Wolff rejoins Wizards
June 30, 2008 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release
(June 30, 2008) - The Kansas City Wizards announced today that forward Josh Wolff has rejoined the club, signing a 4-year contract. Wolff, 31, played 80 games with the Wizards from 2003-2006, scoring 27 goals (T-5th in Wizards history) and tallying 20 assists (7th in Wizards history). Wolff played most recently in 34 games over the last two seasons (2 goals) with 1860 Munich in the German Second Bundesliga and currently has 52 caps and 9 goals for the U.S. National Team.
"Josh Wolff is a player we know well and we are very excited to bring him back to the Kansas City Wizards," Technical Director Peter Vermes said. "We are glad to have the opportunity to do this and we told him when he left that we had always valued him as a person and player. He has great speed and ability to stretch out the field."
The Wizards first obtained Wolff in a trade with the Chicago Fire on January 7, 2003 in exchange for a first round selection (#3 overall) in the 2003 SuperDraft. Wolff played five years with the Fire (1998-2002) before his four-year stint in Kansas City. Wolff won two Team MVP and Golden Boot trophies (2004 and 2005) and played a key part in the 2004 season where the Wizards played in the MLS Cup and won the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championship. The Stone Mountain, Georgia native has played with 11 current Wizards teammates and is set to rejoin the club in the middle of next week and will be able to play in MLS games after the transfer window July 15th.
"I am very excited to be back in Kansas City," Wolff said. "My family and I obviously have great ties here and it was a difficult decision to leave the first time, but it was something that we had to do. In coming back to the United States and MLS, Kansas City was first and foremost in our minds. It is a new organization, new management and new staff and all I have heard are great things. KC is a tremendous city and the fans have always been wonderful."
Overall in Major League Soccer, the two-time all-star (2002 and 2004) has netted 59 goals and garnered 35 assists in 164 games. He has won four championships (two MLS Cups and two U.S. Open Cups), to go along with playing in the 2000 Olympics and 2002 World Cup. The 5'9", 160 pound forward attended the University of South Carolina, where he scored 21 goals and added eight assists helping the Gamecocks to two straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
"Josh (Wolff) is a player that we attempted to sign when (Technical Director) Peter Vermes and I first took over," Head Coach Curt Onalfo said. "He's a guy we've always wanted. He's a national team player and an extremely good attacking player. We look forward to getting him incorporated into the team as quickly as possible. I coached him on the U.S. National Team and look forward to coaching him for the Kansas City Wizards."
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