Heath Pearce

Heath Pearce
Personal information
Full name	Heath Gregory Pearce
Date of birth	August 13, 1984 (age 40)
Place of birth	Modesto, California, United States
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Position(s)	Center back, full back
Youth career
0000–2001	IMG Soccer Academy
College career
Years	Team
2002–2004	Portland Pilots
Senior career*
Years	Team
2005–2007	FC Nordsjælland
2007–2009	Hansa Rostock
2009–2010	FC Dallas
2011–2012	Chivas USA
2012–2013	New York Red Bulls
2014	Montreal Impact
2015	IFK Göteborg
Total
International career
2000–2001	United States U17
2003	United States U18
2003	United States U20
2005–2012	United States
Medal record
Representing United States
FIFA Confederations Cup
CONCACAF Gold Cup
Men's Soccer
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Heath Pearce (born August 13, 1984) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defender for teams in Europe and North America. He represented his national team on 35 occasions. Pearce is the host of "The Mixer," "KPR" (Kick Power Rankings) and "WTF" (Walk Talk Football), all programs on the YouTube channel COPA90 US (formerly known as KICKTV).^[1]

Club career

College and amateur

Pearce played his high school soccer at Peter Johansen High School in Modesto, California^[2] before playing his college soccer at the University of Portland, where he was an All-West Coast Conference honorable mention selection. In his final year at Portland, he started all 20 games, scoring two goals and racking up five assists.

During his college years he also played for the Bradenton Academics in the USL Premier Development League.^[3]

FC Nordsjælland

Pearce signed with FC Nordsjælland and began his professional career in the 2004–05 Danish Superliga season. He made 75 league appearances and scored two goals for club in his two and a half seasons there.

Hansa Rostock

After stating that he would leave Nordsjælland after the 2007 season with a goal to be signed by a team in Germany, Scotland, or the Netherlands, Pearce signed a two-year contract with Hansa Rostock on July 16, 2007.^[4] In January 2008, Pearce was briefly suspended for being late to return to the club from international duty,^[5]^[6] but was eventually allowed back on the team. On April 13, 2009, Pearce was permanently suspended from Hansa Rostock's first team and demoted to the reserve squad.^[7] At the end of the season, Pearce was released from his contract.

FC Dallas

On September 2, 2009, Pearce reportedly signed a two-year contract with Turkish team Bursaspor,^[8]^[9] but the next day it had emerged that a deal was not reached until after the transfer window had closed.^[10] After his failed move to Turkey, he signed with Major League Soccer side FC Dallas on September 11, 2009.^[11] In his first full season in Dallas Pearce helped the club to the 2010 MLS Cup final.

Chivas USA

On February 15, 2011, after two seasons with Dallas, Pearce was traded to Chivas USA in return for allocation money.^[12] Pearce was traded to New York Red Bulls on May 17, 2012, with allocation money and future considerations in exchange for forward Juan Agudelo.^[13] Pearce scored his first MLS goal on June 20 versus the Vancouver Whitecaps helping New York to earn a 1–1 draw with his late equalizer.

New York Red Bulls

Midway through the 2013 season, Pearce elected to have hip surgery that ruled him out for the remainder of the season. New York and Pearce mutually parted ways at the end of the 2013 MLS season.^[14] He entered the 2013 MLS Re-Entry Draft but was not selected.

Montreal Impact

On March 6, 2014, Pearce signed with Montreal Impact.^[15] Pearce appeared in 29 matches in his lone season in Montreal. After one season in Montreal, in December 2014 Pearce was selected by Orlando City SC in the 2014 MLS Expansion Draft.

IFK Göteborg

On January 29, 2015, Pearce signed a five-month-long contract with Allsvenskan club IFK Göteborg.^[16]

International career

Pearce made his international debut in November 2005 against Scotland. Pearce was included by Bruce Arena in United States training camps and friendly matches prior to the 2006 FIFA World Cup but did not make the team.

Under Bob Bradley, Pearce became a regular starter for the national team. With relatively little competition in the U.S. player pool at left back, Pearce played the most minutes of any American field player in 2008. But as his club situation deteriorated, Pearce has seen less time with national team. Though a member of the squad at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, he did not make an appearance in the tournament as Jonathan Bornstein and Carlos Bocanegra were the preferred choices. Pearce was a member of the second-tier U.S. team for the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Lately he has not seen much action due to the return of Bornstein and also Bocanegra and Jonathan Spector both being versatile enough to play in that position.

