Dwayne Anthony De RosarioOOnt (born May 15, 1978) is a Canadian former professionalsoccer player, who played as aforward or as anattacking midfielder. A versatileattacker, he played for theToronto Lynx,FSV Zwickau andRichmond Kickers early in his career. He came to prominence in the 2000s playing inMajor League Soccer for theSan Jose Earthquakes,Houston Dynamo,Toronto FC,New York Red Bulls andD.C. United. A four-timeMLS Cup champion, he also won the2011 MLS Most Valuable Player award. He is theninth-leading scorer in MLS history with 104 goals.^[2] He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most decorated Canadian players of all time.^[3]

Dwayne De Rosario
OOnt

De Rosario in 2023
Personal information
Full name	Dwayne Anthony De Rosario
Date of birth	(1978-05-15)May 15, 1978 (age 46)
Place of birth	Scarborough,Ontario, Canada
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder,forward
Youth career
	Scarborough Blizzard SC
	Malvern Majors
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1997	Toronto Lynx	7	(3)
1997–1999	FSV Zwickau	12	(1)
1999–2000	Richmond Kickers	35	(17)
2001–2005	San Jose Earthquakes	108	(27)
2006–2008	Houston Dynamo	78	(24)
2009–2011	Toronto FC	57	(27)
2011	New York Red Bulls	13	(2)
2011–2013	D.C. United	68	(23)
2014	Toronto FC	19	(1)
2018–2019	Mississauga MetroStars (indoor)	11	(8)
Total		408	(133)
International career
1996–1997	Canada U20	8	(5)
1999–2000	Canada U23	11	(3)
1998–2015	Canada	81	(22)
Medal record Representing Canada Men'ssoccer CONCACAF Gold Cup Winner 2000 2002
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Internationally, De Rosario represented theCanadian national team from 1998 to 2015 where he was the country'sall-time leading scorer, with 22 goals in 81 games.^[4] De Rosario is a2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup champion and four-timeCanadian Player of the Year. He is an honoured member of theCanada Soccer Hall of Fame^[5] and Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.

Born inScarborough, Ontario, a suburb ofToronto, De Rosario is the son of Guyanese immigrants to Canada.^[6] He began playing soccer at age three with Scarborough Blizzard SC, later playing with the Malvern Majors.^[1] As a 14-year-old, De Rosario rejected an offer fromA.C. Milan after a successful trial because he was not ready to commit to living in Italy. De Rosario went toWinston Churchill Collegiate Institute in Scarborough.^[7]

De Rosario began his professional career in 1997 at the age of 18, signing with the Toronto Lynx of the A-League. Halfway through the season, however, De Rosario signed with German side FSV Zwickau. After two seasons with Zwickau, De Rosario returned to North America, signing with the Richmond Kickers in 1999. After a slow 1999 season, in which he registered two goals and five assists, De Rosario scored fifteen goals and provided five assists while leading the team to a 20–6–1 record in 2000.

The next season, when CanadianFrank Yallop was named head coach of theSan Jose Earthquakes, De Rosario was one of his first acquisitions. De Rosario proved Yallop's judgment right, scoring five goals and four assists in only 1,072 minutes for the Earthquakes in 2001, playing an important role as the team went on to win theMLS Cup; he scored thegolden goal in the final and was named MLS Cup MVP. De Rosario had similar success in 2002, registering four goals and eight assists in 1,637 minutes, though the Quakes fell short of a repeat. In 2003, a torn ACL hobbled De Rosario for much of the season but he still managed to make a late surge, registering four goals and three assists in only 686 minutes and helping lead the team to a second MLS Cup championship. De Rosario played 1,211 minutes in 2004, scoring five goals, including the 2004MLS Goal of the Year, and three assists.^[8]

In December 2004 De Rosario had a trial withNottingham Forest, but he was not offered a contract by the team.^[9]

In 2005, followingLandon Donovan's departure, De Rosario moved to midfield and promptly led MLS in assists with 13, while scoring nine goals, including the 2005 MLS Goal of the Year – the only player ever to receive that honour in two consecutive years – for a powerful bending free kick in the last regular season game against theLos Angeles Galaxy.^[10] He was named to theMLS Best XI six times (2005–07, 2009–11).^[8]

Due to San Jose's failure to reach a stadium agreement with AEG, De Rosario, along with the rest of his Earthquakes teammates, moved to Houston for the 2006 season. During the2006 MLS All-Star Game in Chicago, De Rosario scored the only goal of the game in the 70th minute to lift the MLS All Stars to a 1–0 win overChelsea, a pre-season friendly for the London club. De Rosario was one of only four players on theMLS team to play the entire match.

