Former Sounders FC forward Eddie Johnson announced his retirement from professional soccer on Sunday, ending the 14-year career of one of the most electric and effective goal scorers in American history.
Johnson, 31, scored 71 goals and added 21 assists with four teams over his 11 seasons in Major League Soccer. Known well in MLS circles for his ability to score goals in bunches with FC Dallas and the then-Kansas City Wizards, Johnson leveraged his early success into a career in Europe that saw him make him stops in England and Greece before he returned to MLS - and joined the Sounders – before the 2012 season.
Johnson enjoyed a career rebirth in Seattle, scoring 23 goals over two seasons with the club. He helped lead them to the postseason each year and was named the MLS Comeback Player of the Year in 2012, when he scored 14 goals and helped lead the club to the Western Conference Championship.
Johnson also scored the winning goal for the Sounders against Tigres de la UANL in the quarterfinal of the 2013 CONCACAF Champions League knockout stage. The 75th-minute goal put the Sounders ahead 3-2 on aggregate and pushed them into the semifinals, making the Sounders the first MLS side to eliminate a Mexican club in the tournament’s history.
His success in Seattle also launched Johnson back onto the radar of the U.S. National Team, and he played an integral part in helping the team qualify for the 2014 World Cup. He scored the game-winning goal against Mexico in the teams’ CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying match on Sept. 10, 2013 in Columbus, Ohio, and also scored the second goal of the USMNT’s 2-0 qualifying win over Panama that same summer in a game played at CenturyLink Field.
Johnson finished his career with the USMNT with 19 goals in 63 appearances, including two appearances at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.
Johnson was traded from Seattle to D.C. United on Dec. 17, 2013, and scored seven goals in his only full season with the club in 2014.
