Michael Parkhurst is an
AmericanThe people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
soccer player. He plays primarily as center back for
F.C. NordsjællandFootball Club Nordsjælland is a professional Danish football team from the North Zealand town of Farum, Denmark. Founded as Farum Boldklub from the merger of the town's two football clubs Farum IK and Stavnsholt BK in 1991, the club changed its name to F.C...
in the
Danish SuperligaThe Danish Superliga is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest association football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams to be relegated, which proves to be one of the...
. Parkhurst has amassed 9 caps for the
United States men's national teamThe United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
, including a member of two
CONCACAF Gold CupThe CONCACAF Gold Cup is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the regional champion of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.The Gold Cup is held every two years and when it does not fall the same year as an...
squads and participated in the
2008 Summer OlympicsThe men's association football tournament at the 2008 Summer Olympics was held in Beijing and four other cities in the People's Republic of China from 7 August to 23 August. Associations affiliated with FIFA were invited to enter their men's U-23 teams in regional qualifying competitions, from...
.
Youth and college
Parkhurst attended the
Bradenton Soccer AcademyIMG Academies is a world-class training facility for athletic, academic and personal development. For more than 30 years, the Academy's training methods have helped youth, adult, collegiate and professional athletes improve in sport and life...
in Florida. He played
college soccerCollege soccer is a term used to describe association football played by teams who are operated by colleges and universities as opposed to a professional league operated for exclusively financial purposes...
at
Wake Forest UniversityWake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
for the
Demon DeaconsOriginally, Wake Forest's athletic teams were known as the Fighting Baptists, due to its association with the Baptist Convention...
from 2002 to 2004, where he started all sixty-two games the team played during his tenure, scoring one goal and registering two assists. Parkhurst was named a second-team All-American as a sophomore and junior and graduated from the university with a degree in history. He then signed a
Generation adidasGeneration adidas is a joint venture between Major League Soccer and U.S. Soccer aimed at raising the level of young soccer talent in the United States. The program, sponsored by adidas, encourages early entry of American players into MLS...
contract with MLS following the 2004 season.
New England Revolution
Parkhurst, who grew up in Rhode Island and played for CLCF Soccer and Bayside United, was in attendance at the inauguaral home game for the
New England RevolutionThe New England Revolution is an American professional association football club based in Foxborough, Massachusetts which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada...
, in 1996. Nine years later, on January 14, 2005, he was selected ninth overall in the
2005 MLS SuperDraftThe 2005 MLS SuperDraft, held in Baltimore, Maryland on January 14, 2005, was the sixth incarnation of the annual Major League Soccer SuperDraft. Expansion club Real Salt Lake had the first pick as the result of a coin toss . RSL drafted Under-17 midfielder Nikolas Besagno with the first selection...
by his hometown Revolution. He was ever-present for the Revs in his first season and was named
MLS Rookie of the YearIn the United States, Major League Soccer has handed out a Rookie of the Year Award since its inception in 1996. MLS, as opposed to other American sports leagues like Major League Baseball, only designates a player as a rookie if the player has had no prior professional experience...
.
He scored his first career MLS goal on October 20, 2007, in a 2–2 draw between the Revolution and
Toronto FCToronto FC is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada....
. The goal was scored from sixty yards out, having caught Toronto's keeper
Kenny StamatopoulosKyriakos "Kenny" Stamatopoulos is a Greek-Canadian soccer goalkeeper, currently play for AIK.-Sweden:...
off-guard.
Parkhurst won the
MLS Defender of the Year AwardIn the United States, Major League Soccer has handed out a Defender of the Year award since its inception in 1996. Here is a list of the past winners:Past winners:...
in 2007, the
MLS Fair Play AwardThe MLS Fair Play Award, also known as the Xbox 360 Fair Play Award, is an annual award in Major League Soccer. The award is given to an individual player and a team who receives a low number of yellow cards and red cards...
in 2007 and 2008 and was also twice named the MLS Humanitarian of the Year in 2006 and 2008.
F.C. Nordsjælland
After his contract with the Revolution expired after the 2008 season, Parkhurst signed a 3 year contract with
Danish SuperligaThe Danish Superliga is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest association football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams to be relegated, which proves to be one of the...
side
NordsjællandFootball Club Nordsjælland is a professional Danish football team from the North Zealand town of Farum, Denmark. Founded as Farum Boldklub from the merger of the town's two football clubs Farum IK and Stavnsholt BK in 1991, the club changed its name to F.C...
on December 9, 2008, as a free agent. March 1, 2009, Parkhurst made his FCN league debut in a 1-1 away draw against
VejleVejle Boldklub is a Danish football club with proud traditions from the town of Vejle. The club has won the Danish championship five times and the Danish cup title six times....
.
2009-10The 2009–10 Danish Superliga season was the 20th season of the Danish Superliga league championship, which determinates the winners of the Danish football championship. It is governed by the Danish Football Association. The tournament started on 18 July 2009 and concluded on 16 May 2010.The Danish...
season, with the arrival of
Andreas BjellandAndreas Bjelland is a Danish footballer. He plays at centre back for F.C. Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga and he will join FC Twente in the summer of 2012...
and injury to
Henrik KildentoftHenrik Kildentoft is a Danish footballer. He plays at right back for F.C. Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga. Kildentoft has amassed a total 47 youth caps for Denmark under four different age groups, he is yet to earn a senior cap....