De Rosario and the Houston Dynamo captured the2006 MLS Cup title by beating theNew England Revolution on November 12, 2006. The Dynamo won in ashootout, and De Rosario successfully converted his penalty kick. De Rosario signed a contract extension with Houston through 2010, where he was reported to make $325,000 per year. He was later transferred to Toronto before the end of his contract.^[11]

The next year, De Rosario assisted onJoseph Ngwenya's equalizing goal and scored the winning goal of the2007 MLS Cup final, giving Houston a 2–1 win over the Revolution and the Dynamo their second championship. De Rosario was named MLS Cup MVP, the first player ever to win the award twice.^[12]

De Rosario made his third consecutive all-star appearance at the2008 MLS All-Star Game in his home country, when the game was held in Toronto. He scored the decisive goal on a penalty kick in the 69th minute in the MLS All-Stars' 3–2 victory overWest Ham United.

De Rosario was traded toToronto FC on December 12, 2008, in return forJulius James and allocation money, after long speculation that De Rosario would move to his hometown club.^[13] He made his competitive debut for Toronto FC on Saturday, March 21 against theKansas City Wizards, setting upJim Brennan for Toronto's first goal in a 3–2 victory. He scored his first goal for Toronto from a header in a 1–1 draw at BMO Field against FC Dallas.

De Rosario was expected to miss the first two to four weeks of Toronto FC's training camp due to a calf injury obtained in the January 31, 2010, match against Jamaica,^[14] and returned to game action in Toronto's 1–0 preseason win versus theUniversity of South Florida.^[15]

On April 8, 2010, De Rosario was namedcaptain of Toronto FC, the second in the club's history, after the retirement ofJim Brennan.^[16] Two days later, De Rosario scored his first goal of the2010 season, his team's first, in a 4–1 loss to theNew England Revolution.^[17]

On April 15, 2010, De Rosario scored twice in Toronto's 2–1 home opener win against thePhiladelphia Union.^[18] In his next game versus theColorado Rapids, De Rosario scored his fourth goal of the season, and more importantly, became Toronto FC's all-time leading scorer in the regular season.^[19] De Rosario again found the back of the net on April 25 in a 2–0 home win againstSeattle Sounders FC, scoring the first goal, his fifth of the season. UntilO'Brian White scored the second goal for Toronto, De Rosario had previously scored all of Toronto's goals up until that point in the season.^[20] For his efforts in that game, he was awarded the MLS Player of the Week for week 5.^[21] De Rosario was again honoured with the Player of the Week award on week 10 of the MLS season, for his two-goal performance against his former team theSan Jose Earthquakes. De Rosario had scored the second and third goal in Toronto FC's 3–1 win.^[22]

De Rosario continued to have a successful 2010 season for Toronto, culminating in a spot on the MLS All-Star team, scoring a goal in the5–2 loss toManchester United.^[23]

On August 3, 2010, De Rosario scored againstC.D. Motagua in the second leg of Toronto FC'sCONCACAF Champions League preliminary round tie, which at the time, put TFC ahead on 2–1 on aggregate. They would eventually win 3–2 on aggregate.^[24]

On December 28, De Rosario was confirmed to be on trial withScottish Premier League clubCeltic by managerNeil Lennon.^[25] Dwayne and Celtic inquired about the possibility of a short-term loan deal until the MLS season kicked off in March, however new Toronto FC coachAron Winter and the league denied any further negotiations.^[26]

De Rosario scored the first Toronto goal of the 2011 season on March 19 in a 4–2 away defeat toVancouver Whitecaps FC in what was the league's first all Canadian match up. The goal scored in the 20th minute was also the 8000th goal scored in Major League Soccer's history.^[27]

New York Red Bulls acquired De Rosario on April 1, 2011, in exchange for midfielderTony Tchani, defenderDanleigh Borman and a first round2012 MLS SuperDraft pick.^[28] He scored his first goal for New York on a penalty, as the second goal, in a 3–2 loss toChivas USA.^[29]

D.C. United acquired De Rosario on June 27, 2011, in exchange for midfielderDax McCarty.^[30] He scored his first goal for the club against his former clubNew York Red Bulls on his return toRed Bull Arena. On July 30, 2011, his double gave United a 2–0 victory over former club, San Jose. On August 6, 2011, he led United to a 3–3 draw against Toronto F.C. with his hat-trick.All three goals were scored while United played with ten men following an early ejection of goalkeeper Bill Hamid. His second hat-trick was recorded on September 25, 2011, as he recorded all three goals in the span of 9 minutes, setting another MLS record.^[31] De Rosario completed the season with a total of 16 goals and 12 assists over 32 games. Of those, 13 goals and 7 assists were made during his 17 games with United.^[32]

On August 29, 2012, De Rosario scored his 100th MLS goal, in a 2–2 home draw against the Red Bulls. He was the seventh player to reach the milestone.^[33]

