Benny Feilhaber

Benny Feilhaber (/ˈfeɪlhɑːbər/; born January 19, 1985) is an American professional soccer player who plays for Sporting Kansas City in Major League Soccer as a midfielder.

Early life

Feilhaber was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is Jewish, and was raised in his father's Jewish religion. His paternal grandfather emigrated from the Austrian capital city of Vienna to Brazil in 1938 to escape the Nazi regime.

Feilhaber was six years old when his family moved from Brazil to settle in the United States and spent approximately eight years in the New York City suburb of Scarsdale where he played for the local soccer team, the Scarsdale Lightning. He attended Nottingham Country Elementary in Katy, Texas. In 1996, he led the team and won the New York State Cup for the U-12 division. He attended Northwood High School in Irvine, California where he was a standout midfielder on the school’s soccer team. He also played club soccer for the Irvine Strikers, winning various youth national titles. He was coached by youth coach Don Ebert.