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Carlos Bocanegra (born May 25, 1979) is an American soccer (football) player of Mexican heritage who currently plays for Fulham of the English Premiership. Although primarily a center back at the beginning of his pro career with the Chicago Fire of Major League Soccer, he has seen time at left back with Fulham and the U.S. national team, and has also begun to be utilized as a holding midfielder.

Bocanegra was born in Upland, California^[1][2] (some sources list Alta Loma, CA^[3]; per ussoccer.com, this is where he was raised, not born) and attended Alta Loma High School. After playing college soccer at UCLA, Bocanegra signed a Project-40 contract with MLS and was drafted by the Chicago Fire with the fourth overall pick in the 2000 MLS SuperDraft. He proceeded to win the Rookie of the Year award for a team that made it to the MLS Championship match and won the U.S. Open Cup. Bocanegra went on to become one of the best defenders in Major League Soccer, becoming the first player to be named MLS Defender of the Year twice, doing so in 2002 and 2003. Carlos scored five goals and had eight assists in his four years in MLS. He was signed by Fulham in January of 2004.

Bocanegra played for the United States at the 1999 World Youth Championship. Carlos earned his first cap for the U.S. on December 9, 2001 against Korea Republic. He became a stalwart for the team in 2003, solidifying his position during the 2003 Gold Cup and leading all defenders with 13 appearances during that year. During World Cup qualification in 2005, his role with the national team became less clear, as he bounced between roles at center back and left back, a position that appears to have since been claimed by Eddie Lewis. On May 2, 2006, Bocanegra was named to the United States World Cup roster for the tournament in Germany. Carlos started two of the United States' three games at left back during the 2006 World Cup.

During the offseason, he resides in Fontana, California.

• Carlos Bocanegra career stats at Soccerbase
• How to pronounce Carlos Bocanegra
• Carlos Bocanegra articles on Yanks Abroad

	United States squad - 2006 FIFA World Cup
1 Howard | 2 Albright | 3 Bocanegra | 4 Mastroeni | 5 O'Brien | 6 Cherundolo | 7 Lewis | 8 Dempsey | 9 Johnson | 10 Reyna | 11 Ching | 12 Berhalter | 13 Conrad | 14 Olsen | 15 Convey | 16 Wolff | 17 Beasley | 18 Keller | 19 Hahnemann | 20 McBride | 21 Donovan | 22 Onyewu | 23 Pope | Coach: Arena