Clint Dempsey

Clinton Drew Dempsey (born March 9, 1983) is an American former professional soccer player who is a sports analyst on the television program Soccer on CBS Sports.

He played as a forward and midfielder for Premier League clubs Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur and in Major League Soccer for clubs New England Revolution and Seattle Sounders FC.

Considered one of the greatest American players of all time, he is frequently debated with Landon Donovan for the title.

Dempsey is Fulham's all-time leading Premier League goalscorer (50) and is tied with Donovan for the record of most international goals scored by an American player (57).

Dempsey studied the play of Argentina's national team, especially Diego Maradona, and was heartbroken when the news came to Nacogdoches that Maradona would not be playing in the 1994 World Cup game played in the Cotton Bowl.

He attended Furman University as a health and exercise science major and a key player for Paladins soccer.

On November 27, 1995, Dempsey's 16-year-old sister Jennifer died from a brain aneurysm.

Dempsey was devastated with the family's loss and later explained that this event helped him develop a deeper motivation to pursue soccer in honor of his sister.

He went on to be the captain and high scorer of the Texans and was honored with the MVP of the Tampa Bay Sun Bowl tournament.

A native of Nacogdoches, Texas, Dempsey spent his youth career with the Dallas Texans before joining Furman University's men's soccer team in 2001.

In 2004, he was drafted by the New England Revolution, where he scored 25 goals in 71 appearances.

Dempsey represented the United States at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship and made his first appearance with the senior team on November 17, 2004.

He earned more than 140 caps and scored 57 international goals, making him the nation's fourth-most capped player and tying him with Landon Donovan as the top all-time scorer with 57 goals.

The New England Revolution selected Clint Dempsey eighth overall in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft.

In his rookie season, he started 23 of 24 matches scoring seven goals.

Dempsey helped the Revolution to the Eastern Conference Finals and earned 2004 MLS Rookie of the Year Honors.

He was also named the 2004 Man of the Year by the Midnight Riders.

In 2005, Dempsey contributed ten goals and nine assists in 26 games.

He scored the game-winning goal in the Eastern Conference Final on his way to an appearance in the MLS Cup Final.

In 2006, Dempsey added eight more goals, but missed significant time in the playoffs due to injury.

He came on as a substitute in the MLS Cup Final, but the Revolution lost their second straight final, this time in a penalty shoot-out.

In December 2006, English club Fulham offered MLS $4 million for the transfer of Dempsey, then the largest amount ever offered for an MLS player, and he became another American addition to a Cottagers' squad which included U.S. internationals Brian McBride and Carlos Bocanegra.

In 2007, Dempsey signed for Premier League club Fulham for £2 million.

With Fulham, he was an integral part of the team that were runners-up of the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League He was awarded Fulham Player of the Season for 2010–11 and 2011–12, where he was the club's top scorer for both.

Dempsey represented the United States at four CONCACAF Gold Cups (winning three), helped them to the final of the 2009 Confederations Cup, and scored in each of the three World Cups he attended.

In 2022, Dempsey was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame.

Dempsey was born in Nacogdoches, Texas, and is of Irish ancestry on his father's side.

For much of his childhood, Dempsey's family lived in a trailer park where he and his siblings grew up playing soccer with the complex's large population of Hispanic immigrants.

In his teens, Dempsey maintained these ties playing in a local Mexican-dominated adult league.

His older brother, Ryan, was offered a tryout for the Dallas Texans, an elite youth soccer club, and brought Dempsey, who was noticed and recruited while passing time juggling a ball on the sidelines.

Dempsey became a standout on the team at an early age but had to quit due to financial constraints as his eldest sister Jennifer was becoming a ranked youth tennis player.

Several parents of his teammates with the Texans offered to assist the Dempseys with expenses and travel, allowing him to rejoin the club.

In 2012, Dempsey became the first American player to score a hat-trick in the Premier League.

He is the Fulham's all-time leading Premier League goalscorer with 50 goals.

In 2012, Tottenham signed Dempsey for a fee of $9.6 million, then a record signing for an American.

He scored 12 goals in one season with Tottenham, giving him 72 goals across all competitions for Premier League clubs—the most by an American in a top-tier European league.

He was signed by the Seattle Sounders the following year, and played 115 matches for the club, scoring 47 goals, and leading the club to win the 2014 Supporters' Shield.

During the 2016 season, Dempsey was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat and missed the team's run to the MLS Cup.

He returned the following season.

He announced his retirement from professional soccer in 2018.