Eloy Room
Curaçaoan footballer (born 1989)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eloy Victor Room (born 6 February 1989) is a professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for USL Championship club Miami FC. Born in the Netherlands, he plays for the Curaçao national team. He is Curaçao's joint most capped player along with Leandro Bacuna.
|
Room with Columbus Crew in 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Eloy Victor Room[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 6 February 1989 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Nijmegen, Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Miami FC | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1996–1998 | SCE Nijmegen | ||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2001 | NEC | ||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | VV Union | ||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2008 | Vitesse | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008–2017 | Vitesse | 133 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | → Go Ahead Eagles (loan) | 20 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | PSV | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | Jong PSV | 14 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019–2023 | Columbus Crew | 96 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Vitesse | 34 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024–2025 | Cercle Brugge | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Miami FC | 8 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Netherlands U20 | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015– | Curaçao | 74 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23 May 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 20 June 2026 | |||||||||||||||||
Club career
Vitesse
Room joined Vitesse at age 13, having played for numerous clubs, including SCE Nijmegen, local rivals NEC Nijmegen, and VV Union.
After impressing for the Vitesse youth sides, Room was promoted to the first-team squad for the 2008–09 campaign. On 8 March 2009, Room made his Vitesse debut in a 1–0 defeat against Volendam, replacing the injured Piet Velthuizen in the 13th minute.[2] On 18 April 2009, Room was given his first Vitesse start by manager Theo Bos in a 2–1 victory against AZ.[3] Room made his breakthrough in the Vitesse first-team squad in the 2010–11 campaign, following Velthuizen's departure to Spanish side Hércules, appearing 33 times in the league of a possible 34. However, after only a year, Velthuizen rejoined the Dutch side after struggling to adapt in Spain, displacing Room once again.
On 30 June 2013, Room joined Go Ahead Eagles on a season-long loan to gain first-team football.[4] On 4 August 2013, Room made his Go Ahead Eagles debut in a 1–1 draw with Utrecht.[5] On 29 January 2014, six months later, Room's loan deal at Go Ahead Eagles was cut short by Vitesse, due to an injury to back-up goalkeeper Marko Meerits.[6] Room left Go Ahead Eagles after making 20 league starts and two cup appearances.
Although Room returned to Vitesse, he did not appear for the remainder of the 2013–14 campaign due to Velthuizen's impressive form. In the 2014–15 campaign, Room finally displaced Velthuizen after some disappointing displays. Room appeared in all 34 league fixtures in Vitesse's 2015–16 campaign; he also played the entirety of their KNVB Cup and UEFA Europa League campaigns.
Room played as Vitesse won the final of the KNVB Cup 2–0 against AZ Alkmaar on 30 April 2017 to lead the club to the title for the first time in their 125-year history.[7][8]
PSV
On 16 August 2017, Room joined fellow Eredivisie side PSV after a 15-year spell at Vitesse.[9]
He came off the bench on 15 April 2018 as PSV beat rivals Ajax 3–0 to clinch the 2017–18 Eredivisie title.[10]
Columbus Crew
On 5 July 2019, Room signed with Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew on a free transfer, replacing Zack Steffen who left the club for Manchester City.[11] He made his debut for on 20 July in a 2–1 victory against the Montreal Impact.[12] Room completed his first season with 12 appearances for the Crew, earning one clean sheet.[13]
During the 2020 regular season, Room missed six games due to injury. In his 17 games, he recorded seven clean sheets and a 0.88 goals against average.[14][15] Room won the MLS Save of the Year for his double save in the Crew's match against Orlando City SC on 4 November, the first Crew player to win the award.[16]
In the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs, Room tested positive for COVID-19 and missed two games.[17][14] However, the Crew won both games he was out. He was cleared for the MLS Cup final and given the start. The Crew won, attaining their first silverware since the 2009 Supporters' Shield.[18] Room ended the 2020 season with eight clean sheets in 19 appearances.
On 3 December 2021, the Crew re-signed Room to a two-year contract extension through the 2023 MLS season with a club option for 2024.[19] Crew president and general manager Tim Bezbatchenko stated, "Eloy has not only performed on the field, but he has also bought into the values of the Crew to become a veteran voice and leader in the locker room."[20]
On 17 July 2023, Room and Columbus mutually agreed to terminate his contract.[21]
Return to Vitesse
On 18 July 2023, Room returned to Vitesse on a two-year contract.[22] On 7 August 2024, Room's contract with Vitesse was terminated by mutual consent amidst the club's financial problems.[23]
Cercle Brugge
In October 2024, Room joined Belgian Pro League club Cercle Brugge until the end of the season.[24]
Miami FC
On 12 December 2025, he signed to USL Championship club Miami FC.[25]
International career
Room, who was born in the Netherlands and is a Dutch citizen, is eligible to represent Curaçao through his father.[26] He made his senior debut for the country in a 1–0 win against Trinidad and Tobago on 6 June 2015.[27] He was named man of the match.[28]
In June 2017, Room was confirmed as part of the Curaçao squad for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[29] He also represented the country at the 2019 edition.[30] In June 2023, Room was named to the 24-man squad for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification tournament.[31]
He kept a clean sheet against Jamaica on 19 November 2025, securing his side's place in 2026 FIFA World Cup.[32] He was the starter in their World Cup opening match against Germany in 2026 in which Curaçao lost 7–1.[33] However, he delivered a historic response in their next encounter against Ecuador. In that match, he made 15 saves, one shy of the World Cup record of 16 saves set by Tim Howard in 2014.[34][35] The match ended in a 0–0 draw, earning Curaçao's first ever World Cup point. This performance led him to be the first Curaçaoan to become Player of the match in the FIFA World Cup.[36][37]
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Continental[b] | Other[c] | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Vitesse | 2008–09 | Eredivisie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2009–10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 3 | 0 | ||||
| 2010–11 | 33 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 36 | 0 | ||||
| 2011–12 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||
| 2012–13 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 6 | 0 | |||
| 2013–14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2014–15 | 23 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | 30 | 0 | |||
| 2015–16 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 36 | 0 | |||
| 2016–17 | 33 | 0 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 38 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 133 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 155 | 0 | ||
| Go Ahead Eagles (loan) | 2013–14 | Eredivisie | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 22 | 0 | ||
| PSV Eindhoven | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Jong PSV | 2017–18 | Eerste Divisie | 14 | 0 | – | – | – | 14 | 0 | |||
| Columbus Crew | 2019 | MLS | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 12 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | 17[d] | 0 | – | – | 2 | 0 | 19 | 0 | ||||
| 2021 | 30 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 0 | |||
| 2022 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 34 | 0 | ||||
| 2023 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 96 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 102 | 0 | ||
| Vitesse | 2023–24 | Eredivisie | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 34 | 0 | ||
| Cercle Brugge | 2024–25 | Belgian Pro League | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | |
| Miami FC | 2026 | USL Championship | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 2[e] | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Career total | 308 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 344 | 0 | ||
- Includes KNVB Cup, Belgian Cup
- Includes Eredivisie European play-offs, MLS Cup playoffs, MLS is Back Tournament knockout stage and USL Cup
- Includes two appearances in MLS is Back Tournament group stage
- appearances in 2026 USL Cup
International
- As of match played 20 June 2026[40]
Honours
Player
Vitesse[41]
PSV[41]
Columbus Crew[41]
Curaçao
Individual
- Caribbean Cup Golden Glove: 2017
- MLS Save of the Year: 2020[16]
- Columbus Crew Defensive Player of the Year: 2021, 2022