Roy Wegerle facts for kids
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | March 19, 1964 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Pretoria, South Africa | ||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker, midfielder | ||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||
| 1980–1981 | Arcadia Shepherds | ||||||||||||
| College career | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||
| 1982–1983 | South Florida Bulls | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||
| 1984 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 21 | (9) | ||||||||||
| 1984 | Arcadia Shepherds | ||||||||||||
| 1984–1986 | Tacoma Stars (indoor) | 59 | (36) | ||||||||||
| 1986–1988 | Chelsea | 15 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 1988 | → Swindon Town (loan) | 7 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 1988–1989 | Luton Town | 45 | (10) | ||||||||||
| 1989–1992 | Queens Park Rangers | 65 | (29) | ||||||||||
| 1992–1993 | Blackburn Rovers | 11 | (4) | ||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | Coventry City | 53 | (9) | ||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Colorado Rapids | 36 | (4) | ||||||||||
| 1997–1998 | D.C. United | 24 | (7) | ||||||||||
| 1998 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 12 | (1) | ||||||||||
| Total | 394 | (114) | |||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||
| 1992–1998 | United States | 41 | (7) | ||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||
| 1996 | Colorado Rapids (interim) | ||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||
Roy Wegerle, born on March 19, 1964, is a former professional soccer player. He also plays golf!
Roy played for the U.S. National Soccer Team 41 times between 1992 and 1998. He was born in South Africa but became a U.S. citizen in 1991. After his soccer career, he became a professional golfer.
As a soccer player, Roy was a striker from 1984 to 1998. He played for famous English teams like Queens Park Rangers, Blackburn Rovers, and Coventry City in the Premier League. He also played for Chelsea, Swindon Town, and Luton Town in the English Football League.
In the United States, Roy played for the Tampa Bay Rowdies, Tacoma Stars, Colorado Rapids, D.C. United, and Tampa Bay Mutiny. He was part of the U.S. team for the 1994 FIFA World Cup and 1998 FIFA World Cup. Roy is one of only two players who played in both the NASL and MLS. The other player is Hugo Sánchez.
Contents
Roy's Soccer Journey
Starting Out in South Africa
Roy Wegerle was born in Pretoria, South Africa. His soccer journey began at Waterkloof Primary School. He quickly showed great talent. Soon, he was invited to join Arcadia Shepherds, a local adult club. His older brothers had also played there for many years.
Playing College Soccer in the U.S.
In 1980, Roy tried out for Manchester United but it didn't work out. So, he decided to play college soccer in the United States. He played for the University of South Florida's team, the South Florida Bulls, in 1982 and 1983. He still holds the school record for most goals in a single season, with 21 goals!
Joining the Tampa Bay Rowdies
The Tampa Bay Rowdies picked Roy in the first round of the 1984 NASL college draft. The NASL was a big league back then. In 1984, which was the league's last year, Roy played 21 games and scored 9 goals. He also helped his teammates score 17 times. He was even named the league's Rookie of the Year!
During his time with the Rowdies, Roy was coached by Rodney Marsh. This connection was very important for Roy's future move to England. After the NASL ended, Roy played indoor soccer for two seasons with the Tacoma Stars. At the University of South Florida, Roy learned a lot from Derek Smethurst, a former Chelsea player. Smethurst helped him get ready for his professional career.
Playing in England: Chelsea and Luton Town
In 1986, Rodney Marsh helped Roy get a tryout in England. While QPR didn't sign him, Chelsea was impressed and offered Roy a contract. However, Roy didn't play much for Chelsea's main team. In March 1988, Chelsea loaned him to Swindon Town for the last seven games of the season.
Later that year, Chelsea sold Roy to Luton Town. At Luton, Roy became one of the team's top scorers. In December 1989, he was sold to Queens Park Rangers for £1 million. Roy did very well at QPR. In the 1990–91 season, he was the third-highest scorer in the First Division. He even won the 'Goal of the Season' award for a goal he scored against Leeds!
Moving to Blackburn and Coventry
Roy continued to play well at QPR until a new manager, Gerry Francis, arrived. Francis decided to sell Roy in March 1992. Roy then joined Blackburn Rovers for £1.1 million. This was a record fee for a Second Division club at the time. He helped Blackburn get promoted to the new FA Premier League in May 1992. But then, Alan Shearer, a famous striker, joined Blackburn. This made it harder for Roy to get a spot in the starting team.
In March 1993, Blackburn sold Roy to Coventry City for £1 million. Even though he had some injuries, Roy played 53 league games for Coventry and scored nine goals. His contract ended at the end of the 1994–95 season.
Back to the U.S. with MLS
In 1996, Roy signed with Major League Soccer (MLS), a new league in the U.S. The league was signing well-known players and assigning them to teams to make sure all teams had good talent. Roy was assigned to the Colorado Rapids. However, he didn't have much success there.
He played for Colorado for a season and a half. Then, in 1997, he was traded to D.C. United. Roy scored four goals in 36 games with the Rapids. He also served as a temporary coach for one game after the main coach was fired. When Roy joined D.C. United, the team was on its way to winning the league championship. While he scored a bit more there, the coach, Bruce Arena, felt he wasn't performing as expected.
Finishing His Career at Tampa Bay Mutiny
Because of this, D.C. United traded Roy to the Tampa Bay Mutiny in April 1998. He played the rest of the 1998 season for the Mutiny, scoring one goal, and then he retired from professional soccer.
Playing for the United States
Roy became a U.S. citizen in 1991 because his wife was American. He played his first game for the U.S. national team on May 30, 1992, against the Republic of Ireland. He went on to play 41 games and score seven goals for his new country.
In January 1994, Roy injured his knee and had several surgeries. But he worked hard and recovered in time to be a very important player for the U.S. team in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. By 1998, his injuries had made it harder for him to play. He had a short comeback before the 1998 FIFA World Cup, but he wasn't as strong as he had been in 1994.
Roy's International Goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | June 3, 1992 | Chicago, Illinois; Soldier Field |  Portugal |
1–0 | 1–0 | 1992 U.S. Cup |
| 2 | June 4, 1994 | Pasadena, California; The Rose Bowl |  Mexico |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 3 | June 18, 1995 | Washington, D.C.; RFK Stadium | Mexico |
1–0 | 4–0 | 1995 U.S. Cup |
| 4 | November 9, 1997 | Vancouver, Canada; Swangard Stadium |  Canada |
2–0 | 3–0 | 1998 World Cup Qualifying |
| 5 | 3–0 | |||||
| 6 | January 24, 1998 | Orlando, Florida; Citrus Bowl |  Sweden |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 7 | February 1, 1998 | Oakland, California; Oakland Coliseum |  Cuba |
1–0 | 3–0 | 1998 Gold Cup |
Roy's Family
Roy is the younger brother of Geoff Wegerle and Steve Wegerle, who also played in the NASL. All three brothers played for the Tampa Bay Rowdies at some point. Steve's son, Bryce Wegerle, also became a professional soccer player.
Life After Soccer: Golf and Media
After retiring from soccer, Roy started trying to become a professional golfer. He also had a short job as a co-host on a TV show called MLS Extratime on ESPN2.
See also
In Spanish: Roy Wegerle para niños
