A couple of hours before kickoff, there’s always one place you’ll find Matt Freese.
The New York City FC shot-stopper stands in goal — headphones on — taking in his surroundings and getting a feel for the pitch as he visualizes saving shots. It’s a pre-game routine the 27-year-old has followed since his days at Harvard University, a place that played an immense role in his development as a soccer player.
Although Freese only spent two years playing for Harvard, his time as a Crimson helped shape him into one of the best goalkeepers in Major League Soccer — and put him on the path to become the United States men’s national team’s starting goalkeeper with the 2026 FIFA World Cup less than one year away.
Before deciding to play soccer at Harvard, Freese had an offer to move away from his home in Wayne, PA, to join Manchester United on an apprenticeship contract. The opportunity enticed Freese, but his parents wanted him to go to Harvard and focus on his studies.
“It was largely a family decision,” he said. “There were some tough conversations between me and my parents about this one. There was a clear path that I wanted to go on, but I had to respect what they wanted. They sacrificed so much for me, so I had to repay that and honor what they wanted and then, when the time was right, make my decision for myself.”
Hudson River Blue Staff
Hudson River Blue Staff
From Harvard, to benchwarmer, to starter
Freese spent only two years at Harvard before leaving early in December 2018 to join the Philadelphia Union as a homegrown player.
“It was very clear to me that in order to have the career I wanted to have on the field and to achieve things I wanted to achieve on the field, the earlier my career could start, the better,” he said. “It was a pretty natural decision; everyone was kind of on the same page.”
Freese made his MLS debut on April 19, 2019, but ultimately never won the starting role at Philadelphia because he was stuck behind three-time MLS Goalkeeper of the Year winner Andre Blake.
“I think it was actually probably the best thing that could have happened for me,” he said. “I think if I was thrown immediately into a starting position, it could have been very different. When that happens, sometimes you lose a level of humility that I was forced to have, not only for four years there, but because that humility was entrenched so deeply into me during that time, and it’s something that I’m planning on keeping with me throughout my entire playing career.”
Freese revealed that Blake is a mentor to him and referred to him as one of his “very close friends.” The two of them, according to Freese, stay in touch.
Glenn Crooks
“I also think just learning tactically and technically with Andre — we’re very different athletes and we have a different style of playing,” Freese said. “But just being exposed to his professionalism and his style of play and his communication, so many things, and just his ability — I learned a lot from him, but it also pushed me. I didn’t have an automatic potential to start right away; I had to earn it and ultimately didn’t earn it there.”
After 16 appearances over four seasons with Philadelphia, Freese joined NYCFC on January 27, 2023. Once again, he found himself as the backup goalkeeper, this time behind Luis Barraza. But Freese eventually won the starting spot, taking over the position for the last eight games of the regular season and logging five clean sheets.
“There was a lot of development and a lot of adapting I had to do,” Freese said. “I had to work hard, listen to the coaching staff, listen to Rob (Vartughian). Rob was super patient with me, but pushed me a lot because I think he saw the longer-term plan, and when I got to the threshold as far as possession-oriented style of play they wanted to see, I started getting opportunities and just had to take advantage of those opportunities.”
The 2024 season was a career-defining campaign for Freese. He totaled 135 saves, the third-most in the league, and had a save percentage rate of 73.4%, the fourth-best in MLS. He also prevented 8.9 goals, second only to Kristijan Kahlina, who was named Goalkeeper of the Year.
Freese followed up his outstanding regular season with a huge performance in Round One of the playoffs against FC Cincinnati. He made six saves in Game One, four saves in Game Two, but Game Three was where Freese made the biggest impact — he made four saves in regulation, followed by a three-save penalty shootout display to send New York City to the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Matt Freese | Best saves vs FC Cincinnati, Round One
“It wasn’t one of the best years; it was just my first year, so it was the only opportunity I had to show it,” he said. “I had been doing stuff in practice for five, six years before that. So I just wanted to do the same exact thing I had been doing in training and stay consistent. I think the big part of that first year for me in 2024 was the consistency of it because there was a few good performances and then a few average performances — I don’t like being average.”
