Antonee Robinson, a Fulham defender and a member of the United States men’s national team, was named the 2024 U.S. soccer male player of the year. The 27-year-old, who was a finalist for the award in 2022, ran against players Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Christian Pulisic and Tim Ream.

“It’s an incredible honor,” Robinson said, according to ESPN. “Representing our country isn’t something you do for individual accolades.

“It’s always about putting the team first and trying to do my best for the boys and for the country, so to be rewarded for that is an amazing feeling,” he added.

The soccer player received 55% of votes. The jury for the award consists of national team coaches, US men’s national team players who earned a cap in 2024, members of the U.S. Soccer Board of Directors, U.S. Soccer Athletes’ Council, professional league head coaches and sporting directors, as well as select media members and former players. Fans also make up 15% of the overall vote, per ESPN.

“I probably looked a little silly because I was shocked!,” Robinson said about the moment he received the news, according to US Soccer. “I thought it was just a random interview with Tim about how the season was going, so when he told me I’d won I was just in disbelief because it was the last thing I expected. Obviously, Tim had an incredible career with the National Team and throughout his club football so it was a thrill to have that news delivered by him.”

Robinson has also won accolades for his achievements with Fulham, an English Premier League team. He brought home the club’s 2023-24 Player of the Year award and was the first defender to earn the distinction since Oguchi Onyewu in 2006.

Among the top 10 best players in the league, Robinson recorded 10 assists in 37 matches across the 2023-24 calendar year, which is four more than any other defender in the league, according to ESPN.

Soccer