Brian Span

Brian "Cobi" Span (born February 23, 1992) is a retired American professional soccer player who last played for Swedish club Haninge.

Brian "Cobi" Span

Span with IFK Mariehamn
Personal information
Full name	Brian Matthew Span Jackson[1]
Date of birth	(1992-02-23) February 23, 1992 (age 33)
Place of birth	Somers, New York, United States
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
2003–2010	FC Westchester
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2011	Virginia Cavaliers	41	(12)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2011	Reading United	5	(1)
2012–2013	Djurgårdens IF	14	(1)
2014	FC Dallas	0	(0)
2014	→ Orlando City (loan)	19	(3)
2015–2017	IFK Mariehamn	96	(10)
2018–2021	Västerås SK	96	(10)
2022–2023	Haninge	25	(8)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of January 1, 2023

Club career

Span started out playing for FC Westchester as a youth player at age twelve.^[2] He stayed there for seven years^[3] and then went on to play two years of college soccer at the University of Virginia, scoring 12 goals and registering 8 assists during that time.

During the summer of 2011 he trained in Europe with German club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim and Örebro SK in Sweden.^[4] After his sophomore season that autumn, the winger felt ready to go professional but MLS did not offer him a Generation Adidas contract. Instead, the North Salem native signed a two-year deal with Djurgårdens IF in Swedish Allsvenskan.^[5]

Djurgårdens IF

Span made his debut on May 20, 2012. He came on at the 65th minute, replacing Ricardo Santos, and played the rest of the match.^[6] Three days later he scored his first professional goal in his first game as a starter to equalize 1–1 against Helsingborgs IF.^[7] Span's contract was not renewed following the 2013 season.^[8]

FC Dallas

On January 8, 2014, Span signed a contract with Major League Soccer and was allocated via a weighted lottery with FC Dallas, Chicago Fire, San Jose Earthquakes, New England Revolution and Real Salt Lake participating.^[9] FC Dallas acquired Span on January 9 in the weighted lottery.^[10]

Span was waived by Dallas on February 5, 2015.^[11]

Orlando City

Span was loaned to USL Pro club Orlando City on April 2, 2014.^[12]

International career

While not a recent national team participant, Span was a member of the U17 residency program in Bradenton, Florida.^[13]

In 2020, Span expressed his intention to play for the Costa Rica national team, motivated by his maternal family, who are relatives to Costa Rican legend Juan Cayasso.^[14]

Honors

IFK Mariehamn

• Veikkausliiga: 2016
• Finnish Cup: 2015

Västerås SK

• Division 1 Norra: 2018