Earnest Lee Stewart Jr., better known as Earnie Stewart (born March 28, 1969) is a former professional soccer player who played as a forward or midfielder. Born in the Netherlands, he represented the United States national team. His career spanned 17 years from 1988 until his retirement in 2005, with the majority of the years spent in the Netherlands, except for a period he played for D.C. United. Stewart also represented the United States in international soccer.
Since his retirement from professional soccer, Stewart has served as a soccer executive in various positions for multiple organizations. He is currently the director of football for PSV Eindhoven.
In 2011, Stewart was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Early life and education Earnie Stewart is the son of U.S. Air Force airman Earnie Stewart Sr. and his wife Annemien. Stewart grew up in Uden, Netherlands.
Playing career Stewart began his professional career in the Netherlands in 1988 with VVV-Venlo. By the end of 1990, he made his first appearance for the United States national team against Portugal.
In his first season at Willem II, he finished third on the goal-scoring list for the Dutch First Division with 17. He went on to score 49 goals in six seasons there. In the meantime, he became a regular for the United States national team, starting all four games that the United States played in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Most notably, he scored the goal that gave the United States its winning margin against Colombia in the group stage, the first World Cup game won by the United States since 1950.
By 1996, Stewart had moved to NAC Breda, eventually spending more than six seasons there. NAC was relegated in 1999, but Stewart helped the club win the First Division in 2000, thereby earning promotion back to the Eredivisie. During his years at NAC, he also played in all of the United States team's matches at the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cups, becoming one of only five American men to play at three World Cups.
In January 2003, he left the Netherlands to play in Major League Soccer, and was allocated to D.C. United, where he won the MLS Cup in his second season. His scoring numbers did not equal his earlier high standards, as he tallied just four regular season goals and one playoff goal in MLS. He left D.C. after the 2004 season, coming back to the Netherlands and his original club, VVV-Venlo, where he became technical director following his retirement in 2005.
Stewart became the eighth American man to make his 100th international appearance in a 2004 World Cup qualifier against Grenada. His 111 goals as a professional in the Netherlands makes him the highest-scoring American in international club play. He was named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year in 2001.
Post-playing career On May 14, 2006, Earnie Stewart was named technical director of NAC Breda.
He was appointed as AZ Alkmaar's director of football affairs in June 2010. The 41-year-old succeeded Marcel Brands, who left AZ for PSV. Stewart left his post as technical director at NAC Breda by mutual consent.
One of Stewart's long-term goals was to return to the United States as a soccer executive: "One ambition I do have is to go back to the United States and to be of importance to soccer."
Stewart accomplished that goal on October 26, 2015, when the Philadelphia Union officially announced that Stewart would take on the role of sporting director for the club.
On June 6, 2018, Stewart was named general manager of the United States men's national team.
On August 12, 2019, Stewart was promoted to the position of sporting director of the United States Soccer Federation.
On January 26, 2023, the U.S. Soccer Federation announced that Stewart would be departing and would be joining PSV as the new technical director for the club. Stewart remained with U.S. Soccer until February 15, 2023, to assist with a smooth transition to the next sporting director.
Stewart commenced his role at PSV on March 1, 2023. In his first months, he appointed Peter Bosz as the club's new manager whilst signing various players, including Americans Ricardo Pepi, Malik Tillman and Sergiño Dest. During his tenure, PSV returned to the top of the Eredivisie after a six-year championship drought, winning three consecutive titles between 2023–24 and 2025–26. On September 3, 2026, Stewart extended his contract with PSV through the 2029–30 season.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsVVV-Venlo1988–89Eredivisie2731989–90Eerste Divisie3512Total6215Willem II1990–91Eredivisie33171991–923381992–932241993–943271994–9532101995–96183Total17049NAC Breda1996–97Eredivisie2891997–983061998–992871999–2000Eerste Divisie2982000–01Eredivisie2882001–0231102002–03152Total18950D.C. United2003Major League Soccer2112004263Total474VVV-Venlo2004–05Eerste Divisie61Career total474119
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsUnited States199010199100199270199362199471199591199650199771199891199950200084200110520021002003132200440Total10117
Scores and results list the United States' goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Stewart goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Earnie StewartNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 June 13, 1993 Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois, United States 2–4 3–4 Friendly2 August 31, 1993 Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland 1–0 1–0 Friendly3 June 22, 1994 Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California, United States 2–0 2–1 1994 FIFA World Cup4 March 25, 1995 Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas, United States 2–0 2–2 Friendly5 March 16, 1997 Stanford Stadium, Palo Alto, California, United States 3–0 3–0 1998 FIFA World Cup Qualifying6 May 24, 1998 Providence Park, Portland, Oregon, United States 1–0 2–0 Friendly7 June 3, 2000 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C., United States 4–0 4–0 Friendly8 July 23, 2000 Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San José, Costa Rica 1–1 1–2 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification9 August 16, 2000 Foxboro Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States 6–0 7–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification10 November 15, 2000 Barbados National Stadium, St. Michael, Barbados 2–0 4–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification11 February 28, 2001 Columbus Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio, United States 2–0 2–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification12 March 28, 2001 Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano, San Pedro Sula, Honduras 1–0 2–1 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification13 June 20, 2001 Foxboro Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States 2–0 2–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification14 September 1, 2001 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C., United States 1–0 2–3 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification15 2–316 July 6, 2003 Columbus Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio, United States 2–0 2–0 Friendly17 July 26, 2003 Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida, United States 2–2 3–2 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup
See also List of United States men's international soccer players born outside the United States List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
References
External links Stewart to Join NAC Breda Moneyball comes to AZ Alkmaar