Luke Sassano

MLS:
2011: Sassano signed a contract with the club in January.
2010: Made 3 appearances for the New York Red Bulls playing in a defensive midfield position prior to undergoing season-ending surgery on his right ankle. Following the 2010 season he entered the MLS Re-Entry Process and was selected by the Los Angeles Galaxy in the Stage 2 Re-Entry Draft before he was traded to Kansas City in exchange for the rights to Frankie Hejduk..
2009: Featured in 17 games for the Red Bulls this season, starting in 12. Missed two matches in May due to right ankle sprain. Trained with Red Bull Salzburg after the regular season.
2008: Made MLS debut, playing full 90 minutes against Columbus on April 5 in season opener. Played right back, right midfield and central midfield during season. Played 18 games in regular season, starting in 11, and started in all four playoff games as a holding midfielder. Started in 11 MLS Reserve League games, logging 990 minutes and one assist.

COLLEGE:
Sassano, the team captain for the University of California-Berkeley in 2007, was named All Pac-10 Honorable Mention in 2005 and a Pac-10 All-Academic Honorable Mention selection in 2007. Featuring in a total of 64 games (56 starts), he tallied a total of four goals and 19 assists during his four-year career for the Golden Bears. The graduate of Miramonte High School (CA) has also played on club teams, Lamorinda United and the Santa Clara Sporting Ruckus.

PERSONAL:
Favorite player growing up was Roberto Baggio and favorite team was Manchester United. A big Oakland Athletics fan and his favorite actor is Edward Norton. Enjoys listening to Bob Marley. Majored in international economics at UC-Berkeley. Parents are Matthew and Corinna Sassano. Younger brother, Evan, played as a defender at UC-Berkeley. Worked with CHF International (CHF), the international development and humanitarian assistance organization. The partnership was part of Athletes for Hope’s First Annual Who Gives? Racing for a Cause campaign, which began in Dec. 2009 and ran through early Jan. 2010.