Pearce was included on the 30-man preliminary roster for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, but did not make the final 23 man squad.^[17]

Personal life

Pearce has one younger adopted sister and two brothers. His sister Lindsay has starred in the TV series The Glee Project where she won a role on the Fox hit show Glee.^[18]

Pearce is an avid car and racing enthusiast. He has partnered with Matt Young as a co-owner in a professional sports car racing venture, Matt Young Motorsports with Heath Pearce.^[19]

Pearce now works in the field of media and broadcast. He has replaced his former Chivas USA teammate Jimmy Conrad as host of the YouTube channel KICK, now known as COPA90 US. Since 2023, Pearce has been a match analyst for MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

Career statistics

Club

As of March 14, 2015^[20]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Portland Pilots	2002		20	2	—		—		20	2
	2003		20	1	—		—		20	1
	2004		22	5	—		—		22	5
	Total		62	8	0	0	0	0	62	8
Bradenton Academics	2003		11	1	1	0	—		12	1
FC Nordsjælland	2004–05	Danish Superliga	15	0	0	0	—		15	0
	2005–06	Danish Superliga	31	1	0	0	—		31	1
	2006–07	Danish Superliga	29	1	0	0	—		29	1
	Total		75	2	0	0	0	0	75	2
Hansa Rostock	2007–08	Bundesliga	19	0	2	0	—		21	0
	2008–09	2. Bundesliga	12	0	1	0	—		13	0
	2009–10	2. Bundesliga	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		31	0	3	0	0	0	34	0
FC Dallas	2009	Major League Soccer	6	0	—		—		6	0
	2010	Major League Soccer	28	0	1	0	—		29	0
	Total		34	0	1	0	0	0	35	0
Chivas USA	2011	Major League Soccer	30	0	1	0	—		31	0
	2012	Major League Soccer	10	0	—		—		10	0
	Total		40	0	1	0	0	0	41	0
New York Red Bulls	2012	Major League Soccer	18	2	2	1	—		20	3
	2013	Major League Soccer	14	0	2	0	—		16	0
	Total		32	2	4	1	0	0	36	3
Montreal Impact	2014	Major League Soccer	23	0	4	0	2	0	29	0
IFK Göteborg	2015	Allsvenskan	0	0	3	0	—		3	0
Career total			308	13	17	1	2	0	327	14

International

As of January 25, 2012^[21]

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps
United States	2005	1
	2006	4
	2007	5
	2008	11
	2009	7
	2010	5
	2011	0
	2012	2
Total		35

Honors

Portland Pilots

West Coast Conference Regular Season: 2002

FC Dallas

Major League Soccer Western Conference Championship: 2010

New York Red Bulls

Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield: 2013

Montreal Impact

Canadian Championship: 2014

IFK Göteborg

Svenska Cupen: 2014–15

References

^ "COPA90 US". YouTube. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
^ "Heath Pearce - Eleven New York Athletic Wear & Apparel". October 19, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
^ Demosphere International, Inc. "United Soccer Leagues (USL)". Uslsoccer.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
^ "Rostock holt Lense und Pearce" [Rostock signs Lense and Pearce]. kicker.de (in German). July 16, 2007. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
^ "Strafe für "geschwänztes" Training?" [Fine for skipped training?]. bild.de (in German). January 5, 2008. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
^ "Pagelsdorf schmeißt Pearce raus" [Pagelsdorf kicks Pearce out]. bild.de (in German). January 16, 2008. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
^ "Pearce und Kronholm in zweite Mannschaft zurückgestuft" [Pearce and Kronholm demoted to second team]. Hansa Rostock (in German). April 13, 2009. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
^ "U.S.' Pearce joins Turkish club Bursaspor". Sports Illustrated. September 2, 2009. Archived from the original on September 6, 2009. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
^ "ABD'li sol bek Pearce Bursaspor'da" (in Turkish). CNN Türk. September 2, 2009. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
^ "Pearce kommt doch nicht zu Bursaspor" (in German). Archived from the original on September 5, 2009.
^ "Latest News". Web.mlsnet.com. September 23, 2011. Archived from the original on September 23, 2009. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
^ "Chivas USA Acquires United States National Team Defender Heath Pearce". Cdchivasusa.com. February 15, 2011. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
^ Davis, Noah (May 17, 2012). "Heath Pearce is just what New York needs". prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
^ "New York Red Bulls part ways with veteran defender Heath Pearce". mlssoccer.com. November 27, 2013. Archived from the original on November 30, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
^ "Impact adds defender Heath Pearce to its roster". Montreal Impact. March 6, 2014. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
^ "Försvarsspelare klar för IFK" (in Swedish). IFK Göteborg. January 29, 2015. Archived from the original on January 30, 2015. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
^ Townsend, Brad (May 26, 2010). "FC Dallas' Heath Pearce left off U.S. World Cup roster". Dallasnews.com. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
^ Hoppes, Lynn. "'Glee' actress sister to Major League Soccer player". ESPN. Retrieved September 23, 2011.
^ "Pro Soccer Star Heath Pearce & Matt Young Motorsports team up with Ranger Sports Racing for Barber". heathpearce.com. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2013.
^ "Heath Pearce". Elite Prospects. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
^ "Heath Pearce". National Football Teams. Retrieved January 29, 2014.