Freddy Adu facts for kids
Adu with the United States at the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Fredua Koranteng Adu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | June 2, 1989 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Tema, Ghana | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder, forward | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2001 | Potomac Cougars | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | IMG Academy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2006 | D.C. United | 87 | (11) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Real Salt Lake | 11 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2011 | Benfica | 11 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | → Monaco (loan) | 9 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009 | → Belenenses (loan) | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | → Aris (loan) | 9 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | → Çaykur Rizespor (loan) | 13 | (4) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Philadelphia Union | 35 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Bahia | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Jagodina | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | KuPS | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | → KuFu-98 (loan) | 3 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 13 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Las Vegas Lights | 14 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | Österlen FF | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 215 | (29) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | United States U17 | 15 | (16) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2009 | United States U20 | 33 | (16) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2012 | United States U23 | 11 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2011 | United States | 17 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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Fredua Koranteng "Freddy" Adu (born June 2, 1989) is an American former professional soccer player. He mostly played as an attacking midfielder, which is a player who helps both defense and offense. When he was young, many people thought he would be "the next Pelé", a famous soccer legend.
Freddy Adu made history at a young age. At 14, he became the youngest person ever to sign a professional sports contract in the United States. This happened when D.C. United picked him in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft. Just three months later, he became the youngest player to play in a Major League Soccer (MLS) game. These records have since been broken by other young players.
After leaving D.C. United in 2006, Freddy Adu played for many different teams. He played for fifteen clubs in nine countries, including the United States, Portugal, and Greece. This means he was a "journeyman," a player who moves between many teams. His last professional club was Österlen FF in Sweden in 2021.
Freddy Adu also played for the U.S. national team. He first played for the senior team at age 16 in 2006. He played 17 games for his country and was part of the U.S. teams in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup and the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2009 and 2011. He also played for the U.S. Olympic team at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Contents
Early Life and Moving to the U.S.
Freddy Adu was born and grew up in Tema, Ghana. There, he played soccer against adults who were much older than him. In 1997, when he was eight, his family moved to Rockville, Maryland, in the United States. His mother won a special lottery that allowed them to move.
In 2003, Freddy became a United States citizen. Soon after coming to the U.S., a local soccer coach noticed his talent. Freddy started playing with boys several years older than him. He went to The Heights School for a few years. When he played in an under-14 tournament in Italy, his team won. Freddy scored the most goals and was named the best player (MVP) of the tournament.
Club Soccer Career
Starting in MLS with D.C. United
At just 14 years old, Freddy Adu became the youngest American to sign a professional sports contract. D.C. United chose him as the first pick in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft. To help him play close to home, MLS arranged for him to join D.C. United in November 2003.
On April 3, 2004, Freddy played his first game for D.C. United. He came in as a substitute, making him the youngest player ever in U.S. professional sports. On April 17, he scored his first professional goal. This made him the youngest player in MLS history to score. In his first year, Freddy scored five goals and had three assists in 30 games. D.C. United won the MLS Cup that year, and Freddy played in some of the playoff games.
In his second season, Freddy worked on improving his defensive skills. He became a starting midfielder in 2006. He was also chosen for the MLS All-Star team twice.
Moving to Real Salt Lake
On December 11, 2006, D.C. United traded Freddy Adu to Real Salt Lake. He played his first game for Real Salt Lake on April 7, 2007. He scored his first goal for the club on May 20, 2007, from a penalty kick. After playing well in the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, a big Portuguese club called Benfica bought Freddy's rights for $2 million.
Playing in Europe with Benfica
On July 30, 2007, Benfica announced that Freddy Adu had joined their team. He cost Benfica about $2 million. On August 14, 2007, Freddy played his first game for Benfica in a UEFA Champions League qualifying match.
Loan Spells in Europe
Freddy Adu was loaned to several other European clubs to gain more playing experience:
- In July 2008, he joined Monaco in France for a season.
- In 2009, he was loaned to Belenenses in Portugal.
- In January 2010, he signed a loan deal with Aris in Greece. He scored his first goal for Aris on February 14.
- On February 1, 2011, Freddy moved to Çaykur Rizespor in Turkey on his fourth loan from Benfica. He scored his first goal for them on March 6.
Return to MLS with Philadelphia Union
After his contract with Benfica ended in August 2011, Freddy Adu came back to Major League Soccer. He signed with Philadelphia Union, where he reunited with his former coach. Freddy played his first game for Philadelphia Union on August 13 and scored his first goal for the club on September 7, 2011.
Playing in Brazil and Other Trials
On April 5, 2013, Freddy joined Bahia in Brazil. He was released by the club in November 2013. After that, he tried out for several clubs in Europe, including Blackpool in England, Stabæk in Norway, and AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands, but he didn't sign with any of them.
Later Club Career
- Jagodina: In July 2014, Freddy signed with FK Jagodina in Serbia. He played only one game for the club before being released in December 2014.
- KuPS: On March 28, 2015, he signed a one-year contract with KuPS in Finland. He also played a few games for their reserve team.
- Tampa Bay Rowdies: In July 2015, Freddy joined the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the North American Soccer League. He played 13 games before being released in 2016.
- Las Vegas Lights FC: In March 2018, Freddy joined the Las Vegas Lights FC. He played 14 games and scored one goal for them. He was released at the end of the 2018 season.
- Österlen FF: After a two-year break, Freddy joined Österlen FF in Sweden in October 2020. However, his contract was ended in February 2021 because the club felt he was not physically ready to play.
International Career
Youth National Teams
Freddy Adu played for the United States in many international youth tournaments:
- The 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship
- The 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship
- The 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship
- The 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup
- The 2008 Summer Olympics
In 2007, Freddy captained the U.S. under-20 team and helped them qualify for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He became only the second player in the world to play in three FIFA U-20 World Cups. On July 3, 2007, he scored three goals (a hat-trick) in a 6–1 win against Poland. This made him the first player to score a hat-trick in both the U-20 and U-17 World Cups.
Freddy also helped the U.S. under-23 team qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He scored two goals in a 3–0 win against Canada in the semifinals. He scored four goals in total during the qualifying tournament, leading all players.
Senior National Team
Freddy Adu was invited to play for the Ghana national team early in his career, but he chose to play for the United States. He made his first appearance for the U.S. national team on January 22, 2006, at 16 years old. This made him the youngest player ever to play for the U.S. national team.
He made his first start for the senior team on November 17, 2007, against South Africa. Freddy scored his first international goal for the U.S. from a free kick on November 19, 2008, against Guatemala.
In 2011, Freddy was a surprise choice for the U.S. team in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He helped set up a winning goal in the semifinal against Panama. He also played a part in both U.S. goals in the final against Mexico, which the U.S. lost 4–2.
Honors
D.C. United
- MLS Cup: 2004
United States
- FIFA Confederations Cup runner-up: 2009
- CONCACAF Gold Cup runner-up: 2009, 2011
Images for kids
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Adu with the United States at the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
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Adu playing for D.C. United
See also
In Spanish: Freddy Adu para niños
