. Soccer is called football in much of the world. Howard was named Man of the Match in matches against Portugal and Belgium . He made 16 saves against Belgium, a record for the most saves in a World Cup match.
Timothy Matthew Howard was born on March 6, 1979, in North Brunswick, New Jersey . He began his professional soccer career in 1997. From 1998 to 2003, he played with the New York/New Jersey MetroStars (now the New York Red Bulls of MLS). He was the league’s Goalkeeper of the Year in 2001. Howard’s success with the MetroStars drew the attention of Manchester United , a leading team in the Premier League. He began playing for Manchester in 2003. In 2004, he was named the league’s Goalkeeper of the Year. He began playing on loan for Everton of the Premier League in 2006, and the transfer became permanent in 2007.
In 2016, Howard returned to play in the United States for the Colorado Rapids of MLS. He became a minority owner of the Memphis 901 FC, a team in the United Soccer League (USL), in 2017. FC stands for Football Club. The USL is a professional soccer league in North America. In 2020, Howard played in six games as a goalkeeper for the Memphis 901 FC.
Howard was honored as Male Athlete of the Year in 2008 and 2014 by U.S. Soccer, the governing body of soccer in the United States. He was named Goalkeeper of the Year for 2013, 2014, and 2015 by the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF).