After having his option declined by D.C. United, De Rosario returned to Toronto FC on December 18, 2013, after being chosen in the2013 MLS Re-Entry Draft.^[34] He officially signed with the club on January 9, 2014.^[35] It was announced on December 3, 2014, that Toronto had declined the option to renew De Rosario's contract.^[36]

De Rosario announced his retirement on May 10, 2015, and that he would be taking an ambassador role withMaple Leaf Sports & Entertainment.^[37]

In October 2018 De Rosario came out of retirement to sign with the newly formedMASL club, theMississauga MetroStars; he later scored his first goal for the club in the MetroStars's opening match, an 11–3 loss away to theBaltimore Blast.^[38]

De Rosario represented theCanadian U-20 team at the 1997FIFA World Youth Championship, and theCanadian U-23 team at the1999 Pan American Games inWinnipeg. He received his first senior cap forCanada on May 18, 1998, againstFYR Macedonia at the age of 20. He won the2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup with Canada and represented them as well at the2001 FIFA Confederations Cup.

In 2007, De Rosario won the male Canadian Player of the Year award making it three consecutive years receiving the honour. In 2007, he scored five goals in eight games, the most in a year for the CMNT sinceJohn Catliff in 1993.

De Rosario was picked for his firstCONCACAF Gold Cup in four years, after being selected by coachStephen Hart in late May 2011 for the 23-man tournament roster. After a disappointing, 2–0 defeat toUnited States in the opening game of the group Canada failed to exit the group with a 1–1–1 record, they only managed to score two goals both from De Rosario at the penalty spot.^[39] De Rosario continued his goal scoring for with two goals in the opening stage of2014 FIFA World Cup qualification, one came againstSaint Lucia in early September and the other againstSaint Kitts and Nevis in mid November. His goal against Saint Kitts, was his 19th international goal which tied him as Canadian all-time top goal scorer withDale Mitchell.^[40] On December 14, De Rosario was awarded 2011Canadian Player of the Year receiving 47.7% of the vote,Simeon Jackson in second andJosh Simpson finishing in third. This was the fourth time De Rosario was honoured with the award.^[41][42] On September 7, 2012, De Rosario scored his 20th goal for Canada in a2014 FIFA World Cup qualification match againstPanama, making him the all-time leading goal scorer for Canada.^[4]

In De Rosario's final appearance for Canada, he scored a goal in a 1–1 draw withIceland on January 19, 2015.^[43]

De Rosario was the country's all-time leading male goalscorer, with 22 international goals in 81 matches,^[44][45] untilCyle Larin surpassed his record in 2022.^[46]

De Rosario adopted a strict vegan diet in 1994,^[47] but started eating fish ten years later.^[48] He is married to Brandy De Rosario and has four children,^[48] including his sonsOsaze andAdisa, who are also professional soccer players.^[49] His cousin is Olympic hurdlerPriscilla Lopes-Schliep.^[50] He was appointed to theOrder of Ontario in February 2020.^[51] His autobiography 'DeRo: My Life', written withBrendan Dunlop was published in May 2021 by ECW Press.^[52]

In 2012, De Rosario established theDeRo United Futbol Academy.^[53] They entered a team in theLeague1 Ontario women's division beginning in 2018.^[54] In June 2021, the club became an official affiliate team of De Rosario's former clubToronto FC, joiningtheir academy system and re-branded asDeRo TFC.^[55]

As of July 14, 2021^[56]

• 1.^ IncludesCanadian Championship,DFB-Pokal, andU.S. Open Cup.
• 2.^ IncludesCONCACAF Champions' Cup andCONCACAF Champions League.
• 3.^ IncludesMLS Cup Playoffs andNorth American SuperLiga.

Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each De Rosario goal.^[58]

San Jose Earthquakes

• MLS Cup:2001,2003
• Supporters' Shield:2005

Houston Dynamo

• MLS Cup:2006,2007

Toronto FC

• Canadian Championship:2009,2010

D.C. United

• U.S. Open Cup:2013

Canada

• CONCACAF Gold Cup:2000

• MLS MVP Award:2011
• MLS All-Star:2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2012
• MLS Best XI:2005,2006,2007,2009,2010,2011
• MLS Golden Boot:2011
• MLS 100 goals club
• MLS 50/50 Club^[59]
• MLS Goal of the Year Award:2004,2005
• George Gross Memorial Trophy:2009,2010
• Canadian Players of the Year: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011
• Red Patch Boys Player of the Year: 2009^[60]
• Major League Soccer 25 Greatest Players^[61]
• Ontario Sports Hall of Fame inductee, 2019^[62]
• The Order of Ontario appointee, 2020^[51]
• Inducted intoCanada's Sports Hall of Fame, 2022^[63]

• Dwayne De Rosario at theCanadian Soccer Association /Canada Soccer Hall of Fame
• Dwayne De Rosario atMajor League Soccer 
• Dwayne De Rosario at National-Football-Teams.com 
• Dwayne De Rosario onTwitter