Sporting Kansas City has announced former forward Josh Wolff as the newest member of the club’s Sporting Legends hall of honor.
Wolff, who starred for the Kansas City Wizards from 2003-2006 and 2008-2010, will be officially inducted as a Sporting Legend in a pregame ceremony before Sporting Kansas City hosts FC Dallas on Saturday, July 20, at Children’s Mercy Park. Tickets for the Western Conference clash are available now at SeatGeek.com.
Wolff, currently an assistant coach for the United States Men’s National Team, is the 10th club icon to join Sporting Legends, an initiative launched in 2013 that pays tribute to all-time greats while providing a platform for inductees to engage with the Kansas City soccer community. Wolff was selected through an online ballot of write-in votes submitted by fans.
Sporting Legends Inductees
- Class of 2013: Bob Gansler, Tony Meola, Preki
- Class of 2014: Jimmy Conrad, Lamar Hunt, Peter Vermes
- 2015: Chris Klein
- 2016: Kerry Zavagnin
- 2017: Mo Johnston
- 2019: Josh Wolff
Like the previous nine members of Sporting Legends, Wolff will have his name adorned outside The Victory Suite in the northwest corner of Children’s Mercy Park. A new UMB Sporting Legends Pylon will also be erected inside the UMB Premium Entry on the northwest side of the stadium, showcasing the U.S. Men’s National Team jersey he wore at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.
As part of his trip to Kansas City, Wolff will connect with The Victory Project—the philanthropic arm of Sporting Kansas City—and appear at the inaugural Sporting Kansas City Fantasy Experience, a two-day adult camp created by Manager and Sporting Director Peter Vermes.
On July 19, Wolff will meet the Victory Project Honoree and his or her family during Sporting Kansas City training at Pinnacle. This Victory Project tradition has touched the lives of over 100 families since 2013, honoring a child with cancer at every Sporting home match. On the afternoon of July 20, Wolff will oversee a Pinnacle training session at the Fantasy Experience, which will treat guests to a comprehensive professional soccer excursion over the course of two days.
Over the course of seven seasons, Wolff played an instrumental role in Kansas City’s on-field success. He amassed 46 goals and 30 assists in 163 competitive appearances, ranking fourth on the club’s all-time goals chart and eighth in assists. He is one of four players in team history—alongside Preki, Chris Klein and Davy Arnaud—to notch at least 40 goals and 30 assists in a Kansas City uniform.
Wolff, who led the Wizards to playoff appearances in 2003, 2004 and 2008, hit double-digit goals for Kansas City in three separate regular seasons—a feat matched by only Preki and Dom Dwyer. His standout 2004 campaign yielded 11 goals in all competitions, culminating in the club’s first Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title, a run to the MLS Cup final and MLS All-Star accolades.
After becoming the second Kansas City player (Preki) to record 10 goals and 10 assists in an MLS season in 2005, Wolff added five goals during the first half of 2006 before moving abroad to join 1860 Munich of the German second division. He returned to Kansas City midway through 2008 and bagged an MLS career-high 11 goals in 2009, his final year with the club.
Wolff turned professional with the Chicago Fire—where he won an MLS Cup and two U.S. Open Cups from 1998-2002—and concluded his playing career with D.C. United from 2011-2012. In 1998, he was named U.S. Soccer’s Young Male Athlete of the Year.
On the international stage, Wolff scored nine goals in 52 career caps for the U.S. Men’s National Team. He notably helped the U.S. MNT reach the quarterfinals of the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea, assisting the game-winning goal in a legendary 2-0 win over archrivals Mexico in the Round of 16. Wolff was a Concacaf Gold Cup champion in 2002 and 2005—scoring the game-winner in the 2002 final against Costa Rica—and appeared at his second World Cup in 2006 in Germany. At the U-23 level, Wolff scored twice at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Australia as the U.S. earned a fourth-place finish.
Wolff has served as an assistant coach since late 2012, with a year-long spell at D.C. United followed by a five-year run alongside Columbus Crew SC head coach Gregg Berhalter. He began his current tenure as a U.S. Men’s National Team assistant in January, shortly after Berhalter was named the U.S. MNT head coach.
