Penn men's soccer alum Alex Grendi finds a new path post-graduation

Penn men’s soccer has had no shortage of superstars over the past few years.

One such star is Alex Grendi — a 2009 graduate who ranks fourth all-time in assists for the Quakers. An excellent midfielder and forward, Grendi started 63 games for the Red and Blue from 2005-2008 and notched 20 assists over those four seasons.

“He was a fantastic player, one of the best players to come through Penn in my time here,” coach Rudy Fuller said, remembering Grendi fondly. “He was instrumental in us winning the title in 2008.”

After his final season at Penn, Grendi was faced with a conflict: he believed that he had a chance at making it to the MLS, but he did not want to leave college prior to graduation. After discussing his options with Fuller, Grendi decided to pursue professional soccer.

Grendi was selected in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft by the Columbus Crew. Because of a few untimely injuries and a long adjustment period, Grendi lost his spot in the MLS after a year and wanted another chance to prove himself on the pitch.

“The biggest thing for me was after my year with the Columbus Crew and the MLS, I was looking for an opportunity to prove myself somewhere else.” Grendi said.

“I reached out to [Fuller] and my other contacts, no one had an entry into Europe. So there was this huge void there — this was something that meant a lot to me. I wanted to try out and know if I have what it takes to play in Europe but I never got the chance.”

After his experience, Grendi decided to start his own company, AX Soccer Tours, in order to provide American soccer players the chance to play overseas, an opportunity that he himself never had.

Fuller likes Grendi’s work in opening up more opportunities for players to continue their soccer careers.

“Soccer is a global sport. There are more opportunities than just here in the US,” Fuller said.

“I think that it was a market that was not tapped, and Alex found an opportunity and is really taking advantage of it and is opening the doors for American players playing in Scandinavian leagues and other leagues in Europe.”

AX Soccer Tours’ approach to the game is not profound. Grendi emphasized that the company’s strategy is in line with that of German soccer (and United States Men’s National Team) coach Jurgen Klinsmann. Specifically, Grendi believes that the MLS is not necessarily the best path for all players.

“Our philosophy is training players at the highest level possible and having them try Europe. We want the players to play at the highest level possible. And that’s what Jurgen Klinsman is trying to do [even overseas],” Grendi said.

At AX Soccer Tours, Grendi is the managing director. He works to spread the company’s name but he also gets to work with a lot of coaches looking for a place for their players to showcase their abilities. In addition, Grendi’s company helps to situate players in the United Soccer Leagues or the American Soccer League if they are not yet ready to play overseas.

Grendi enjoys the interactions with the players as somebody who never had that chance.

“You could be going to Finland, or Texas, or Florida. Your whole life is going to change for a year or two,” Grendi said. “So there’s definitely excitement, there’s anxiety. You don’t know when it’s going to happen or if it’s going to happen.”

Most of all, even though Grendi’s professional soccer career is over, he relishes seeing these players enjoy the opportunities that he never had and realizes that his work is helping to change peoples’ lives.

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