Chris Wondolowski

Christopher Elliott Wondolowski (born January 28, 1983) is an American soccer player who plays as a forward for San Jose Earthquakes. Nicknamed Wondo, he was MLS's top scorer in the 2010 and 2012 seasons, also being named the 2012 Most Valuable Player, and has become one of the top strikers in Major League Soccer.[2]

"Wondo" redirects here. For the 6ix9ine song, see Dummy Boy.

Chris Wondolowski
Wondolowski warming up at the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup
Personal information
Full name Christopher Elliott Wondolowski[1]
Date of birth (1983-01-28) January 28, 1983
Place of birth Danville, California, United States
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Position(s) Forward
Club information
Current team
 San Jose Earthquakes
Number 8
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2004 Chico State Wildcats 84 (39)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004 Chico Rooks 16 (17)
2005 San Jose Earthquakes 2 (0)
2006–2009 Houston Dynamo 37 (4)
2009– San Jose Earthquakes 342 (162)
National team
2011–2016 United States 35 (11)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of December 4, 2020

A college soccer player for the Chico State Wildcats, he played in 2004 for the Chico Rooks and was drafted to the San Jose Earthquakes in 2005. The team became the Houston Dynamo the following season, and he played a part in their MLS Cup wins in 2006 and 2007 before returning to the re-established Earthquakes in 2009. With 161 goals in Major League Soccer, he is the highest scorer in the competition's history, as well as the only player in league history to score 150 or more regular-season goals.[3] As of September 28, 2019, Wondolowski is also the only player in league history to have scored ten or more goals in ten consecutive seasons.[4] He also holds the record for most MLS goals on the road[5] and MLS game winning goals (both home and away).

A full international since 2011, Wondolowski represented the United States at three CONCACAF Gold Cups – winning the 2013 edition – and also played at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Youth and college

Wondolowski played high school soccer at De La Salle High School in Concord, California, where he earned All-Bay Valley Athletic League first team and all-East Bay first team honors in 2000 and 2001. He was awarded two area "Player of the Year" awards in 2001 by local media. Wondolowski played club soccer for the Diablo Valley Soccer Club (DVSC) and Danville Mustang Soccer Association.

He enjoyed a standout college soccer career at Chico State University, finishing with 39 goals in 84 games. He led the Chico Rooks of the then Men's Premier Soccer League with 17 goals in the 2004 season.[6]

Club career

San Jose Earthquakes (2005)

Wondolowski was drafted in the fourth round of the 2005 MLS Supplemental Draft with the 41st overall pick by the San Jose Earthquakes. Although he made only two MLS appearances for San Jose in 2005, he led the Earthquakes reserve team in scoring with eight goals in 12 games.[7]

Houston Dynamo (2006–2009)
Wondolowski playing for the Dynamo in 2009

Along with the rest of his Earthquakes teammates, he moved to Houston for the 2006 season and once again led the reserve team in scoring, tallying 13 goals in 11 games. He scored his first MLS goal on August 30, 2006 against the Chicago Fire.[8]

In 2007, Wondolowski scored against Pachuca in the semifinal round of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup, although Houston was eliminated in the second leg. Wondolowski scored his first US Open Cup goal in a 3–0 victory against FC Dallas on August 23 of that same year.[9] He scored his second career MLS goal – a tap-in against Chicago – on July 12, 2007.

In 2008 Wondolowski continued to make appearances for the reserve squad as well as the first team in various competitions. He captained the team in its US Open Cup loss against Charleston Battery, converting his shot in the penalty shootout as well.[10]

He scored his fourth career goal for Houston against the New York Red Bulls on May 16, 2009.

Return to San Jose (2009–present)

Wondolowski was traded to the San Jose Earthquakes in exchange for Cam Weaver in June 2009.[11] With the move to San Jose, Wondolowski began to receive more playing time and appeared in 14 games in which he scored 3 goals for San Jose.

Wondolowski had a break-out season in 2010 in which he led Major League Soccer in scoring with 18 goals in 26 matches, leading San Jose into the MLS Playoffs.[12] The 18 regular season goals scored was the highest in the league, and made for Wondolowski to win his first MLS Golden Boot.[13] He scored his first playoff goal with the series winning goal against New York in their playoff game, propelling San Jose to a 3–2 aggregate win.[14]

Wondolowski in September 2010

Wondolowski's first brace of 2011 started in the fifth minute of play against FC Dallas. After receiving a ball in the box, Wondolowski took the ball off a volley with time to turn and punch the shot past a helpless Kevin Hartman. His second goal would come in just the 23rd minute after Dallas was unable to clear the ball on a set piece.[15] He finished the season with 16 goals, tied with Dwayne De Rosario for 1st overall in scoring but lost the Golden Boot on an assists tie breaker.[16]

San Jose signed Wondolowski to a new contract in February 2012.[17] Terms were undisclosed.

