Landon Donovan

Short Bio

This American soccer player was born on March 4, 1982. He was actually born in Ontario, California. His father, Timothy Donovan, was a semi-pro ice hockey player, and it seems that Landon Donovan definitely inherited his fathers athletic skills! He grew up in Redlands, California, where he started playing soccer at five years old. His high school was the Redlands Easy Valley High School, and he was a standout soccer player and gymnast here.

Donovan was enrolled as a member in the class of U.S. soccer residency program, which took place in Bradenton, Florida. Here, he played with many international teammates, including names like Oguchi Onyewu and Bobby Convey. Donovan played for the U-17 team, and received the Golden Ball when the team won the 1999 U-17 World Championship. He was named the Tournaments outstanding player. He signed his first professional contract with German club Bayer Leverkusen shortly after.