Ben Bender’s Homecoming: A Maryland Native Returns to Philadelphia Union
After a Decade Away, Bender Returns to Philadelphia Union with Plenty of Experience
Ben Bender is no stranger to the Philadelphia Union organization, having spent a brief time in the academy before the Maryland native returned home to play for local club side Baltimore Armour. After 10 years away from the organization, he returned on May 9, 2025, signing a contract through the 2025 season after being waived by Charlotte FC on April 25.
Bender spent the 2015-2016 season with the Philadelphia Union academy before returning to Maryland. Much has changed within the Union’s organization since Bender’s departure and return, with perhaps the biggest change being the Union’s academy moving from Wayne, Pennsylvania, to Chester at the WSFS Bank Sportsplex. With the move, the Union can now house the entire organization under one roof at the Sportsplex, with both the first and second teams training there. The front office is located at the Union Power Plant, and Subaru Park is just steps away. Everything truly is under one roof now for the Union.
Bender admitted that the long drives from Baltimore to Wayne for the academy, combined with growing pains, were reasons for his short stay, but one thing he’s sure of is that it’s great to be back in Philadelphia now.
“Yeah, it was pretty tough on the drive because, at the time, YSC was in Wayne and King of Prussia area, so it was almost two hours there and back. It was a hard year for me because I was also going through a lot of growing pains. I had Osgood-Schlatter in my knees. I think it just wasn’t the right time, and the drive, like you said, was difficult. But no, it’s great to be back now.”
One of the reasons why it’s great to be back is that it’ll be much easier for friends and family to see Bender at Subaru Park. During his time with Charlotte FC, Bender visited Subaru Park three times. Each time, he had a large contingent of family and friends in a corner cheering him on. Now, being closer to Baltimore, it’ll be easier for them to travel to Chester to support him, something he is extremely grateful for.
“The support is amazing,” said Bender with a smile. “Just being a pretty local guy, only about an hour and 10 minutes away from Philly, growing up in the Baltimore area, having all those people come and tailgate before the games. They go in the corner, and there’s just, like, 50 people chanting, and it’s just really special to hear their support from the stands. So, to have family and friends and fans is definitely awesome.”
In those three visits to Subaru Park, Bender and Charlotte got the better of the Union once, winning 2-0 on June 22, 2024. Bender played 72 minutes for Charlotte in the victory, completing 15 of 18 passes, creating two chances, winning 3 of 4 ground duels, and picking up a yellow card in the 68th minute. In the other two games, Charlotte lost 2-0 and 1-0, with Bender playing 76 and 56 minutes, respectively.
Bender’s Soccer Career in Maryland
Bender, 24, grew up in the Baltimore area, and started playing soccer at a young age, with his dad, Mark, being his first coach. Bender then played for Fewster FC, where he was coached by legendary Maryland Soccer Hall of Famer (Class of 2008) Barry Stitz from U8 to U14. During his time at Fewster FC, Bender won four Maryland State Cups, two USYSA Regional Championships, and played in the U15 USYSA National Championships in 2015.
Bender then played for the Union academy for one season, where he was teammates with former Philadelphia Union first-teamer and Churchville, Maryland, native Cole Turner.
After returning to Maryland, Bender played high school soccer at Calvert Hall High School in Towson, Maryland, where he played four years of varsity soccer under longtime head coach Rich Zinkand. Bender won the 2016 MIAA A Conference Championship his freshman season. His junior season, he was selected as second-team Baltimore Sun All-Metro after scoring nine goals and recording six assists. His senior year for the Cardinals, he scored 14 goals and assisted four. He was named the 2019-20 Gatorade Maryland Boys Soccer Player of the Year, 2019 Allstate All-American, and a Top Drawer Soccer State Star. He finished with 33 goals and 17 assists for Calvert Hall.
During his time at Calvert Hall, he played against future Charlotte FC teammate Andrew Privett, a Fallston, Maryland, native who played for MIAA soccer powerhouse McDonogh. Bender recalls how Privett usually got the better of him and his teammates at Calvert Hall, especially on free kicks, but regardless of results, he enjoyed his time playing in high school.
“He usually got the better of us during my time there,” said Bender with a smile on his face. “But yeah, I wouldn’t say it was, like, a huge rivalry every time we played them, but they definitely had a good team. And he was pretty fantastic on free kicks, especially because he was playing more of an attacking position when he was younger. But now he’s dropped back to center back. So, yeah, always enjoyed my times playing in high school.”
While at Calvert Hall, he played club soccer for Baltimore Armour, where he was coached by former longtime Baltimore Blast player Mike Lookingland. He appeared 16 times for the U16/17 team, scoring five goals. He scored six goals over 20 appearances for the U18/19 squad and was named to the Best XI at the 2017 Sarasota Showcase. During his time with Baltimore Armour, he won three consecutive State Cups.
After Calvert Hall, Bender played soccer at the University of Maryland for a year and a half under legendary college head coach Sasho Cirovski. He started all 11 games his freshman year for Maryland, scoring two goals in 978 minutes. He was named to the All-Big Ten Second Team and All-Big Ten Freshman Team. Bender scored his first career goal against Northwestern University on March 21, 2021, in a 2-1 Maryland win. His sophomore year, he appeared in 18 games (16 starts) for the Terps, scoring seven goals and assisting five in 1,383 minutes. After his sophomore season, he was named United Soccer Coaches First Team All-American, United Soccer Coaches First Team All-Region, Big Ten Midfielder of the Year, First Team All-Big Ten, and two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week.
Bender reflected on his career growing up playing soccer at different stops, thankful for each of his coaches who have helped shape him into the player he is today.
