Mike Petke

Mike Petke

Personal information
Full name	Mike Petke
Date of birth	(1976-01-30) January 30, 1976
Place of birth	Bohemia, New York, United States
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Playing position	Defender
Youth career
1994–1997	Southern Connecticut State Owls
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1998–2002	MetroStars	134	(5)
2003–2005	D.C. United	58	(5)
2005–2008	Colorado Rapids	80	(3)
2009–2010	New York Red Bulls	35	(0)
Total		307	(13)
National team‡
2001–2003	United States	2	(0)
Teams managed
2011–2012	New York Red Bulls (assistant)
2013–2014	New York Red Bulls
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of October 1, 2010. ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of January 26, 2013

Mike Petke (born January 30, 1976) is a former American soccer player who also served as the head coach ^[1] of New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer. He is currently the all-time appearances leader for the New York Red Bulls with 197 caps in all competitions.

Career

College

Petke attended St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School in West Islip, New York, where he was selected as an All-American, before moving on to play college soccer in Southern Connecticut State University. In 1995 he led SCSU to the NCAA Division II National title and was named Conference Rookie of the Year. In 1997 he was named New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Defensive Player of the Year and was a consensus NSCAA/Umbro First Team All-America selection.^[2]

Professional

Mike Petke with D.C. United in 2004.

Petke was drafted by the MetroStars in the first round of the 1998 MLS College Draft. He made his MLS debut on April 17, 1998 in a 1-0 win over Chicago Fire. He spent the first five years of his career with MetroStars, becoming the only constant under an ever-changing regime of coaches and players. A fan favorite, Petke remains the MetroStars/Red Bulls all-time leader in games played with 169 (196 in all competitions).

Petke gained notoriety on August 20, 2000, four days after Tampa Bay Mutiny forward Mamadou Diallo broke the ribs of MetroStars goalkeeper Mike Ammann. Petke, who rarely scored goals, scored in the MetroStars win over Colorado, and unveiled a T-shirt that said August 16: Crime of the Century on the front and Revenge is Coming on the back. While such support for a fallen comrade was welcomed by teammates and MetroStars fans, it was frowned upon by the league and Petke was fined for his efforts. Diallo, however, received no disciplinary action following the injuries to Ammann.

After an outstanding season in 2000, in which Petke helped lead the club to the Eastern Division title, Petke went on a two-week trial with Bundesliga side Bayern Munich. After his trial with Bayern, another German club FC Kaiserslautern offered Petke a contract, but Petke elected to remain with MetroStars.

Petke, a three-time MLS All-Star, was traded to D.C. United with a draft pick and an allocation for Eddie Pope, Jaime Moreno, and Richie Williams. He won the MLS Cup with DC during the 2004 season. Petke was then traded to Colorado Rapids in May 2005 in a three-team deal. He helped stabilize the Colorado backline and was a key player in helping the Rapids reach the Western Conference Finals in 2005. He remained a fixture in the heart of the Rapids defense for the next three years.

On November 26, 2008, the New York Red Bulls, the former MetroStars, signed Petke on waivers, and agreed to terms on a new multi-year agreement. The move brought Petke back to New York six years after leaving the MetroStars. In his first season with the Red Bulls, Petke appeared in 19 regular season matches. On March 20, 2010, Petke scored the second goal for the Red Bulls in a 3-1 victory against Santos FC, which was the first match played at the new Red Bull Arena.^[3] During the 2010 season Petke announced that he would retire at the end of the season. He concluded his last professional season appearing in 16 regular season matches, and helped New York capture its second Eastern Division regular season title.^[4] In thirteen years in MLS, Petke scored thirteen regular season goals and added four assists.

International

Petke had two caps with the US national team, the first coming on June 7, 2001, against Ecuador.

Petke also captained the United States Under-21 team, and was a member of the U.S. squad that competed in the 1995 World University Games in Japan.

Post-playing career

After retiring from the game, Petke took a job as Manager of Business Operations with the New York Red Bulls. On January 24, 2013, after tenures as an assistant coach and then interim head coach, Petke was named as the club's head coach.^[5] In the 2013 MLS season, Petke guided the Red Bulls to their first major trophy, clinching the Supporters' Shield with a final matchday 5-2 win over the Chicago Fire.^[6]

Petke once again led the Red Bulls to relative success in the 2014 MLS season, as the team made the playoffs and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals, losing there to the New England Revolution. Nonetheless, Petke was fired by the club in January 2015.^[7] Petke's firing was met with huge backlash by Red Bulls supporters.^[8]

Currently, Petke is a color commentator for soccer on ONE World Sports.^[9] Petke has been named the Director of Coaching for the New Jersey State Youth Soccer Association.^[10]

Career statistics

Managerial stats

Petke coaching RBNY against Arsenal

As of March 14, 2015

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				P	W	D	L	Win %
New York Red Bulls		24 January 2013	7 January 2015	7001820000000000000♠82	7001340000000000000♠34	7001230000000000000♠23	7001250000000000000♠25	7001414600000000000♠41.46
Total				7001820000000000000♠82	7001340000000000000♠34	7001230000000000000♠23	7001250000000000000♠25	7001414600000000000♠41.46

Honors

Playing honors

D.C. United

• MLS Cup (1): 2004

Managerial honors

New York Red Bulls

• MLS Supporters' Shield (1): 2013

References

External links

• MLS player profile
• Red Bulls coaching profile