Ricardo Clark

He scored his only goal of the season in the regular season finale against D.C. United, a 50th minute rocket as part of a 3–2 defeat.

For the second straight season, Clark started both playoff matches for the Metros as they were knocked out in the quarterfinals.

He scored once in 28 total appearances on the year, bringing his total with the club to four goals in 63 games.

Ricardo Anthony Clark (born February 10, 1983) is an American retired soccer player who played as a midfielder.

He appeared for MetroStars, San Jose Earthquakes, Houston Dynamo and Columbus Crew SC in the United States, Eintracht Frankfurt in Germany, and Stabæk in Norway.

Clark also appeared for the United States national team.

At club level, he won two state titles with AFC Lightning and was named as the MVP of the 2000 Adidas ESP Camp.

Clark committed to play college soccer at Furman University, part of a recruiting class ranked fourth in the nation.

Clark played only two collegiate seasons at Furman, making 37 appearances and notching three goals for the Paladins.

In just his second collegiate game, he provided an assist to John Barry Nusum as part of a 3–2 victory over Notre Dame.

Clark suffered through a foot injury during the second half of his freshman season, finishing the year with 15 appearances.

His first goal for Furman had to wait until his sophomore season, during a 4–3 victory in overtime against UNC Greensboro.

That goal came on September 21, 2002; Clark also scored on September 27 against Fairfield and October 27 against South Carolina.

He finished the season with three goals in 22 appearances, and was named as an NSCAA first team all-American.

Clark was also named to the NSCAA all-South Region first team, the College Soccer News all-America first team, and as a Soccer America MVP to conclude the season.

A native of Atlanta, Clark played two years in college at Furman before being drafted second overall in the 2003 MLS SuperDraft by MetroStars.

After two seasons and nearly 100 appearances, he was traded to San Jose Earthquakes.

At international level, Clark appeared for the United States at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship.

Following his sophomore year at Furman, Clark signed a Project-40 contract with Major League Soccer and entered the 2003 MLS SuperDraft, where he was selected second overall by MetroStars.

He stepped immediately into the starting lineup for the Metros, making his professional debut on April 12, 2003, against Columbus Crew.

Clark would go on to set a club rookie record, starting the first 27 games of the season, and making 28 total appearances in MLS play.

In the midst of that stretch, he had a run of three goals in four games: against Chicago Fire on June 28, D.C. United on July 5, and New England Revolution on July 12.

Clark also played a large role for the club in their run to the 2003 U.S. Open Cup Final, where they were defeated 1–0 by Chicago.

After appearing 35 times in all competitions with three goals, Clark was named a finalist for the MLS Rookie of the Year Award; he lost out to Damani Ralph of Chicago.

Clark started his second professional season slowly after suffering a preseason injury; he came off the bench in the season opener against Columbus, but had to wait until the end of April against New England to get his first turn in the starting lineup.

He earned his first senior cap in October 2005 against Panama, and went on to score three goals in 34 caps for his country.

Clark was traded to San Jose Earthquakes on January 14, 2005, in exchange for allocation money and a youth international roster slot.

The trade occurred on the same day as the 2005 MLS SuperDraft, meaning that Clark became one of eight players that joined the Earthquakes on the day.

He jumped immediately into the starting lineup in 2005, making his club debut with a start in the season opener against New England Revolution on April 2.

The franchise moved from San Jose to Houston for the 2006 season, becoming the Houston Dynamo, and Clark followed along.

He spent four seasons with the Dynamo, helping the club win two MLS Cups, before departing for Europe.

Clark represented the United States at two CONCACAF Gold Cups, helped the U.S. to the final of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, and played at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Clark spent three years in Europe, playing for Eintracht Frankfurt and Stabæk, before returning to the United States and the Dynamo midway through the 2012 Major League Soccer season.

He earned his final senior cap in January 2012.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Clark attended St. Pius X Catholic High School.

He is of Trinidadian descent through his father.

He was a two-time state champion and state player of the year with the Golden Lions, winning GHSA titles as a sophomore and senior and State Player of the Year nods as a junior and senior.

His senior season, St. Pius X went 22–1 while Clark was named as a Parade All-American.

He spent the next six years in Houston, departing at the end of 2017 with 304 appearances for the Dynamo across his two spells.

Clark signed as a free agent with Columbus Crew SC, spending his final two professional seasons with the Crew before retiring following the 2019 season.