Stefan Dimitrov is a Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

n footballer.

Early career in Bulgaria

Dimitrov spent his early career in his native Bulgaria. He signed with the academy of his hometown team, Etar Veliko Tarnovo

FC Etar Veliko Tarnovo

FC Etar is a Bulgarian professional football club based in Veliko Tarnovo. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the East B PFG, the second tier of professional football in Bulgaria....

, and made his debut with Etar's first team at the age of 16. Dimitrov subsequently played four seasons with Etar in the Bulgarian B PFG prior to his move to the United States. He played sparingly for Etar, appearing in 4 league matches during the 2003–04 season and three league matches during the 2004–05 season.

College

When Dimitrov's father won the green card lottery

Diversity Immigrant Visa

The Diversity Immigrant Visa program is a United States congressionally mandated lottery program for receiving a United States Permanent Resident Card. It is also known as the Green Card Lottery. The lottery is administered on an annual basis by the Department of State and conducted under the terms...

, the family relocated to New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

. Dimitrov played with an amateur Bulgarian team in Queens, New York before enrolling in and playing college soccer

College soccer

College soccer is a term used to describe association football played by teams who are operated by colleges and universities as opposed to a professional league operated for exclusively financial purposes...

 for Concordia College

Concordia College, Bronxville

Concordia College is a four-year coeducational liberal arts college located in the village of Bronxville, in Westchester County, New York, United States....

. Dimitrov was the leading scorer in the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer 2008 regular season with 23 goals in 17 games. He was also named to the 2008 Daktronics NCAA Division II Men's Soccer All-America Second Team and named the 2008 East Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Year.

Professional

Dimitrov was signed by Chicago Fire

Chicago Fire (soccer)

Chicago Fire Soccer Club is an American professional soccer club based in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview, Illinois. The team competes in Major League Soccer , the top soccer league in the United States and Canada...

 in March 2009, after being invited to try out with the team by head coach Denis Hamlett

Denis Hamlett

Denis Hamlett is a Costa Rican former professional soccer player. He has also served as an assistant coach and manager in Major League Soccer....

. He made his MLS debut on 13 June 2009, as a late substitute in a game against D.C. United

D.C. United

D.C. United is an American professional soccer club based in Washington, D.C. which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having competed in the league since its inception, in 1996.Over the...

.

Dimitrov was released by Chicago on August 27, 2010. He played for the New York Pancyprian-Freedoms

New York Pancyprian-Freedoms

New York Pancyprian-Freedoms is an American amateur soccer team based in Jamaica, New York, United States. Founded in 1974, the team plays in Region I of the United States Adult Soccer Association, a network of amateur leagues at the fifth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid.The team plays its home...

 in the US Open Cup in 2011, before signing for New York Cosmos U-23

New York Cosmos U-23

New York Cosmos U-23 is an American soccer team based in New York, New York. Founded in 2011, the team is currently playing a schedule of exhibition games in anticipation of their entry into the USL Premier Development League , the fourth tier of the United States soccer pyramid, in 2012.The team...

 in 2011 and was selected as one of the U-23 players to participate in the Paul Scholes

Paul Scholes

Paul Scholes is a retired English footballer, a one-club man who played his entire professional career for Manchester United.Born in Salford, but later moving to Langley, Scholes excelled in both cricket and football in school. He first trained with Manchester United at the age of 14 after being...

 testimonial match between New York Cosmos

New York Cosmos (2010)

The New York Cosmos are an American soccer club based in New York City. The team was formed in August 2010 by a consortium led by English businessman Paul Kemsley, and aspires to become a franchise of Major League Soccer, the top professional soccer league in the United States of America and Canada...

 and Manchester United

Manchester United F.C.

Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...

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External links

• MLS player profile