Tyler Adams has been voted the 2022 BioSteel U.S. Soccer Male Player of the Year after captaining the U.S. Men’s National Team at the 2022 FIFA World Cup to cap off an excellent year for club and country. Selected by his teammates to wear the armband in Qatar, the midfielder led the USMNT in minutes played this year and featured in every minute of the USA’s successful World Cup run while winning the DFB-Pokal with RB Leipzig and making a massive impact since joining the English Premier League with Leeds United last summer.
“Receiving this type of recognition is certainly special, but for me the team’s success is the most important thing,” Adams said. “Having the experience of going to the World Cup, performing well as a group and moving the sport forward in the United States was super important to me this year, and I couldn’t have done it without my teammates.”
The accolade was announced earlier today during the pregame broadcast of the Aston Villa-Leeds United match. Tim Howard, a two-time recipient of the award, made a video that was played to Adams as a surprise in front of his colleagues at Leeds.
“Tim Howard is an absolute legend in U.S. Soccer history and the Premier League as well,” Adams continued. “To hear those words from him was very special, and I’m very thankful.”
With a $24 million deal to Leeds United this summer, the midfielder made a significant shift to the English Premier League. Adams had an instant impact at Elland Road, quickly establishing himself as a regular in the starting lineup, appearing in 13 of 14 games for the club before the World Cup break.
The USMNT midfielder was crucial to the team’s success at the World Cup, and Adams was energetic in the center of the pitch, with his apparently limitless engine winning him Man of the Match honors in the USA’s first two games – a 1-1 tie against Wales and a 0-0 draw against Colombia.
Adams, the tournament’s youngest captain and the USMNT’s youngest World Cup captain since 1950, was one of three players to play every minute in Qatar. Adams became the United States’ youngest captain in a World Cup Knockout Round match when he captained the team against the Netherlands in the Round of 16.