“They’ve meant a lot,” said Bender. “My dad was my first coach. And then another coach, Barry Stitz, who I had for quite some time, probably from U8 to U14. And then Philly for one year, and then I went to Calvert Hall with Rich Zinkhand. I learned a lot of lessons from these guys. They taught me to work hard as a baseline, taught me a lot about the game, and then going to Baltimore Armour with coach Mike [Lookingland], we had some good times there at the Academy showcase and the playoffs. And then, yeah, finally at Maryland before I started in MLS with Charlotte. [I] learned a lot from Sasho. Only spent a year and a half there, but enjoyed my time a lot and grew as a player and a person. Super thankful for all those guys to have the benefit to play under them.”
When people mention states that are soccer powerhouses, they often think of New Jersey, Texas, and California, but rarely Maryland or the wider DMV area. Locally in Harford and Baltimore counties in Maryland, many soccer players have emerged and made it professionally, including Cole Turner (Loudoun United), Jacob Murrell (D.C. United), Jake Dengler (FC Naples), Taylor Calheira (FC Tulsa), and Andrew Privett (Charlotte FC), to name a few. When asked if he believes soccer is overlooked in the DMV, Bender was quick to agree.
“I think it is,” said Bender with a smirk on his face. “I mean, I’ve always thought it was a really top level, whether that’s guys coming from D.C., like I could name a couple other guys like Avionne Flanagan (New Mexico United), Mike Deshields (Charlotte Independence), [Andrew] Privett, like you said. Yeah, a lot of these guys, I think, have a lot of potential, and it’s really competitive. So, yeah, I think it’s slept on.”
Realizing Professional Potential
Each stop along Bender’s soccer journey has been pivotal to his young career, but his time at Maryland was the moment it clicked for him that he had the potential to play professionally.
“I feel like it was closer when I was in college, I felt like I really had the potential,” said Bender. “Growing up, I always knew maybe I was a little bit ahead of some other players, but you never really know until you get closer to the age. And you don’t really know how you’re going to grow and how quick you’re going to be, how fast you’re going to be. If you continue excelling in the pyramid of how pro sports is, it’s so tough; how any business is at the top level. So, I think when I was at Maryland and was playing college, I was like, ‘yeah, I really want to pursue this’.”
After his sophomore season, Bender signed a Generation adidas contract, forgoing his final two college years. On January 11, 2022, Charlotte FC selected him No. 1 overall in the MLS SuperDraft 2022. Despite the pressure of being the top pick, he avoided overthinking it.
“Yeah, I mean, I think there’s always added pressure being the number one pick,” said Bender. “Pro soccer, especially; I guess you could say, like, the farming league for football and baseball is probably more college. But for soccer, Europe and all these other countries are the gold standard. So, being an American guy coming out of college, I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself because there’s people coming from all around the world to play the beautiful game. And that’s why it is the beautiful game. All you have is a ball, and anyone can play it. And that’s how the best players are made growing up. They play on the streets as a kid. And so, I didn’t want to put any extra pressure on myself.”
Three Coaches in Four Years at Charlotte FC
Bender’s four seasons with Charlotte were turbulent, marked by three head coaches with differing styles. Miguel Ángel Ramírez, Charlotte’s first coach, was fired in May 2022 after a 7-9-1 record. Christian Lattanzio, interim then permanent coach, was let go in November 2023 after a 24-24-15 record. Dean Smith joined in December 2023.
“Yeah, it’s pretty crazy to go through three different coaches. It started off really, really well my first two years. My first year, had my first coach for five months, and was going really well. Scored some goals, had some assists, and then that coach, they parted ways with him, and then had a second coach who had some different ideas, found it a little bit difficult to get into the team, and then finally was playing consistently, and then had a really bad injury.”
“And then another coach came in, and then just found it difficult from then on. So, it’s kind of a testament to how pro sports works. It’s up and down, and you have to be level-headed and everything, so I think that’s challenged me to try and remain not too high and not too low. Just work hard every day even when you can’t control the outside circumstances.”
He appeared in 61 games (36 starts) across all competitions for Charlotte, scoring eight goals and providing eight assists in 3,222 minutes.
Fitting into the Union’s System
Now back with the Union, Bender’s tireless work rate off the ball aligns with head coach Bradley Carnell’s emphasis on pressing. His style draws comparisons to a young Brenden Aaronson, known for relentless energy despite a smaller frame. But does Bender agree with the comparison?
“Yeah, I do,” said Bender. “I mean, I actually looked up to him when I was here at Union. When I was with the Juniors, Union Juniors, we went on a couple Qatar trips, and he was always very impressive to me because he was so much smaller than everyone, but he didn’t care. He worked harder than other people, and that’s kind of been my motto. I haven’t been maybe the quickest or the fastest, but I think hard work can make up for that. He’s also very clever in the final third. And so, yeah, think that’s a fair comparison. But I think he’s maybe a bit quicker than me.”
Bender believes his prior experience in the Union’s pressing system will help, but he’s focused on mastering Carnell’s cues.
“I grew up playing the Union system a little bit, and it’s a pressing system. I played a little bit of a 4-4-2 diamond when I first started out in Charlotte, so it’s a little bit similar, it’s not really true wingers,” said Bender. “Definitely think I need work on reactions and timing of the press because it was a little bit different from where I’ve recently come from, it was more of a wait for the other team to make a mistake and don’t jump as soon as possible. But I think I’m only learning now and adapting to the system. It’s all about reactions. And Bradley said to me, we want to be ball thieves. And that stuck out to me. And so, it’s definitely something that I have to train my mind, train my reaction time. And hopefully I can help the team win the ball back and advance quickly and get some goals and assists.”
Full Audio of Interview with Ben Bender - 5/15/25