Steve Cherundolo

Steven Emil Cherundolo (born February 19, 1979)^[2] is an American soccer coach and former player who serves as head coach of Major League Soccer side Los Angeles FC. A right-back, he was the captain of Hannover 96 of the German Bundesliga, where he spent his entire club career. He represented the United States at the 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cups.

Steve Cherundolo

Cherundolo with VfB Stuttgart in 2018
Personal information
Full name	Steven Emil Cherundolo[1]
Date of birth	(1979-02-19) February 19, 1979 (age 45)[1]
Place of birth	Rockford, Illinois, U.S.
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Position(s)	Right-back
Team information
Current team	Los Angeles FC (head coach)
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1997–1998	Portland Pilots
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1999–2014	Hannover 96	370	(7)
International career
1997	United States U18	4	(0)
1998–1999	United States U20	25	(0)
1998	United States U23	1	(0)
1999–2012	United States	87	(2)
Managerial career
2014–2015	Hannover 96 (U15)
2015–2018	Hannover 96 (U17)
2021–2022	Las Vegas Lights
2022–	Los Angeles FC
Medal record Men's Football Representing  United States Winner CONCACAF Gold Cup 2005 Runner-up CONCACAF Gold Cup 2009 Runner-up CONCACAF Gold Cup 2011 Men's Soccer
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

Born in Rockford, Illinois, Cherundolo grew up in San Diego, California, and attended Mt. Carmel High School in Rancho Peñasquitos.^[3] As a youth, he played for the La Jolla Nomads club team, which won the California state championship six times with him.^{[citation needed]}

Before joining Hannover, Cherundolo enrolled at the University of Portland and played for the Pilots soccer team from 1997 to 1998. In his freshman season, he was the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year.^[4]

Playing club career

Cherundolo with Hannover 96 in 2011

Cherundolo joined Hannover 96, then playing in the 2. Bundesliga, for the end of the 1998–1999 season and quickly received first-team action, playing in four games his first year. Coming into the 1999–2000 season, Cherundolo established himself at the right back position, starting consistently before suffering a knee injury that kept him out until the end of the season and ended his chances of playing for the U.S. Olympic team. He continued to establish his place in the team during the 2000–2001 season, earning playing time in 18 games, including 10 starts. In the 2001–02 season, he started 30 of 34 games for the team as he helped the team gain promotion to the Bundesliga. Cherundolo maintained his position in the 2002–03 season, starting 33 games for the team, while collecting three assists. In the 2003–04 season, he continued his consistent play, appearing in 33 games for the club. Premier League side Bolton Wanderers agreed to a deal with Hannover for Cherundolo in 2005, but he declined, opting to remain in Germany. He signed another contract extension with Hannover in the summer of 2007.

Cherundolo established himself as a leader at Hannover and was appointed team captain shortly before the start of the 2010–11 season. He set the team record for Bundesliga appearances in the second to last game of the 2012–13 season. As of 2013, Cherundolo was the longest serving player in the Bundesliga.^[5] On March 19, 2014, Cherundolo announced his retirement from soccer citing failure to recover from a long-term knee injury as the main reason he left the game.^[6]

International career

Cherundolo parlayed his success in the Bundesliga into a role with the United States national team. Cherundolo made his debut against Jamaica on September 8, 1999. Although he was on the roster for the 2002 FIFA World Cup (a late injury replacement for Chris Armas), Cherundolo himself was injured in training shortly before the event began and was unable to play. In the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Cherundolo sustained a knee injury from a tackle that prematurely ended his participation in the tournament. On March 22, 2006, Cherundolo played in a friendly match with the national team against Germany, whose roster included some teammates from Hannover 96. He scored his first international goal in the 4–1 loss.

On May 2, 2006, Cherundolo was named to the U.S. roster for the FIFA World Cup in Germany.^[7] On June 12, 2006, for the first time, aged 27, Cherundolo made his debut in a FIFA World Cup match against the Czech Republic, playing in the first half for the U.S., who started the tournament with a 3–0 loss.^[8] Five days later, in the second match against Italy (who later won the tournament), Cherundolo played the full 90 minutes, helping the team to a 1–1 draw at Fritz-Walter-Stadion in Kaiserslautern.^[9] After a loss against Ghana in the final match in the group, the U.S. was eliminated from the tournament, finishing the group in last place with just one point.^[10]

Cherundolo missed the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup due to an injury. He also missed out on the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup due to another injury, but returned to captain the U.S. during the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup.^[11]

Cherundolo was one of seven defenders named to the U.S. squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.^[12] He was given the number 6. In the first match of Group C against England, Cherundolo was in the starting lineup and played the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw at Royal Bafokeng Stadium.^[13] On June 18, he retained his position for the second match, playing in the entire game against Slovenia, which finished in a 2–2 draw, with the U.S. coming back from 2–0 down.^[14] In the 48th minute of the match, Cherundolo assisted Landon Donovan who beat Slovenian goalkeeper Samir Handanović with a powerful shot.^[15][16] In the final match of the group, Cherundolo again started at right back as the U.S. beat Algeria with a last-minute winner, scored by Donovan, to finish the group in first place with five points.^[17] U.S. would lose in the Round of 16 against Ghana, 2–1 after extra time.^[18] Cherundolo was an ever-present figure in this competition for the United States, playing the entire 390 minutes.

