Brian Schaefer

Brian Schaefer (born April 17, 2002) is an American soccer player who plays for FC Cincinnati 2 in MLS Next Pro.

Early life
Schaefer played youth soccer with the Jacksonville Armada. Schaefer attended Fletcher High School and won the Gateway Conference championship in 2020 and was named the Player of the Year.

College career
In 2020, Schaefer began attending the University of South Florida, where he played for the men's soccer team. On March 6, 2021, he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 victory over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, for his first career collegiate goal, subsequently being named to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll. At the end of his freshman season, he was named to the AAC All-Freshman Team. In 2022, he was named to the All-ACC Second Team and an Academic All-District selection.

Club career
In 2021, he played with the Jacksonville Armada U-23 in the National Premier Soccer League.

In 2022, Schaefer played with Tampa Bay United in USL League Two. In 2023, he played with St. Petersburg FC in USL League Two.

At the 2024 MLS SuperDraft, Schaefer was selected in the first round (27th overall) by FC Cincinnati. After participating in training camp with the first team, he signed a professional contract with the second team, FC Cincinnati 2 of MLS Next Pro, in February. He made his debut on March 17 against Chicago Fire FC II. He scored his first goal on June 15 against Carolina Core FC.