, Parkhurst was inserted in to a variety of new positions, including full back and centre midfielder, becoming adapt at playing at right back. Parkhurst would help the Wild Tigers to win the
Danish Cup-Second round:The clubs who placed 5–10 in the 2008–09 Superliga – Randers, AGF, AaB, Nordsjælland, Esbjerg, SønderjyskE – as well as the top two clubs from the 2008–09 First Division – Herfølge, who was merged with another club to form Køge for the 2009–10 season, and Silkeborg – received a bye into...
, the club's first silverware in their history, and his first trophy in
DenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
.
The following season, Parkhurst was hampered by numerous injury set backs throughout the campaign, eventually losing his place to
Jores OkoreJores Okore is an Ivory Coast-born Danish footballer. He plays at centre back for F.C. Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga...
. He would make his return in time for Nordsjælland's
Danish CupThe 2010–11 Danish Cup is the 55th season of the Danish football cup competition. For the third year, the sponsor of the competition was Ekstra Bladet, a daily newspaper, who signed a 3-year contract with the Danish Football Association in 2008, making the official name Ekstra Bladet Cup...
final, winning the cup with a 3-2 victory over
F.C. MidtjyllandFC Midtjylland is a professional Danish football team from Herning and Ikast. The team is a result of a merger between Ikast FS and Herning Fremad...
, lifting the trophy for the second consecutive year.
With less than a year remaining on his contract, there was speculation on Michael Parkhurst's future at FCN at the start of the
2011-12The 2011–12 Danish Superliga season is the 22nd season of the Danish Superliga, which decides the Danish football championship. The season began on with OB, the previous season's silver medallists playing the cup winners of FC Nordsjælland. It will conclude on with six simultaneous matches...
season, with the emergence of Bjelland and Okore's partnership in central defense, Parkhurst was forced to play out of position, often at right back. Helping the club to their best ever start to a season, ending the winter break in December 2011 at a club record 2nd in the league, Parkhurst put rumors to rest when he signed a one year contract extension with F.C. Nordsjælland, despite financially better offers from other clubs.
International career
Parkhurst is an Irish-American and thus holds an
IrishIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
passport. He had declared that he would be willing to play for the
Irish national teamThe Republic of Ireland national football team represents Ireland in association football. It is run by the Football Association of Ireland and currently plays home fixtures at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, which opened in May 2010....
if his American ambitions never came to fruition. Parkhurst was called up by the
United States national teamThe United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
for the
2007 Gold CupThe 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the ninth edition of the Gold Cup, the football championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean , and was won by the United States over Mexico. It was contested in the United States from June 6 to June 24, 2007.This competition was the third...
, and earned his first cap against
Trinidad and TobagoThe Trinidad and Tobago national football team, nicknamed The Soca Warriors, is the national team of Trinidad and Tobago and is run by the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation. It reached the first round of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Finals...
on June 9, 2007, thus eliminating any further possibility of playing for the Republic of Ireland.
Club
New England Revolution
- Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is a knockout tournament in American soccer. The tournament is the oldest ongoing American soccer competition and is presently open to all United States Soccer Federation affiliated teams, from amateur adult club teams to the professional clubs of Major League...
(1): 2007-Schedule:Note: Scorelines use the standard U.S. convention of placing the home team on the right-hand side of box scores.-First round:-----Second round:-----Third round:...
FC Nordsjælland
- Danish Cup
The Danish Cup is the official "knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955...
(2): 2009-10, 2010-11
International
United States
- CONCACAF Gold Cup
The CONCACAF Gold Cup is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the regional champion of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.The Gold Cup is held every two years and when it does not fall the same year as an...
(1): 2007The 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the ninth edition of the Gold Cup, the football championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean , and was won by the United States over Mexico. It was contested in the United States from June 6 to June 24, 2007.This competition was the third...
Individual
- MLS Rookie of the Year
In the United States, Major League Soccer has handed out a Rookie of the Year Award since its inception in 1996. MLS, as opposed to other American sports leagues like Major League Baseball, only designates a player as a rookie if the player has had no prior professional experience...
: 2005The 2005 Major League Soccer season was the tenth season of MLS, which began on April 2, 2005, and concluded on November 13, 2005 with a second MLS Cup victory for the Los Angeles Galaxy.-Changes from 2004 Season:...
- MLS Humanitarian of the Year
The MLS Humanitarian of the Year Award, also known as the MLS W.O.R.K.S Humanitarian of the Year Award, is given to a Major League Soccer player who exemplifies both skill on the field and service within the community...
: 2006The 2006 Major League Soccer season was the 11th season in league history. It began on April 1, 2006 and ended with MLS Cup 2006 on November 12, 2006 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas for the second consecutive year in a row.-Changes from 2005 Season:...
- MLS Defender of the Year
In the United States, Major League Soccer has handed out a Defender of the Year award since its inception in 1996. Here is a list of the past winners:Past winners:...
: 2007
- MLS Best XI
The MLS Best XI is an acknowledgement of the best eleven players in the league in a given season for Major League Soccer in Canada and the United States.-Winners:*Players in bold text also won the Major League Soccer MVP Award award for that season....
: 2007
External links