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Chris Henderson

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For other people named Chris Henderson, see Chris Henderson (disambiguation).

Chris Henderson
Henderson playing for Colorado Rapids
Personal information
Full name Christopher Henderson
Date of birth (1970-12-11) December 11, 1970 (age 54)
Place of birth Edmonds, Washington, U.S.
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Position(s) Midfielder
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1989–1990 UCLA Bruins
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1989 Seattle Storm
1994–1995 FSV Frankfurt 15 (2)
1995–1996 Stabæk
1996–1998 Colorado Rapids 87 (12)
1999–2000 Kansas City Wizards 61 (12)
2001 Miami Fusion 25 (3)
2002–2005 Colorado Rapids 91 (19)
2005 Columbus Crew 21 (2)
2006 New York Red Bulls 32 (3)
Total 332 (53)
International career
1990–2001 United States 79 (3)
Medal record
Representing  United States
Winner CONCACAF Gold Cup 1991
Runner-up CONCACAF Gold Cup 1993
Runner-up CONCACAF Gold Cup 1998
Men's Soccer
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Christopher Henderson (born December 11, 1970) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a midfielder. He earned 79 caps with the U.S. national team and part of the U.S. team at the 1992 Summer Olympics. At the time of his retirement from Major League Soccer, he was the league's all-time leader in games played. Henderson served as the technical director of Seattle Sounders FC from 2008 to 2021. He is the chief soccer officer and sporting director of Atlanta United FC.

Club career

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Early career

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Henderson, older brother to Sean Henderson, attended Cascade High School in Everett, Washington. In 1989, he played a single season with the Seattle Storm of the Western Soccer League.

Henderson played two years of college soccer at UCLA, where he helped the team win a national championship his sophomore season. Upon graduating from college, Henderson played for 2. Bundesliga club FSV Frankfurt during the 1994–95 season. He turned down offers from the revived Seattle Sounders and new Seattle SeaDogs to play overseas.[1] After the end of that season, he moved to the Norwegian league, where he trained with Stabæk during the winter. He was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016.

Major League Soccer

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At the end of the Norwegian season, Henderson returned to the U.S. and on March 11, 1996, the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer (MLS) named Henderson as a Discovery Player. He immediately stood out by starting 29 games, scoring three goals and eight assists, and being named the Rapids' team MVP. Henderson spent the next two seasons with the Rapids, registering nine goals and 22 assists over 51 games. He then moved to the Kansas City Wizards for the 1999 season, where he started 29 games, scoring three goals and six assists. Henderson was even better in 2000, scoring nine goals and nine assists as one of the major players in the Wizards team that won the MLS Cup.

He moved to the Miami Fusion for the 2001 season, where he scored three goals and eight assists on a team that went on to win the MLS Supporters' Shield in their final year. Upon Fusion's contraction, Henderson was reacquired by the Rapids in the 2002 MLS Dispersal Draft. Henderson continued to be a threat on the right for the Rapids, scoring 11 goals and seven assists in his first season back. Although he began to show his age in the next two seasons, Henderson continued to be dangerous on the flank. He is the Rapids' all-time leader with 178 games played, 53 assists, and 120 points. Henderson was traded to the Columbus Crew in May 2005 in a three-team deal. After the season, he was dealt again, to the MetroStars — soon renamed New York Red Bulls — for Tim Ward. Henderson played every match of the 2006 season, and by its end he was the league's all-time leader in games played, though he has since lost the title. At the end of the season, however, Henderson was waived. He went on to announce his retirement from professional soccer on December 22, 2006.[2]

International career

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Henderson earned 79 caps with the U.S. national team throughout the 1990s, beginning with a call-up while still at UCLA.[3] He started in a victory over Iceland and quickly established himself on the national team, seeing time in nearly every game leading up to the 1990 FIFA World Cup. While he was on the U.S. roster at the World Cup – and the tournament's youngest player at 19 – he did not enter any of the three U.S. games. Henderson was a member of the U.S. team at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.

Henderson continued to play with the national team until 1998. His last game in the 1990s came in a February 25, 1998 loss to Belgium as the U.S. prepared for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Despite being a critical part of the national team for years, Henderson did not make the World Cup roster. Henderson did not earn his next cap until October 25, 2000. His next, and final cap, came on September 1, 2001. Over his 79-cap national team career, Henderson scored three goals for the United States but never played in a World Cup.

International goals

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No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 22 June 1993 Quito, Ecuador  Venezuela 1–0 3–3 1993 Copa América
2. 16 November 1997 Foxborough, United States  El Salvador 3–0 4–2 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification

Post-playing career

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Following his retirement as a player, Henderson rejoined the Kansas City Wizards as an assistant coach for the 2007 season. On January 24, 2008, it was announced that Henderson would be joining the front office of the Seattle Sounders FC as the technical director.[4] Under Henderson, the Sounders reached the playoffs in 12 consecutive years starting with their expansion season in 2009. They have won four U.S. Open Cups, one Supporters' Shield, and two MLS Cup championships since joining the league.[5]

Henderson was named the chief soccer officer and sporting director of Inter Miami CF on January 18, 2021.[6]

Career statistics

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
FSV Frankfurt 1994–95[7] 2. Bundesliga 15 2 0 0 – – 15 2
Colorado Rapids 1996[8] Major League Soccer 29 3
1997[8] 30 7
1998[8] 28 2
Total 87 12
Kansas City Wizards 1999[8] Major League Soccer 30 3
2000[8] 31 9
Total 61 12
Miami Fusion 2001[8] Major League Soccer 25 3
Colorado Rapids 2002[8] Major League Soccer 28 11
2003[8] 26 4
2004[8] 29 3
2005[8] 8 1
Total 91 19
Columbus Crew 2005[8] Major League Soccer 21 2
New York Red Bulls 2006[8] Major League Soccer 32 3
Career total 332 53
  1. ^ Includes Open Cup

Honors

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United States

Individual

References

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  1. ^ Anderson, Lenny (November 16, 1994). "SeaDogs unveil selves, coach for '95 debut". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. C3.
  2. ^ Nierman, Jonathan (December 22, 2006). "MLS original Henderson retires". MLSnet.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2007. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
  3. ^ Patterson, Nick (December 2, 2022). "Cascade alum Henderson feels 'incredible pride' for U.S. men". The Everett Herald. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
  4. ^ Romero, José Miguel (January 24, 2008). "Henderson named technical director for Seattle's MLS team". The Seattle Times. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
  5. ^ Evans, Jayda (January 18, 2021). "Chris Henderson leaves Sounders to join Inter Miami". The Seattle Times. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  6. ^ Price, Khobi (January 18, 2021). "Chris Henderson named Inter Miami's chief soccer officer, sporting director". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  7. ^ "Chris Henderson » Club matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Major League Soccer: History: All-Time MLS Player Register". Archived from the original on May 14, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  9. ^ All-Star Game flashback, 1997 at MLSsoccer.com
  10. ^ "2000 MLS All-Star Game". MLSsoccer.com. July 29, 2000. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
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