Clint Dempsey announces his retirement from pro soccer

By Geoff Baker / The Seattle Times

SEATTLE — After weeks of back-and-forth discussions between his representatives and the Sounders, star forward Clint Dempsey on Wednesday morning announced his retirement at age 35.

Dempsey leaves tied for the team’s all-time goals record with Fredy Montero at 47 and also as one of the greatest players to ever put on a uniform in this country. Last July, playing for the U.S. Men’s National Team, he scored his 57th international goal to tie Landon Donovan for the most ever scored by an American player.

He also scored more English Premier League goals than any American during his seven seasons there, including 17 with Fulham in 2011-12.

“After a lot of thought, my family and I have decided that this is the right time for me to step away from the game,” Dempsey said in a statement released by the Sounders. “I’d like to thank all of the teammates, coaches and support staff that I’ve worked with throughout my career. It has always been my dream to make it as a pro. I’m grateful to have been on this ride. I would like to thank all of the fans who have supported me throughout my career with the New England Revolution, Fulham, Tottenham, Seattle Sounders and the U.S. Men’s National Team. Y’all have always made me feel at home, and it is something that I will always remember.”

The team plans to honor Dempsey before kickoff at Saturday’s home match against Sporting Kansas City.

This year, playing for an undermanned Sounders side, he was limited to a lone regular season goal and hampered by suspension and injury. He’d been dealing for weeks with what the team termed to be a lower back injury, though his diminished speed and inability to find open spaces had made him an increasing liability on a squad that had bolstered its ranks with forward Raul Ruidiaz and a healthier version of midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro.

Dempsey joined the Sounders, to explosive fanfare, in August of 2013 and helped the team capture its only Supporters Shield in 2014 as the top regular season team in Major League Soccer. He appeared in 115 matches, starting 100 of them, and was at his best in big-time affairs, mostly against the arch rival Portland Timbers.

Early in that storied 2014 season, his hat trick at Providence Park helped the Sounders overcome a 4-2 deficit and snag a 4-4 draw. The Portland rivalry also produced his most infamous moments in a Sounders uniform, no more so than during the 2015 U.S. Open Cup, when he tore up a referee’s notebook in a loss that has since become known as the “Red Card Wedding” match.

Dempsey last season scored a stoppage time goal at Portland to steal a 2-2 draw and help extend what became a team record 13-match unbeaten streak for the Sounders that propelled them toward a second straight MLS Cup appearance. It would be the third MLS Cup final Dempsey played in, having dropped the 2005 and 2006 championship matches with the New England Revolution before heading to the English Premier league.

Dempsey also won an MLS Cup with the Sounders in 2016, but didn’t play in the game, having been out since August with an irregular heartbeat that nearly ended his career. Instead, he returned to lead the Sounders with 12 goals in 2017 and a crack at playing in and winning a championship at Toronto.

“I’ve played in a lot of important games in my life,” Dempsey had said before that match. “And I’ll say a lot of cliches. But there’s a reason why cliches are truths. You go out and work hard and leave everything on the field. I think if you do that, you don’t have any regrets. You can go home and look at yourself in the mirror.”

The Sounders lost the final 2-0 to Toronto FC. And ultimately, it was the last truly meaningful MLS game Dempsey played in. His season began poorly this year, hampered by a red card taken early in a March game at Dallas and resulted in him serving a two-match suspension afterward.

Dempsey never did regain his prior form as the Sounders stumbled out of the gate. By the time the team managed a midseason turnaround, now at seven consecutive wins and a 10-match unbeaten streak, he’d already been relegated to bench duty.

A statement Wednesday by MLS commissioner Don Garber said: “Clint Dempsey has been one of the most impactful players in the history of the sport in our country. From his early success with the New England Revolution to his achievements both as a top player in the English Premier League and for the U.S. Men’s National Team, Clint showed us that there are no limits for an American player. His decision to sign with the Sounders in 2013 in the prime of his career sent a message to the global soccer community that MLS was a league on the rise. On behalf of our fans, our players, our clubs and the entire MLS family, I want to congratulate Clint on his retirement and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.”