Introduction
Steven Mitchell Birnbaum (born January 23, 1991) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for D.C. United and the United States men's national soccer team.
Early life
Birnbaum was born in Newport Beach, California, and is Jewish. His mother is Peggy (Schmidt) Birnbaum. He completed high school early at Northwood High School at age 17.
Career
Youth and college
Birnbaum played in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy for Southern California club Pateadores. He played five years of college soccer at the University of California, Berkeley between 2009 and 2013, though redshirted the 2012 season. While at college, Birnbaum also appeared for USL PDL club Orange County Blue Star in 2010 and 2011.
In 2012, he won a silver medal with the U.S. team in the 2012 Pan American Maccabi Games in Brazil.
Professional
Birnbaum was selected in the first round (2nd overall) of the 2014 MLS SuperDraft on January 14, 2014 by D.C. United. He was loaned out to their USL Pro affiliate Richmond Kickers in March 2014, making his professional debut on April 5, 2014 in a 3–1 win over the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Steve is a crucial player of D.C. United because of his great defensive capabilities.
Following an injury to Jeff Parke, Birnbaum became United's starting center back alongside Bobby Boswell.Birnbaum was named a finalist for the 2014 MLS Rookie of the Year, but lost to Tesho Akindele. Birnbaum scored his first goal for United on February 26, 2015, in a CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal leg against Alajuelense. In 2016, Birnbaum was the subject of several rumors regarding a possible transfer to Europe, with Maccabi Tel Aviv mentioned as one possible destination. He replaced Bobby Boswell as team captain when Boswell left. Afterwards when Wayne Rooney joined D.C. United, the captain role was given to Wayne.
Birnbaum started every game for D.C. United in both the 2018 and 2019 season. His teamwork with fellow defender, Frédéric Brillant, and goalkeeper, Bill Hamid, helped DC to concede the lowest number of goals in the Eastern Conference in 2019.
International
Birnbaum played for the United States U18 and United States U20 national teams in 2008.
Birnbaum debuted for the United States men's national soccer team on January 28, 2015. His first goal for the USMNT was a 90th-minute winner versus Iceland on January 31, 2016, a game in which he had already provided an equalizing assist to Michael Orozco to make it 2-2.
Personal life
Birnbaum married his fiancé, Jeanne, on December 15, 2018, in Virginia. He also has a nephew via his sister. He and Jeanne had their first child together, a daughter, in October 2019.
Statistics
College
| School | Season | NCAA Regular Season | NCAA Tournament | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| California | 2009 | Div. I | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| 2010 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | ||
| 2011 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 1 | ||
| 2012 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2013 | 16 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 10 | ||
| NCAA Total | 69 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 74 | 12 | ||
Club
- As of April 24, 2017.
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| D.C. United | 2014 | MLS | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| Richmond Kickers (loan) | 2014 | USL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| D.C. United | 2015 | MLS | 22 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 31 | 3 |
| 2016 | 26 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 3 | ||
| 2017 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 28 | 0 | |||
| 2018 | 34 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 37 | 2 | |||
| 2019 | 34 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 37 | 1 | |||
| Career totals | 148 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 170 | 8 | ||
International goals
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | January 31, 2016 | StubHub Center, Carson, California |  Iceland |
3–2 | Friendly | [2] |
International
| United States men's national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 | 8 | 1 |
| 2017 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 11 | 1 |
Accolades
Birnbaum was inducted into the Southern California Sports Hall of Fame in 2020.