Wondolowski was elected to the 2012 MLS All-Star Game versus Chelsea. He was defended by John Terry, and managed to score in the 21st minute. NBC Sports Network aired an episode of MLS 36 following Wondolowski for 36 hours through his arrival in Philadelphia for the All-Star festivities and the game itself. It shows Terry personally complimenting Wondolowski at halftime on his movement, adding that it was a "nightmare" to cover him. On October 6, 2012, Wondolowski became the San Jose Earthquakes' all-time leading goal-scorer at Colorado Rapids, a night where he notched his fourth career hat-trick. That season he also matched Roy Lassiter's MLS record of 27 goals in a season. The conclusion of the regular season also saw Wondolowski become the first and only MLS player so far to win the Player of the Month award four times in a single season, for his performances during the months of April, June, September, and October.[18]

Wondolowski's high scoring rate fell a bit in 2013 with the striker scoring only 13 goals in all competitions, the lowest total since arriving in San Jose in 2009. The low total may have been partially due to the fact that he played the majority of 2013 with a broken foot.[19]

On August 24, 2014, Wondolowski became only the third MLS player to ever score double digit goal totals for five seasons in a row, following the lead of Carlos Ruiz and Juan Pablo Angel.[20] Wondolowski finished the season with 14 goals, leading the San Jose Earthquakes for the fifth consecutive season.[21]

On May 24, 2015, Wondolowski drew a penalty against Orlando City SC at Levi's Stadium and scored his hundredth goal in MLS play. He became only the ninth player in MLS history to achieve this feat.[22]

On September 11, 2016, Wondolowski scored his tenth goal of the 2016 season in a 1–1 home draw with Seattle Sounders FC, achieving his seventh consecutive season with ten or more goals and making him the only player in league history to have accomplished this in over five consecutive seasons.[23]

On July 4, 2017, Wondolowski made his 229th career start for San Jose against Atlanta United FC at Bobby Dodd Stadium, surpassing Ramiro Corrales to take the record for most starts made for the club.[24] His 66th minute tally, assisted by Nick Lima, tied him with Landon Donovan for the league record of most goals scored on the road at 63 each, and also marked the 22nd MLS team scored upon by Wondolowski, leaving only expansion side Minnesota United FC.[25]

Wondolowski wore the number 38 in San Jose's U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal match on July 10, 2017, against the LA Galaxy in honor of teammate Matheus Silva, who nearly drowned the week before while swimming at Lake Tahoe.[26] He scored a brace, both goals assisted by Tommy Thompson, to lead the Earthquakes to a 3–2 victory that advanced them to the Cup semifinals for the first time since 2004 and for only the second time in club history.[27]

Wondolowski became the first player in league history to score 10 or more goals in 8 consecutive seasons on August 19, 2017, after converting an equalizing penalty in the final seconds of stoppage time in a 2–2 home draw against the Philadelphia Union, after Joshua Yaro brought down Shea Salinas in the box.[28] On October 22, 2017, he received his seventh overall and fourth consecutive Team MVP award after finishing the 2017 regular season with 13 goals and 8 assists.[29]

On May 18, 2019, Wondolowski scored four goals against the Chicago Fire at Avaya Stadium to tie and break Landon Donovan's goal-scoring record, scoring 148 goals in his 338th MLS appearance.[30][31]

International career
Wondolowski at a ceremony with the U.S. Navy in June 2014

Following his successful stint with the Earthquakes during the 2010 season which included winning the 2010 MLS Golden Boot, Wondolowski was called up to Winter Training Camp with the United States men's national soccer team. At the conclusion of the three-week camp, his first cap with the national team came in a January 22, 2011 friendly against Chile at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.

On May 23, 2011, Wondolowski was named to the United States roster for the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup competition.

In 2012, Wondolowski was called into the United States' initial 27-man roster for a series of three friendlies and the first two World Cup qualifiers for the U.S. Wondolowski made the 23-man roster but only appeared once as a sub in a friendly 0–0 draw against Canada.

On July 5, 2013, Wondolowski scored his first international goal in a match against Guatemala at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, and four days later, wearing a jersey on which his name was spelled "Wondowlowski", he scored a hat-trick in the first half against Belize at Jeld-Wen Field in Portland, Oregon. He continued his scoring run with a brace against Cuba at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah. On February 1, 2014, Wondolowski added two more goals to his tally, by scoring a brace against South Korea at StubHub Center in Carson, California.

Since the Gold Cup, Wondolowski plays with an extra 'W' on the inside of his shirt when on National Team duty. This happened after scoring a hat-trick against Belize while having an extra W on his shirt by mistake.

