Two international matches
Ex-Bundesliga talent ends career at just 25 years old
January 6, 2026 – 7:08 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Sebastian Soto once got a taste of the Bundesliga in Hanover. But his career never really took off. Now the striker is drawing a line in the sand.
Former Bundesliga professional Sebastian Soto has ended his professional career – at just 25 years old. The striker announced this via Instagram.
The American moved from Salt Lake City to Germany in 2018. There he signed a contract with Hannover 96. Soto played primarily for the Lower Saxony U19s, but was also allowed to play in the Bundesliga in his first season. On April 6, 2019, he made his professional debut in the 1-3 away defeat in Wolfsburg under coach Thomas Doll when he came on as a substitute for Marvin Bakalorz after 80 minutes. Two more missions were to follow.
As a result, Soto never really gained a foothold in Hanover. In his second year he was allowed to play twice more in the 2nd Bundesliga with the relegated “Reds”. This is one of the reasons why the attacker moved to England to Norwich City the following summer. A year later he was loaned out to Telstar in the Netherlands, later to the FC Porto second team in Portugal and to FC Livingston – each time with poor success.
This was followed by a final stop at the Austrian club Austria Klagenfurt from 2022. But here too, the former Bundesliga talent failed to find his form. In October 2024, his contract at Wörthersee was terminated. Soto repeatedly had to struggle with various injuries. In his last professional season, a knee injury put him out of action.
The California native also played two games for the USA senior national team during his career. In 2020, Soto was on the pitch for a few minutes in the friendly matches against Panama (6:2) and El Salvador (6:0). Against Panama he scored two goals in just 13 minutes.