Tab Ramos
Encyclopedia
Tabaré Ramos Ricciardi, known as Tab Ramos (born September 21, 1966 in Montevideo
, Uruguay
) is a retired U.S. Olympic Team and National Team soccer midfielder
. He played professionally for 13 seasons in Spain, Mexico and the United States. Ramos was the first player to sign with Major League Soccer
, where he played seven years with the MetroStars
. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame
.
to the United States
with his family when he was 11. His father played professional soccer in Uruguay and instilled a love for the game into Tab from an early age. While living in Uruguay, he played for the Union Vecinal Youth Soccer Club in Montevideo.
When his family arrived in the U.S., they settled in New Jersey
where Ramos lived in Harrison
and Kearny
. He attended Saint Benedict's Preparatory School
, the same high school attended by Claudio Reyna
a few years later. In 1982, he became U.S. citizen. He also played for local youth club Thistle FC where he played with future Hall of Fame player John Harkes. Ramos and Harkes played together from their youth, through the U.S. National Team. They were both inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005.
Mifflin, Lawrie. "Doing a Star Turn for the Home Team, at Last", The New York Times
, August 18, 1996. Accessed January 7, 2008. "Giants Stadium is a short trip up the turnpike from Old Bridge, and it's just a few miles from where he grew up, in Harrison and Kearny, towns that have been soccer hotbeds for generations."
He was a two-time high school All-America and the 1983 Parade Magazine National High School Player of the Year. That year, he led St. Benedict's to the New Jersey State Championship. Ramos still holds the New Jersey High School boy's soccer career scoring record of 161 goals, 57 of which he scored his senior year. In 1999, he was named by The Star-Ledger
as one of the top ten New Jersey high school soccer players of the 1980s.
Apart from playing soccer, Ramos also ran indoor track at St. Benedict's (60yrd. dash and 4x100 relay).
In 1984, the New York Cosmos
of the North American Soccer League
drafted Ramos with the 10th pick of the first round, but he chose to go to college instead. The NASL folded about six months later.
where he played NCAA soccer for four years. He was All ACC his four years and a three time All American. He was tied with Bruce Murray for the Atlantic Coast Conference scoring title his senior year. In 1988, he left school briefly to play for the U.S. team at the 1988 Summer Olympics
. However, he returned in 1989 to leave again when he signed with the United States men's national soccer team
. He finally graduated in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts
in Foreign Language (Spanish) and Literature after taking years of correspondence courses.
of the American Soccer League
in 1988. That same year the Tacoma Stars of the MISL selected him with the #1 pick in the draft. He never played a game as he decided to only play the outdoor game. He then moved to the Miami Sharks
for the 1989 season. He was selected as a league All Star that year.
(USSF) to play exclusively for the national team as it prepared for the 1990 FIFA World Cup
. Following the World Cup, USSF began seeking club opportunities for the national team players. On July 27, 1990, USSF agreed to loan Ramos to Spanish Second Division
club Figueres
for the 1990-1991 season. In his first season with the team, he played 38 games, scoring 5 goals. On June 23, 1991, Figueres purchased Ramos' contract from USSF for $250,000. His excellent play continued during his second year with the Figueres, bringing considerable attention from several first division clubs. However, Ramos sabotaged this interest when he was ejected from a Nov 24, 1991 game with Rayo Vallecano
. He was suspended for three games and interest in him dried up until the end of the season. On July 31, 1992, Figueres sold Ramos to fellow Second Division club Real Betis
for $400,000. In the 1993-1994 season, Real Betis won the Spanish Second and earned promotion to the First Division
. While Ramos remained with Betis for the 1994-1995 season, he never played a game in La Liga as he recovered from a skull fracture suffered during the 1994 World Cup game with Brazil.
In 1994, Ramos was chosen as the CONCACAF
Player of the Year.
(MLS). The league had intended to begin play in the fall of 1995, but difficulties forced it to delay its start for a year. Rather than letting players such as Ramos sit idle, the league loaned him and several others to foreign teams. For Ramos, MLS sent him to Mexican
First Division
club Tigres
for the second half of the 1994-1995 season. Ramos became the first American player to appear for the side, seeing time in twelve games. He remained on loan with Tigres for the 1995-1996 season, playing twenty-three games and scoring two goals as the team ran to the 1996 Mexico Cup champsionship, one of two Mexico Cups won by Tigres and its first title in 20 years.
him to the future New York
/New Jersey franchise, eventually known as the MetroStars
.
