Stefan Cleveland
American soccer player (born 1994)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stefan Daniel Cleveland (born May 25, 1994) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Major League Soccer club Sporting Kansas City.
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Cleveland with the Seattle Sounders in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stefan Daniel Cleveland[1] | ||
| Date of birth | May 25, 1994[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Dayton, Ohio, United States | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Sporting Kansas City | ||
| Number | 30 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Blast FC | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2015 | Dartmouth Big Green | 38 | (0) |
| 2016 | Louisville Cardinals | 22 | (0) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015 | Dayton Dutch Lions | 3 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Chicago Fire | 5 | (0) |
| 2017 | → Tulsa Roughnecks (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2018 | → Tulsa Roughnecks (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2019 | → Lansing Ignite (loan) | 21 | (0) |
| 2020–2023 | Seattle Sounders | 22 | (0) |
| 2020 | → Tacoma Defiance (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | → Tacoma Defiance (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | Austin FC | 0 | (0) |
| 2025 | → Austin FC II (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2026– | Sporting Kansas City | 0 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 12:27, December 12, 2025 (UTC) | |||
Early life
Cleveland was born in Dayton, Ohio, and attended The Miami Valley School.[2]
Career
College and amateur
Cleveland spent four years at Dartmouth College playing college soccer. After earning an engineering degree from Dartmouth College in 2016, Cleveland began graduate school at the University of Louisville in 2017. While at University of Louisville, Cleveland used his final season of NCAA eligibility playing for the Cardinals.[2]
In 2015, Cleveland appeared for Premier Development League side Dayton Dutch Lions.[3]
Professional
On January 13, 2017, Cleveland was drafted in the second round as the 26th overall pick in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft by Chicago Fire.[4] He signed with the club on January 30, 2017.[5]
He made his professional debut on May 27, 2017, whilst on loan with Chicago's United Soccer League affiliate Tulsa Roughnecks during a 3–1 win over Portland Timbers 2.[6] He made his MLS debut on August 4, 2018, starting in a 2–1 loss to Real Salt Lake, making 8 saves and allowing 2 goals.[7]
Cleveland was acquired by Seattle Sounders FC on November 26, 2019.[8] He has mainly played for reserve team Tacoma Defiance or filled in for starting Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei during congested weeks of the season or with injuries. Cleveland played 16 matches during the 2021 season after Frei injured his knee early in the season.[9] On January 19, 2022, Cleveland re-signed with the Sounders.[10]
On December 24, 2023, Austin FC acquired Cleveland as a free agent and signed him to a two-year deal with a club option for the third year.[11]
On December 10, 2025, Sporting Kansas City acquired Cleveland in exchange for $50,000 in general allocation money.[12]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played May 7, 2025[13]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Dayton Dutch Lions | 2015 | PDL | 3 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| Chicago Fire | 2017 | Major League Soccer | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| 2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Tulsa Roughnecks (loan) | 2017 | USL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Lansing Ignite (loan) | 2019 | USL 1 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 22 | 0 |
| Seattle Sounders FC | 2020 | Major League Soccer | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 15 | 0 | — | 1[c] | 0 | 15 | 0 | |||
| 2022 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 24 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 0 | ||
| Tacoma Defiance | 2020 | USL Championship | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Austin FC | 2024 | Major League Soccer | 0 | 0 | — | 1[c] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Austin FC II (loan) | 2025 | MLS Next Pro | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| Sporting Kansas City | 2026 | Major League Soccer | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 60 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 68 | 0 | ||
- Notes
- Appearances in U.S. Open Cup
- Appearances in USL League One Playoffs
- Appearances in Leagues Cup
Honors
Seattle Sounders FC
