U.S. men’s national team defender Chris Richards has been voted the 2025 U.S. Soccer Male Player of the Year, the federation announced Wednesday.
Richards enjoyed a fine year for club and country, becoming a fixture in the lineup for both while helping Crystal Palace win its first ever major trophy.
This is the first U.S. Soccer Male Player of the Year award for Richards, who becomes the second consecutive defender to win the prize after Antonee Robinson was honored in 2024.
Richards won 48.6% of the weighted total vote, beating out fellow finalists Max Arfsten, Alex Freeman, Matt Freese and Malik Tillman.
Tillman finished second with 21.7% of the vote, with Freeman coming in third at 13%.
The Alabama native made 12 appearances for the USMNT last year, starting all six games as Mauricio Pochettino’s side reached the Gold Cup final. Richards scored the opener in that match against Mexico, which ultimately came back to defeat the USMNT, 2-1.
Richards scored two goals at the Gold Cup, earning a spot on the tournament’s Best XI.
The news was delivered to Richards live Wednesday during the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN.
‘It means the world to me,’ Richards said. ‘As a defender, people tend to say it’s a lot of pressure, but I think pressure builds diamonds.
‘That’s something with this team, with this country. We’re Americans, we like to win, we like to scrap, we like to fight. And that’s exactly what we’re going do in the summer [at the World Cup] and hopefully by the end of it, we’re holding a big trophy.’
At the club level, Richards was a lock starter for Crystal Palace in 2025. The 25-year-old played every minute of Palace’s run to the FA Cup title, including a 1-0 shutout of high-flying Manchester City in the final.