In 2017, he was named to the preliminary 40-man roster for the Gold Cup, but was not called up during the tournament.[32] On August 27, 2017, he was called up to the 26-man roster for the World Cup qualifiers taking place on September 2, against Costa Rica, and September 5, against Honduras.[33]

2014 FIFA World Cup

Wondolowski was selected as one of the final 23 players chosen for the 2014 FIFA World Cup to represent the United States.[34] On June 22, 2014, Wondolowski came in as a substitute for Clint Dempsey in the 87th minute during the Group G game against Portugal. On July 1 he came in as a substitute for Graham Zusi in the 72nd minute in the Group of 16 elimination game against Belgium. In the final minutes of normal time in what was then a 0–0 game,[35] Wondolowski failed to direct his shot on the net from just yards out and Belgium won in extra time. "I'm gutted to have let down everyone but especially my teammates," said Wondolowski about the missed opportunity.[36] In extra time Wondolowski nearly set up the game tying goal, but the chance was missed by teammate Clint Dempsey.[37]

2016 Copa América Centenario

Chris Wondolowski was selected as one of the final 23 players chosen for the Copa América Centenario to represent the United States.[38]

Personal life

Chris is the brother of fellow professional soccer player Stephen Wondolowski. He is of half Native American descent through his mother (Janis Hoyt) who was born into the Kiowa tribe from Oklahoma, of which Chris himself is also a member.[39] His tribal name Bau Daigh, pronounced "Bowe Dye", means "warrior coming over the hill".[40] His paternal grandfather arrived in the United States at the age of seven with his family that originated from Warsaw, Poland.[41] He married his wife Lindsey in 2009,[42] and their daughter Emersyn was born on December 23, 2013.[43] Their second daughter Brynlee was born on March 10, 2016.[44]

In 2013, Wondolowski was named to the Division II 40th Anniversary Tribute Team, honoring his time spent at Chico State.[45]

Career statistics

Club

Statistics accurate through November 22, 2020

Club Season MLS MLS Cup Playoffs U.S. Open Cup SuperLiga Champions League Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
San Jose Earthquakes 2005 200010———30
Houston Dynamo 2006 610031———92
2007 16100102031—222
2008 8000104062—192
2009 72—00—10—82
Total 374005160103—588
San Jose Earthquakes 2009 143—00———143
2010 28183110———3219
2011 3016—20———3216
2012 32272010———3527
2013 2911—10—52—3513
2014 2614—————2614
2015 3116—12———3218
2016 3012—————3012
2017 34131042———3815
2018 3410—10———3410
2019 3215—20———3415
2020 22[lower-alpha 1]711———2[lower-alpha 2]1259
San Jose total 34216272134—5221369171
Career total 381166721956015521430179
  1. Includes three appearances and two goals in the MLS is Back Tournament group stage.
  2. Appearances in the MLS is Back Tournament knockout stage.

International goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 July 5, 2013 Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, United States  Guatemala 3–0 6–0 Friendly
2 July 9, 2013 Jeld-Wen Field, Portland, United States  Belize 1–0 6–1 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup
3 2–0
4 3–1
5 July 13, 2013 Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy, United States  Cuba 3–1 4–1
6 4–1
7 February 1, 2014 StubHub Center, Carson, United States  South Korea 1–0 2–0 Friendly
8 2–0
9 April 2, 2014 University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, United States  Mexico 2–0 2–2
10 July 3, 2015 Nissan Stadium, Nashville, United States  Guatemala 4–0 4–0
11 October 7, 2016 Estadio Pedro Marrero, Havana, Cuba  Cuba 1–0 2–0