Coaching career

Following his retirement announcement, Cherundolo remained with Hannover 96 as an assistant coach for Hannover's amateur team.^[19] On April 20, 2015, he was officially promoted to assistant coach of Hannover 96's first team.^[20] After the end of the 2014–15 season, Cherundolo became the head coach of Hannover's U–17 academy team.^[21]

In January 2018, Cherundolo moved to VfB Stuttgart and became assistant of the new head coach Tayfun Korkut.^[22] In November 2018, Cherundolo was named to the coaching staff of the United States national team by interim coach Dave Sarachan.^[23]

In an August 2020 interview with the Narrowing the Angle soccer podcast, Cherundolo said he "would love to coach" the US national team and also expressed interest in coaching in Major League Soccer.^[24] On August 20, 2020, it was announced that Cherundolo had joined the Germany national youth under-15 football team as an assistant coach.^[25]

On March 12, 2021, Cherundolo was named head coach of USL Championship side Las Vegas Lights.^[26]

Cherundolo was announced as head coach of Los Angeles FC in Major League Soccer on January 3, 2022.^[27] On October 2, 2022, Cherundolo broke the record for most wins as a first-year head coach in Major League Soccer history with 21 wins after Los Angeles FC defeated the Portland Timbers 2–1. The record was previously held by former Los Angeles FC coach Bob Bradley in 1998 with 20 wins, when Bradley was the head coach of the Chicago Fire. The match also clinched the Supporters' Shield for LAFC, the second in team history, and made Cherundolo the third coach to lead a team to the Shield in his first season in MLS. LAFC would go on to win their first MLS Cup title against the Philadelphia Union in MLS Cup 2022.

Personal life

Cherundolo speaks English and German fluently, having spent his entire professional career in Germany.^[28] A popular figure with Hannover fans, he is known as "Dolo" and affectionately nicknamed the "Mayor of Hannover".^[29] Cherundolo married Mandy Rosier on New Year's Eve 2009 at the local St. Joseph Catholic parish church in the Hanover district of Vahrenwald-List.^[30][31][32] After his retirement from soccer, he has resided with his family in Großburgwedel, near Hanover. In 2021, Cherundolo was elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame as a player inductee.

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition^[33]

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		League cup[b]		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Hannover 96	1998–99	2. Bundesliga	8	0	0	0	–		–		8	0
	1999–2000		12	0	1	0	–		–		13	0
	2000–01		18	0	1	0	–		–		19	0
	2001–02		30	1	2	0	–		–		32	1
	2002–03	Bundesliga	33	0	1	0	–		–		34	0
	2003–04		29	0	2	0	–		–		31	0
	2004–05		32	2	3	1	–		–		35	3
	2005–06		22	1	1	0	–		–		23	1
	2006–07		33	2	3	0	–		–		36	2
	2007–08		33	0	2	0	–		–		35	0
	2008–09		17	0	1	0	–		–		18	0
	2009–10		26	1	1	0	–		–		27	1
	2010–11		33	0	1	0	–		–		34	0
	2011–12		22	0	2	0	–		11	0	35	0
	2012–13		20	0	3	0	–		10	0	33	0
	2013–14		2	0	0	0	–		–		2	0
Career total			370	7	24	1	0	0	21	0	423	8

1. Includes DFB-Pokal
2. Includes DFL-Ligapokal

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year^[34]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
United States	1999	1	0
	2000	0	0
	2001	8	0
	2002	1	0
	2003	5	0
	2004	6	0
	2005	10	0
	2006	7	1
	2007	5	1
	2008	8	0
	2009	6	0
	2010	8	0
	2011	13	0
	2012	9	0
Total		87	2

Scores and results list the United States' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Cherundolo goal

List of international goals scored by Steve Cherundolo

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	March 22, 2006	Westfalenstadion, Dortmund, Germany	Germany	1–4	1–4	Friendly
2	November 17, 2007	Coca-Cola Park, Johannesburg, South Africa	South Africa	1–0	1–0	Friendly

