Chivas USA After spending two years with the
Chicago Fire Reserves in the
USL Premier Development League, he chose to forgo the rest of his college years, signing a
Generation Adidas contract with
Major League Soccer (MLS).
Chivas USA later drafted Guzan with the second overall pick of the
2005 MLS SuperDraft. On November 7, 2007, Guzan was named
MLS Goalkeeper of the Year. During his time at Chivas USA, Guzan was affectionately nicknamed "El Gusano."
Aston Villa teammates prior to a
UEFA Europa League match away at
Rapid Wien in August 2009 On July 11, 2008,
Aston Villa agreed a transfer fee in the region of £600,000, or $1 million, with MLS and Chivas USA to sign Guzan, significantly less than the £2 million agreed to in Aston Villa's failed move for the keeper in January 2008, the difference this time being that Guzan would have been out of his contract at the end of the
2008 season in November, allowing him to sign for Aston Villa during the January transfer window on a free transfer. On August 1, 2008, Guzan was granted a
work permit by the
Home Office, allowing him to complete his move to Aston Villa. He was due to be officially introduced by Aston Villa after competing for the United States at the
2008 Summer Olympics in
Beijing. Guzan was the second American goalkeeper named Brad to be signed during the summer by Aston Villa, following the capture of Premier League veteran
Brad Friedel. Guzan made his Aston Villa debut in September 2008 in the
League Cup at home to
Queens Park Rangers. He made his
European soccer debut in the
UEFA Cup game away at
Slavia Prague on November 6, 2008. The match finished 1–0 to Aston Villa, with Guzan making several saves to keep a clean sheet. His performance led to his manager
Martin O'Neill describing him as a "class goalkeeper in the making." He also started in Aston Villa's first leg against
CSKA Moscow in the round of 32 of the UEFA Cup at Villa Park on February 18, 2009, also later appearing as a substitute against
Liverpool after Friedel's red card. Guzan played in every game that Aston Villa won during their success in the
2009 Peace Cup, against
Atlante,
Porto and
Juventus. He then helped Aston Villa overcome the Italians in the
final, most notably in the penalty shootout during which he saved the attempts of
Vincenzo Iaquinta and
Alessandro Del Piero. The only game that Aston Villa did not win (in the
group stages against
Málaga) was the one in which Guzan did not feature. Despite having a successful pre-season period, Guzan was dropped from the first team in favor of Friedel for Aston Villa's opening game of the
2009–10 season against
Wigan Athletic. On October 27, 2009, Guzan saved four penalties in one match, one in normal time and three more in a penalty shoot-out win over
Sunderland at the
Stadium of Light in the last 16 of the
League Cup. Despite these heroics, however, Friedel replaced him in goal for the
final against
Manchester United.
Hull City (loan) in 2011 On December 31, 2010, Guzan was loaned to
Football League Championship side
Hull City on a one-month loan deal. He made his debut for Hull on New Year's Day 2011, a 1–0 loss to
Leicester City. His second appearance for the club ended on a higher note, as his team went on to win 2–3 at
Portsmouth. He kept his first clean sheet for the club against
Barnsley in a 2–0 win for Hull. On January 25, Guzan extended his loan until the end of February. He made a total of 11 league appearances for Hull before returning to Aston Villa on February 28. Guzan's last game for Hull City came in a 1–2 win away at
Watford on April 9, 2011, after which he returned to Aston Villa. However, he was linked with a return to the club over the summer in a situation similar to that of fellow Aston Villa goalkeeper
Andy Marshall in 2010. On July 16, 2012, Guzan was included in new manager
Paul Lambert's 25-man squad for Aston Villa's tour of the United States and on the same day, the player confirmed via
Twitter that he had renewed his contract and rejoined the club. He made his return for Aston Villa against
Newcastle United putting in a Man of the Match performance in a 1–1 draw at
St James' Park. He kept Villa's first clean sheet of the season in a 2–0 win against
Swansea City and performed well enough to keep his position in the starting lineup. At the end of the
2012–13 Premier League season, he was voted the Aston Villa Player of the Year thanks to his large contribution to Villa's bid to avoid relegation. On July 6, 2013, Guzan was rewarded for his play and signed a four-year contract extension with the Midlands club. On July 18, 2013, Guzan stated that he hoped to give Aston Villa the best years of his career and said that signing a new contract was a "no-brainer." On September 28, 2013, Guzan remarkably earned an assist on an
Andreas Weimann goal in a 3–2 win over
Manchester City in which Paul Lambert praised Guzan's distribution technique for goal kicks. During the
2014–15 season, Guzan was dropped by new Aston Villa manager
Tim Sherwood after a high-profile error against Manchester City gifted
Sergio Agüero the opening goal in a 3–2 defeat on April 25, 2015, with Shay Given taking his place for the final games of the Premier League season. Guzan also missed out on Aston Villa's run to the
2015 FA Cup Final, with Given playing in every round.
Middlesbrough On July 29, 2016, Guzan signed a two-year contract with newly promoted
Premier League club
Middlesbrough, joining on a free transfer, after
Aston Villa were relegated to the
Championship. He made his league debut for the club in a 2–1 win away at
Sunderland.
Atlanta United On January 26, 2017, it was confirmed that Guzan had signed a contract with recently formed
MLS team
Atlanta United on a free transfer, and would return to the
United States following the conclusion of the
2016–17 Premier League season, after nine years in English football. He left
Middlesbrough on June 10, 2017. For the remainder of the
2017 MLS season, Guzan wore the number 1 shirt. Guzan made his Atlanta United debut on July 24, 2017, a 1–0 road victory against
Orlando City SC. During the 2017 MLS season, Guzan started 14 games, posted a 6–1–7 record, and kept eight clean sheets. He led the MLS in save percentage (79.2%) and won MLS Save of the Week three times. In 2018 Guzan won the MLS Cup with Atlanta United after a 2–0 victory over the Portland Timbers. Following the conclusion of the
2025 regular season on October 18, Guzan officially retired from professional soccer at the age of 41, finishing his time in Atlanta with 225 appearances, the most in the club's history, as well as being their longest serving captain. ==International career==