James Sands: who is the USMNT international newly landed at St.Pauli?
A Gold Cup winner with the United States and New York City FC's first-ever academy pro, James Sands has joined FC St. Pauli on loan. bundesliga.com gives you the lowdown on the versatile defensive midfielder joining the Boys in Brown.
Stats correct as of 01 January 2025
James Sands
Age: 24 (born 6 July 2000)
Club: St. Pauli (on loan from New York City FC)
Position: defensive midfielder, defender
Country: USA (13 caps)
Key stats
Born in Rye, New York, Sands joined New York City FC's academy in his mid teens and would later go on to become the club's first-ever homegrown player to turn pro in 2017.
A versatile 6'1" defensive midfielder, Sands is also comfortable operating in central defence, as he did when forming part of the NYCFC team that achieved MLS Cup glory in 2021.
Already a United States U17 regular long before then, Sands was named in the CONCACAF U17 Championship Team of the Tournament as the young Stars and Stripes went all the way to the final in Panama, where they lost out to Mexico.
International success would come some years later when, after making his senior USMNT bow against Haiti at the 2021 Gold Cup as a 21-year -old, Sands got his hands on the trophy after gaining revenge against Mexico in the tournament showpiece.
That preceded a loan move to Rangers, whom the one-time NYCFC Young Player of the Year joined in January 2022. Silverware followed with Scottish Cup success arriving just after the Glasgow giants lost out to Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties in the 2022 UEFA Europa League final.
Returning to parent club New York City FC, Sands brought his appearance tally with the club to 143, before he accepted another loan switch, this time to the Bundesliga and St.Pauli.
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Plays a bit like: Robert Andrich
Exuding calmness deep in the engine room or positioned further back, the versatile Sands is a good reader of the game and is also capable of moving forward to help his team build in attack, making him not all that dissimilar in style to Bayer Leverkusen and Germany international Andrich.
Did you know?
James's twin brother Will Sands currently plays in the MLS for the New England Revolution. His sisters Katherine and Elizabeth, meanwhile, also played soccer for Williams College and Bowdoin College respectively.
What they're saying
"In James we're getting an intelligent player who has a very good understanding of the game and finds constructive solutions under pressure thanks to his sound technique. His defensive anticipation helps him to make lots of interceptions and quickly exert pressure on opponents. He has demonstrated these qualities both in the US and during his spell in Scotland." - St. Pauli coach Alexander Blessin
"James Sands offers an exciting mix of athleticism and footballing ability. Another positive aspect is that he can be deployed both in central holding midfield and central defence. As he has already played at a higher level in Europe, we believe he can quickly acclimatise to the club and the Bundesliga." - Pauli director of sport, Andreas Bornemann
"FC St. Pauli is a club known to soccer fans in New York, too, but I obviously had to familiarise myself with the idea behind the way the team plays football. The officials made a very convincing case about the ambitions the club has and the role I can play. Moving to one of the strongest European leagues is a big challenge for me and one I'm very much looking forward to." - James Sands
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