Honors

Club

Houston Dynamo

San Jose Earthquakes

International

United States

Individual

Records

References
  1. "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. June 11, 2014. p. 32. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  2. Creditor, Avi. "MLS mid-season Awards....and some second-half questions". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
  3. "All-Time Statistics". MLSSoccer.com. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  4. "Sporting Kansas City 2, San Jose Earthquakes 1 2019 MLS Match Recap". Major League Soccer. Retrieved August 29, 2019.
  5. San Jose Earthquakes [@SJEarthquakes] (August 28, 2017). "Absolutely unbelievable. 🔥 Another game, another milestone. Congratulations, @ChrisWondo! ⚫️🔵 #ForwardAsOne" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. http://socceroutsider.com/c/national-premier-soccer-league/2004/%5B%5D
  7. "Chico Statements: CSU, Chico - Rising Star". www.csuchico.edu. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  8. "Dynamo 2, Chicago Fire 2". Houston Dynamo. August 30, 2006. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  9. "Chris Wondolowski". MLSSoccer.com. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  10. "Dynamo make early exit again". Houston Dynamo. July 1, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
  11. BERNARDO FALLAS, Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle (June 9, 2009). "Dynamo send Wondolowski to Earthquakes". Chron.com. Retrieved November 4, 2011.
  12. Wondolowski 2010 MLS Golden Boot Archived November 30, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  13. "MLS Golden Boot winner Chris Wondolowski defies the odds". USA Today. October 26, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  14. Henn, George (November 4, 2010). "San Jose Earthquakes eliminate Red Bulls from MLS playoffs with 3–1 upset victory at Red Bull Arena". NY Daily News. Retrieved October 2, 2014.
  15. Brownlee, Jay (January 2, 2010). "San Jose Earthquakes 2 vs FC Dallas 0 – 3RD Degree – FC Dallas Blog – ESPN Dallas". Espn.go.com. Retrieved November 4, 2011.
  16. "United's De Rosario wins first Golden Boot of his career". MLSsoccer.com. October 23, 2011. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  17. "Wondolowski inks new contract with Earthquakes". sjearthquakes.com. San Jose Earthquakes. February 9, 2012. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  18. Doyle, Matthew (November 5, 2012). "Wondolowski voted Player of the Month for October". MLSSoccer.com. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  19. Almond, Elliot (October 26, 2013). "San Jose Earthquakes beat FC Dallas 2–1 in their final MLS game of the season". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  20. Creditor, Avi (August 25, 2014). "Chris Wondolowski joins rare MLS company with latest scoring feat". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
  21. "Earthquakes announce 2014 Club Award Winners". SJEarthquakes.com. October 23, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  22. "Chris Wondolowski calls 100th goal "surreal" but wishes San Jose Earthquakes could have pulled off win". Major League Soccer. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  23. "Chris Wondolowski extends goal record, but Earthquakes can't keep result". Major League Soccer. September 11, 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  24. Martin Gallegos. "Undermanned Quakes suffer first loss under new coach at Atlanta". The Mercury News. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  25. "Tommy Thompson ends scoring drought in San Jose Earthquakes loss to Atlanta". Major League Soccer. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  26. "FEATURE: Chris Wondolowski to wear '38' jersey tonight vs. LA Galaxy in support of Matheus Silva". San Jose Earthquakes. Retrieved July 10, 2017.
  27. "RECAP: Quakes defeat LA Galaxy 3-2 to advance to U.S. Open Cup Semifinals". San Jose Earthquakes. Retrieved July 10, 2017.
  28. San Jose Earthquakes [@SJEarthquakes] (August 20, 2017). "Mr. Milestone. Congrats to @ChrisWondo on becoming the first player in @MLS history to score at least 10 goals in…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  29. "NEWS: Earthquakes Announce 2017 Club Award Winners". San Jose Earthquakes. October 22, 2017. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
  30. Almond, Eliott (May 18, 2019). "Quakes' Wondolowski passes Donovan as all-time leading scorer in MLS history". The Mercury News. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  31. "Wondolowski breaks Donovan's MLS goals record". ESPN. May 18, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  32. "US Men's National Team Roster: Gold Cup". Major League Soccer. June 3, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  33. "Bruce Arena names 26 players to USMNT roster for World Cup qualifiers". Washington Post. Retrieved August 27, 2017.
  34. Elliott Almond (May 22, 2014). "Wondolowski in, Donovan out for World Cup". San Jose Mercury News.
  35. "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil : Belgium-USA". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. July 1, 2014. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  36. Elliott Almond (July 1, 2014) World Cup: United States' Chris Wondolowski just misses dramatic goal against Belgium San Jose Mercury News
  37. Eldricht Almond (July 2, 2015) Clint Dempsey misses goal on great play in extra time
  38. "KLINSMANN NAMES 23 PLAYER ROSTER FOR HISTORIC COPA AMERICA CENTENARIO". USMNT. May 21, 2016.
  39. "The MNT Blog". U.S. Soccer. Archived from the original on October 10, 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2011.
  40. "Infographic: Chris Wondolowski, Kiowa Soccer Star at the World Cup – ICTMN.com". Archived from the original on June 20, 2014. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  41. "Wondolowski chce grać dla Polski". sport.pl. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
  42. Almond, Elliott (May 23, 2014). "Wondo-ful Life: Chris Wondolowski's fairytale adventure to the World Cup". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  43. Schwab, Matt (February 11, 2014). "Earthquakes star Chris Wondolowski had enjoyable offseason". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  44. "Congrats, Wondo! Chris & Lindsey welcome the newest Wondolowski, Brynlee". San Jose Earthquakes. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  45. "Wondolowski named to DII's 40th anniversary tribute team". chicowildcats.com. California State University. February 15, 2013. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  46. "2019 MLS All-Star Roster". Major League Soccer. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Ramiro Corrales		 San Jose Earthquakes captain
2014–present		 Incumbent
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