Joseph Cannon (born January 1, 1975) is an American former professional soccer player. He spent the majority of his 16 professional seasons playing in Major League Soccer. His 86 MLS career shutouts rank him fourth in league history. He won the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Award twice (2002, 2004), and finished runner-up for the award three times (2000, 2001, 2005).
He also earned two caps in friendlies with the United States men's national soccer team.
Early life and education
Cannon was born January 1, 1975, in Sun Valley, Idaho, to Barbara and Joe Cannon. As a child, he was raised in both Sun Valley, Idaho and Los Altos Hills, California. He attended Hemingway Elementary School in Ketchum, Idaho, before moving permanently to California at age 12.
Cannon attended college at the University of California, Santa Barbara for his first year and was a student-athlete on the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer team. He played 11 games for the Gauchos in 1993 and recorded 3 shutouts. He later transferred to Santa Clara University where he played for the Broncos from 1995 to 1997. He graduated with a degree in political science.
After a season with the Flash, he was signed by Major League Soccer team San Jose Earthquakes. He remained as the starter until 2002, leading San Jose to victory in MLS Cup 2001 and winning his first MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Award in 2002. After an unsuccessful trial with Feyenoord, he signed a six-month contract with RC Lens of France's Ligue 1. He was behind Charles Itandje in the Lens side and was not able to break into the first team.