Former Kansas City Wizards forward Josh Wolff has left Major League Soccer for Germany, as the 29-year-old officially joined 2. Bundesliga side (second division) 1860 Munich on Wednesday on a contract that runs through the 2007-08 European season.
"Obviously, we've been checking out 1860 for a while now, through my agent, myself," Wolff said in a press conference Wednesday in Germany. "Once we knew there was some interest and I was coming over and training, you start to follow the results, the team, the guys. I came over and got to train and meet everyone and see the facility and obviously [general manager] Stefan Reuter and the trainer.
"It's a good experience all in all. That, I think, was the one real proving point to try and work out a deal and certainly once that was agreed upon, I would sign on. I'm very excited about the opportunity and it's a great club with a lot of tradition and history and I'm hoping for great things while I'm here. I'm really excited."
Wolff heads to Germany following nine seasons in MLS. He spent his first five seasons with the Chicago Fire, helping the team to the MLS Cup title in their inaugural season in 1998. Wolff then joined the Wizards prior to the 2003 campaign, scoring 27 goals over the past four seasons in Kansas City. The Georgia native found the back of the net 59 times and provided 35 assists in 164 career regular season matches in the league.
"He is a very experienced player and fits in very well in our team," Stefan Reuter told the Associated Press. "His instinct for goals and his speed will liven up our attack."
Wolff will have at least one familiar face on the team in U.S. international defender Gregg Berhalter.
"I was pretty impressed from the moment I got here," Wolff said. "Obviously, Gregg spoke highly of everyone with this club and I have a lot of respect for Stefan Reuter and the atmosphere that he creates here with the club."
A member of the U.S. team that went 0-2-1 at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Wolff has 48 caps for the U.S. national team, scoring nine goals. He made 10 appearances under Bruce Arena in 2006, failing to register either a goal or an assist in 451 minutes of action for the Red, White and Blue.
International commitments limited Wolff's availability to the Wizards in 2006, as he played in only 19 games, scoring five goals. He matched a career high for goals in 2005 with 10, while setting a personal best in assists with the same figure.
Wolff provided 10 goals and seven assists in 2004 to help the Wizards win the Western Conference before falling to D.C. United in MLS Cup. The club failed to reach the postseason in each of its next two seasons, missing out on the MLS Cup Playoffs after disappointing results on the last day of the regular season for two consecutive seasons. Former U.S. national team assistant Curt Onalfo was named the Wizards' new head coach on Nov. 27.
1860 Munich currently sit in sixth place in the 2. Bundesliga, four points out of the promotion race.
Jonathan Nierman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
