Former United States men’s national team player Ricardo Clark has been hired as a Seattle Sounders assistant coach, Sounder at Heart has learned. Clark will replace the recently departed Andy Rose on Brian Schmetzer’s staff. The World Cup veteran has spent the last three seasons as the head coach of Vancouver Whitecaps 2.
Interestingly, though, it’s actually the second time Clark has been hired by the Sounders this offseason.
About three weeks ago, Sounder at Heart’s Niko Moreno reported that Clark had been hired as the Tacoma Defiance head coach. But after Rose’s departure, the Sounders shifted gears and offered Clark an opportunity with the first team. The Defiance head coaching job remains open.
Clark brings an extensive playing and coaching career to the team. The 42-year-old midfielder made nearly 450 professional appearances in midfield for teams in Germany and MLS, while also winning 34 caps with the USMNT that included two appearances at the 2010 World Cup.
After retiring in 2020, he joined the Houston Dynamo Academy as a coach before going to the Whitecaps, where he served as an assistant for three years before taking over Whitecaps 2 in 2023. Whitecaps 2 made the MLS Next Pro playoffs in his final two seasons and had the second-most goals scored in the Western Conference last year.
