John Brooks (soccer, born 1993) facts for kids
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Brooks with VfL Wolfsburg in 2021
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Anthony Brooks Jr. | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | January 28, 1993 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Berlin, Germany | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.94 m | |||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Center-back | |||||||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||||||
| Current club | Hertha BSC | |||||||||||||||
| Number | 25 | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| Hertha BSC | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||
| 2011–2015 | Hertha BSC II | 37 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 2012–2017 | Hertha BSC | 119 | (7) | |||||||||||||
| 2017–2022 | VfL Wolfsburg | 126 | (6) | |||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Benfica | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | TSG Hoffenheim | 36 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 2024– | Hertha BSC | 0 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| National team‡ | ||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | United States U20 | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2011–2015 | United States U23 | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2012 | Germany U20 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2013–2021 | United States | 45 | (3) | |||||||||||||
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Honours
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† Appearances (Goals). |
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John Anthony Brooks Jr. (born January 28, 1993) is a professional soccer player. He plays as a center-back for the German club Hertha BSC. Even though he was born in Germany, he plays for the United States national team.
John Brooks started his career at his hometown club, Hertha BSC. He made his first professional appearance in 2012. He played 130 games for Hertha and scored nine goals. His team won the 2. Bundesliga in the 2012–13 season. In 2017, he moved to VfL Wolfsburg for €20 million. This was a record amount for an American player at that time.
Brooks played for both Germany and the United States youth teams. He chose to play for the United States because his father is American. He first played for the senior U.S. team in 2013. He also played for the U.S. in three big tournaments, including the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
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Who is John Brooks?
John Brooks was born and grew up in Berlin, Germany. His father was an American serviceman from Chicago, Illinois. This is why John has both German and American citizenship. He has never lived in the United States. He has a tattoo of Illinois on his left arm and Berlin on his right arm.
John Brooks' Club Career
Starting His Football Journey
John Brooks began his football journey at Hertha BSC, the main club in his hometown. He joined Hertha's reserve team in the 2010–11 season. Even then, he was still young enough to play for the U-19 team. After that season, Brooks signed a four-year professional contract with Hertha. He even turned down interest from big clubs like Bayern Munich.
During the 2011–12 season, Brooks mostly played for Hertha's reserve team. He also spent a short time back with the U-19 team. During this period, he grew taller, reaching 6 feet 4 inches.
Playing for Hertha BSC
In 2012, Hertha BSC was moved down from the Bundesliga to the 2. Bundesliga. John Brooks played his first professional game on August 3, 2012. He started in Hertha's first game of the 2. Bundesliga season. It was a 2–2 draw against SC Paderborn 07.
He played in 29 matches during the 2012–13 season. Hertha BSC won the league title and was promoted back to the Bundesliga. Brooks scored his first goal in the last game of that season. It was a late goal that made the game a 1–1 draw.
On August 10, 2013, Brooks scored in his first Bundesliga game. Hertha BSC won that match 6–1 against Eintracht Frankfurt. He played fewer games in the 2013–14 season because of injuries.
On December 17, 2014, Brooks scored the first goal for Hertha in a 4–4 draw. This game was also against Eintracht Frankfurt. In the 2014–15 Bundesliga season, Brooks was very good at winning challenges against other players. He won 68% of his one-on-one duels in 27 league games. This was one of the best rates in the Bundesliga. He also had a good pass accuracy of 75%.
In the 2015–16 season, Brooks played four matches in the DFB-Pokal cup. Hertha reached the semi-finals of this tournament. On December 15, he scored a header in a 2–0 win against 1. FC Nürnberg.
Moving to VfL Wolfsburg
On May 31, 2017, John Brooks signed with another Bundesliga club, VfL Wolfsburg. The transfer fee was reported to be €20 million. At that time, this was the highest amount ever paid for an American soccer player. Later, Christian Pulisic broke this record in 2019.
Brooks made his debut for Wolfsburg on August 13 in a cup game. However, he got a thigh injury and had to leave the game early. He was out of action for three months. He returned on October 28 for his first league game with Wolfsburg. It was a 1–1 draw against Schalke 04. Injuries affected his first season at Wolfsburg. He played only ten games. However, he played a key role in the playoff games that kept Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga.
On March 2, 2022, it was announced that Brooks would leave Wolfsburg at the end of the season.
Time at Benfica
On September 1, 2022, Brooks signed a one-year contract with Benfica. This is a club in Portugal's top league, the Primeira Liga. He joined them for free. He made his Primeira Liga debut on September 18. He came on as a substitute in the 89th minute in a 5–0 win.
Playing for TSG Hoffenheim
On January 26, 2023, John Brooks returned to the Bundesliga. He signed a two-year contract with TSG Hoffenheim. The reported fee for this transfer was €500,000. Brooks left Hoffenheim at the end of the 2023–24 season.
Return to Hertha BSC
On August 29, 2024, John Brooks came back to Hertha BSC. He signed a contract to play for them for two more seasons.
John Brooks' International Career
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John Brooks has both German and American citizenship. He played in training camps for both the U.S. U-20 and U-23 teams. He also attended one camp for the Germany U20 team. He first played for the U.S. Under-20 team in September 2010.
In July 2013, Brooks was called up to the senior U.S. national team. He made his first senior international appearance in a 4–3 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Brooks was chosen for the United States' 23-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In the first group match against Ghana, he came on as a substitute at halftime. He then scored the winning goal in a 2–1 victory. It was a header from a corner kick by Graham Zusi. He became the first American player to score a goal as a substitute in a World Cup.
On June 5, 2015, Brooks scored in a friendly game against the Netherlands. The United States came back from being down 1–3 to win 4–3. This was their first win against the Dutch team. Later that month, he was part of the squad for the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He played four matches as the team finished in fourth place.
Brooks also played in the Copa América Centenario in 2016. This was a special edition of the Copa América tournament held in the United States. He played in all five matches as the U.S. team reached the semi-finals. They lost 4–0 to Argentina.
Career Highlights
John Brooks has played in many matches throughout his career.
- For Hertha BSC II (reserve team), he played 37 games and scored 2 goals.
- For Hertha BSC, he played 119 league games and scored 7 goals. In total, he played 130 games and scored 8 goals for the club across all competitions.
- For VfL Wolfsburg, he played 126 league games and scored 6 goals. In total, he played 146 games and scored 7 goals.
- For Benfica, he played 2 league games and 5 total games.
- For TSG Hoffenheim, he played 36 league games and scored 2 goals. In total, he played 39 games and scored 2 goals.
- For the United States national team, he played 45 games and scored 3 goals.
International Goals
Here are the goals John Brooks scored for the United States national team:
- On June 16, 2014, against Ghana in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The score was 2–1, and the U.S. won 2–1.
- On June 5, 2015, against the Netherlands in a friendly game. The score was 2–3, and the U.S. won 4–3.
- On May 28, 2016, against Bolivia in a friendly game. The score was 2–0, and the U.S. won 4–0.
Honors and Awards
John Brooks has won several awards and titles during his career:
With Hertha BSC
- 2. Bundesliga: 2013–14 (This means his team won the second division league title).
With Benfica
- Primeira Liga: 2022–23 (His team won the top league in Portugal).
With United States National Team
- CONCACAF Nations League: 2019–20 (His national team won this competition for North and Central America).
Individual Awards
- IFFHS CONCACAF Team of the Decade: 2011–2020 (He was chosen as one of the best players in his region for that ten-year period).
- CONCACAF Nations League Finals Best XI: 2021 (He was chosen as one of the best 11 players in the Nations League finals).
See also
In Spanish: John Anthony Brooks para niños
