 Ralston playing for theNew England Revolution in 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1974-06-14)June 14, 1974 (age 50) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Oakville, Missouri, United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | |||||||||||||||||||
| College career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | FIU Golden Panthers | (40) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
| 1996–2001 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 177 | (34) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2009 | New England Revolution | 201 | (42) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | AC St. Louis | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | New England Revolution | 0 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||
| Total | 380 | (76) | ||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2007 | United States | 36 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | AC St. Louis (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2014 | Houston Dynamo (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | San Jose Earthquakes (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | San Jose Earthquakes (interim) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2022– | San Jose Earthquakes (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||
Steve Ralston (born June 14, 1974) is an American formersoccer player and manager who played as amidfielder. He spent most of his playing career inMajor League Soccer with theTampa Bay Mutiny and theNew England Revolution, retiring in 2010 as the league's all-time career leader in assists (135), appearances (378), starts (372), and minutes played (33,143). He also held the U.S. record for professional appearances (412) in 2010.[1] In 2020, Major League Soccer selected Ralston as one of the greatest players in league history.[2]
Ralston served as assistant manager at several teams, including theHouston Dynamo andSan Jose Earthquakes, including a brief stint as the interim head coach at the Earthquakes in 2018.
Ralston was drafted 18th overall in the1996 MLS College Draft by theTampa Bay Mutiny out ofFlorida International University,[3] and quickly established himself as one of the best players in the league, starting 31 matches in the club'sinaugural campaign, scoring seven goals and notching two assists,[4] and concluding the year as the first player in MLS history to win theRookie of the Year Award.[5] He also helped the club lift the first-everSupporters' Shield.[6] In his second season, Ralston started 29 matches and scored five goals, adding 11 assists.[4] He was named to the1997 MLS All-Star team.[6] He started 29 matches in1998, again scoring five goals, and recording eight assists.[4] In1999, Ralston was voted Mutiny Team MVP,MLS Best XI, and won the MLS Fair Play Award.[6] He started all 32 matches for the club, scoring five goals and recording a league-leading eighteen assists.[7][4] In 2000, Ralston was named anMLS All-Star for the second time, won the MLS Fair Play Award for the second time, and finished second in the league in assists, with 17.[8] In total, Ralston played for the Mutiny for six years, leaving only after the team was contracted in2002.[9][10] Ralston departed as the Mutiny as the club's all-time leader in games played (177) and points (130).[citation needed]
On January 11, 2002, Ralston was selected by theNew England Revolution in the2002 Allocation Draft.[11] In hisfirst year with the Revolution, Ralston led the league in assists with 19.[12] He was named MLS Best XI for the second time, and anMLS All-Star for the third time.[13] He helped the team reach theMLS Cup final for the first time, ultimately losing to theLA Galaxy on aGolden Goal in extra time.[14]
Ralston was named an MLS All-Star in2004, and won goal of the week twice - in week 15 and 19.[13] He was subsequently a finalist for MLS Goal of the Year, and was named Revolution Team MVP.[13][15] In2006, Ralston was a finalist for the MLS Fair Play Award.[13] He was again named an MLS All-Star in2007, and led the league in assists, with 14.[16] On July 14, 2007 against theNew York Red Bulls, Ralston surpassed his former teammateCarlos Valderrama to become the MLS all-time leader in assists, with 115.[11][17] In 2007 Ralston also helped the club win its first-ever silverware in the form of the2007 U.S. Open Cup.[18]
In2008, Ralston was named MLS Player of the Week twice - in matchweeks four and five.[13] He was named anMLS All-Star for the sixth time. He also won the Revolution team Golden Boot award, scoring eight goals and recording seven assists.[13] That year he helped the club secure its second-ever piece of silverware, the2008 North American SuperLiga, scoring in the final and converting a penalty during the subsequent shoot-out.[19] In2009 Ralston won the MLS Fair Play Award, and was named Revolution Humanitarian of the Year.[13][20] He suffered a season-ending knee injury in September of the 2009 season.[21]
Ralston's contract with the Revolution ended at the conclusion of the 2009 season,[22] and he left the club to become the first-ever signing of newUSSF Division 2 clubAC St. Louis.[23] Ralston was one of the team's starting midfielders, and an assistant coach to head coachClaude Anelka.[23]
AfterAC St. Louis ran in to financial difficulties, Ralston agreed to leave by mutual consent and immediately joined up with his former clubNew England Revolution.[24]
In Ralston's first appearance back with the New England Revolution, he suffered a left elbow dislocation. In July 2010, he announced his retirement.[25]
Ralston ended his Major League Soccer career as the league's leader in minutes played (33,143), games started (372), appearances (378), and assists (135).[26] In thirteen years in the league, he scored 76 goals and had 135 assists in 378 regular season matches, and added three goals and seven assists in 30 playoff matches.[4][26] He also served as captain for several seasons with New England, from 2007-2009.[26]
Ralston appeared for theUnited States national team 36 times over an 11-year span and scored 4 international goals. His first cap came on January 17, 1997, againstPeru. His last was for the squad that won the2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He was never selected to a World Cup roster.
Ralston had a break out year for the United States national team in 2005 by earning 15 caps. He scored the game-winning goal in a World Cup qualifying match against Mexico on September 3, 2005. The victory for the United States clinched qualification in the2006 FIFA World Cup.[27] Due to a later injury, he was only listed as an alternate for the United States at the World Cup.
In July 2010, Ralston took an assistant coaching job at theHouston Dynamo with his former Mutiny teammateDominic Kinnear.[28][29] On January 6, 2015, theSan Jose Earthquakes announced Ralston would join Kinnear in San Jose and once again serve as his assistant coach.[30]
United States
New England Revolution
Tampa Bay Mutiny
Individual
United States squads | |||||||||||||||||||
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