Coaching statistics

As of November 9, 2024

Coaching record by club and tenure

Team	Nat	From	To	Record								Ref.
				G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Las Vegas Lights		January 19, 2021	January 3, 2022	32	6	3	23	41	77	−36	018.75
Los Angeles FC		January 3, 2022	present	141	80	25	36	275	160	+115	056.74
Total				173	86	28	59	316	237	+79	049.71

Honors

Player

Hannover 96

• 2. Bundesliga: 2001–02^[35]

United States

• CONCACAF Gold Cup: 2005^[36]

Coach

Los Angeles FC

• MLS Cup: 2022
• Supporters' Shield: 2022^[37]
• U.S. Open Cup: 2024

See also

• List of one-club men in association football

References

1. "FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010: List of Players: USA" (PDF). FIFA. June 12, 2010. p. 32. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 18, 2019.
2. "Steven Cherundolo: Always on the sunny side". bundesliga.de. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
3. "All eyes on Germany, World Cup". SignOnSanDiego.com. June 9, 2006. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
4. "UP soccer begins season". Catholic Sentinel. August 28, 1998.
5. "Ever-ambitious, Cherundolo hopes to help the U.S. in Brazil". ESPNFC. November 28, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2013.
6. "Cherundolo calls time on outstanding career". bundesliga.com. March 19, 2014. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014.
7. "FIFA World Cup of Football : USA Players - Squad 2006". Syvum.com. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
8. "USA 0-3 Czech Republic". BBC Sport. June 12, 2006. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
9. "Nine-man USA hold ten-man Italians". CCN.com. June 17, 2006. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
10. "Ghana 2-1 USA". BBC Sport. June 22, 2006. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
11. "Defender Cherundolo returns from injury for U.S. in Gold Cup". The Canadian Press. Retrieved July 1, 2009.^{[dead link]}
12. "2010 FIFA World Cup Roster". U.S. Soccer. 2010. Archived from the original on June 12, 2010. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
13. "England 1:1 (1:1) USA". FIFA.com. June 12, 2010. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
14. "Slovenia 2-2 USA". BBC. June 18, 2010. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
15. "Landon Donovan leads USA fightback against Slovenia". The Guardian. June 18, 2010. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
16. "USA vs Slovenia 2010 World Cup South Africa: Relive the Moment [HD]". YouTube.com. June 9, 2011. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
17. "USA 1 Algeria 0: match report". The Telegraph. June 23, 2010. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
18. Fletcher, Paul (June 26, 2010). "USA 1–2 Ghana (aet)". BBC Sport. Retrieved July 5, 2010.
19. "Steven Cherundolo calls it quits". ESPN. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
20. "Former USMNT DF Steve Cherundolo promoted to assistant manager at Hannover". NBC Sports. April 20, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
21. "Steve Cherundolo Celebrates Half a Lifetime in Hannover". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
22. "Trainer team complete". VfB Stuttgart. January 30, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
23. "Former USMNT defender joins coaching staff for England and Italy friendlies". Washington Post. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
24. "Episode 55- Steve Cherundolo Interview". narrowingtheangle.libsyn.com. August 17, 2020.
25. II, Donald Wine (August 20, 2020). "Steve Cherundolo becomes Germany U-15 assistant coach". Stars and Stripes FC. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
26. "LIGHTS FC ANNOUNCE U.S. MEN'S NATIONAL TEAM VETERAN STEVE CHERUNDOLO AS NEW HEAD COACH & AFFILIATION WITH MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER'S LOS ANGELES FC". Lights FC Communications. March 12, 2021. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
27. "LAFC Announces Steve Cherundolo As Head Coach". LAFC.com. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
28. "Hannover 96 – Spielerinterview Steven Cherundolo". YouTube. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
29. "U.S. Cup players get rare visit home". New York Post. May 21, 2010. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
30. "Player Bio". ussoccer.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2011.
31. "Festtag im Schneetreiben - Cherundolo heiratet Mandy" (in German). Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung. January 4, 2010.
32. "Ich bete nicht für ein Ergebnis beim Fußballspielen" (PDF) (in German). Katholische Pfarrgemeinde St. Joseph Hanover. August 2010. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 9, 2016.
33. "Steve Cherundolo » Club matches". worldfootball.net. January 3, 2022. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
34. "Cherundolo, Steve". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved December 17, 2014.
35. 2. Bundesliga 2001/2002 (in German) Weltfussball.de – League table 2001-02, accessed: August 16, 2012
36. "CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 2005". RSSSF.com. March 14, 2007. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
37. "LAFC wins 2022 MLS Supporters' Shield". Major League Soccer. October 2, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.

External links

• Kinderherz Hannover e.V. – Children's charity organization, co-founded by Cherundolo