John Brooks, 21, emerged as a hero of US soccer Monday night, when he scored a shocking goal leading to USA's 2-1 victory over Ghana in the 2014 World Cup.
Brooks, a reserve defender, scored the winning goal in the 86th minute of the game and earned himself a place in USA soccer history. Brooks entered the game in the second half after Matt Besler suffered a hamstring injury, making him the first substitute in US soccer history to score a goal in the World Cup.
“His passing is amazing, he’s very calm. He’s very tall. We had the feeling he was ready for this,” said US coach Jurgen Klinsmann, praising Brooks.
Born in Germany to a German mother and an American father, John Anthony Brooks, Jr., was a longshot to step foot on the field in the game at all, and as a German-American, he could have been playing for an entirely different country. In fact, he began his professional career playing on the Berlin club team Hertha BSC.
Brooks is proud of his dual nationalities and has an outline of Germany on his left elbow and Illinois on his right – his father is from Chicago.
John Brooks tattoos on elbows — Germany where he was born on one, Illinois where his father is from on the other pic.twitter.com/euzoHwAEGM
— darren rovell (@darrenrovell) June 16, 2014
He is also bilingual and frequently switches off between German and English on his social media accounts.
Such an honor to represent the US in the World Cup! One nation one team! #USMNT #1N1T #JAB25
— John Anthony Brooks (@j_brooks25) May 24, 2014
Not too much is known about Brooks, but he has previously revealed that he has a dog, Cash, and is close with his family. In his US National Team video profile, Brooks showed off photos of his dog, his older sister, his young half-brother and his mother, who he calls “the most important person in my life.”
The win is particularly exciting for the US considering many believed they wouldn’t win any games at all. Their group, which includes Ghana, Portugal and Germany, was even nicknamed the ‘Group of Death.’ US will next face Portugal on Sunday, June 22.
No doubt, all eyes will be on Brooks, who has quickly become the breakout star of the US soccer team. After his legendary goal, Brooks’ Wikipedia page was edited to “John Brooks is a German-American footballer. He is the greatest American since Abraham Lincoln.”
USA breaks the tie: https://t.co/5NAlnA5QNT (Vine: @TopDrawerSoccer) https://t.co/d64xaaqb4e
— Tim McGarry (@mcgarrytim) June 16, 2014
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