Following the end of the Mexican season in April 1996, Ramos returned to the United States for the inaugural MLS season in 1996. He would play seven season for the MetroStars, earing All Star recognition in 1996, 1998 and 1999. On May 14, 2002, he announced his intentions of retiring at the end of the 2002 season. When he retired, he was the last original member of the team. Unfortunately, his flashes of brilliance were interrupted by long injury spells, as he never lived up to his potential in a MetroStars jersey. Tab totaled just eight goals and 36 assists in MLS play (ten goals and 39 assists in all competitions).
. However, the U.S. went 0-2-1 and failed to advance out of group play in the champsionship tournament.
soccer team. He had just left high school, but was already known as an up and coming player. However, the International Olympic Committee
had opened the Olympic soccer tournament to professionals for the 1984 games. The U.S., as the host nation, did not need to qualify, but had assembled a team of amateurs, mostly college players. When the IOC announced their decision, USSF dumped most of the team, except for Paul Caligiuri
for professionals.
Ramos had further disappointment a year later when the U.S. failed to qualify for the 1985 FIFA U-20 World Cup, despite a 3-2-2 record in the qualifying tournament. He went on however, to play on the U.S. team which went 0-1-2 at the 1988 Summer Olympics
in Seoul, South Korea.
for the senior U.S. team
. It came on January 10, 1988 against Guatemala
. He soon became an integral part of national team.
After playing for the US in the 1990 FIFA World Cup
, he was named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year
in 1990.
Early in his national team career, the coaches had difficulty finding a role for Ramos. At the time Hugo Perez
was the creative force on the team and for some reason he and Ramos never gelled as midfielders. It seemed that Ramos would disappear during games when Perez was also playing. It wasn't until Perez faded from the national team scene that Ramos became a force and his attacking creativity came to the forefront.
Among his career highlights were his two assists in the June 9, 1993 2-0 World Series of Soccer
victory over England. Later that year, he also a member of the U.S. team which went 1-1-1 at the Copa America
In 1994, Tab once again played in the World Cup, being a starting player for the USA National Team in all its matches. Late in the round of 16, Ramos had to be replaced after suffering a skull fracture
caused by a vicious elbow to the head by Brazilian leftback Leonardo on the first half of the game. USA came to be eliminated of the World Cup in the end of the match, as Bebeto
scored Brazil's winning goal. Tab Ramos was in the hospital for a few weeks where he was visited by a crying and apologetic Leonardo.http://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/08/sports/08iht-ian_0.html
Ramos saw more success in 1995 as a member of the U.S. team when it placed fourth at the Copa America
.
On September 7, 1997, Ramos scored one of the most important goals in US history, against Costa Rica
in a 1-0 World Cup qualifier win. In 1998, he played in his third World Cup. With coach Bruce Arena
looking for veteran leadership for a must-win qualifier against Barbados
, Ramos made his last appearance in a 4-0 US win on November 15, 2000. Two days later he announced his retirement from the national team. He finished his national team career with 81 caps and eight goals.
Ramos also played 8 games, scoring 3 goals, for the U.S. Futsal
team which finished 3rd at the 1989 FIFA Futsal World Championship
.http://www.ussoccer.com/common/stContent.jsp_88-TFAR.html
Ramos was elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame
on the first ballot, in 2005.
He is currently the Head Coach of the USA Men's U-20 National Team
He lives with his girlfriend, Tracey, and their daughter, Sarah, and his two other children from a previous marriage, Alex and Kristen, in Old Bridge Township, New Jersey
.
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
) is a retired U.S. Olympic Team and National Team soccer midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
. He played professionally for 13 seasons in Spain, Mexico and the United States. Ramos was the first player to sign with Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
, where he played seven years with the MetroStars
Metrostars
Metrostar may refer to:*New York Red Bulls, formerly called the "MetroStars", a soccer team from New York*Manila Metro Rail Transit System, popularly called "The Metrostar Express", a part of the metropolitan rail system in Manila...
. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame
National Soccer Hall of Fame
The National Soccer Hall of Fame is a private, non-profit institution established in 1979 that honors soccer achievements in the United States.-History:...
.
Youth and high school
Born in Uruguay, Ramos emigratedEmigration
Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with his family when he was 11. His father played professional soccer in Uruguay and instilled a love for the game into Tab from an early age. While living in Uruguay, he played for the Union Vecinal Youth Soccer Club in Montevideo.
When his family arrived in the U.S., they settled in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
where Ramos lived in Harrison
Harrison, New Jersey
Harrison is a town in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 13,620. The town is a suburb of the nearby city of Newark, New Jersey.-Geography:Harrison is located at ....
and Kearny
Kearny, New Jersey
Kearny is a town in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. It was named after Civil War general Philip Kearny. As of the United States 2010 Census, the town population was 40,684. The town is a suburb of the nearby city of Newark....
. He attended Saint Benedict's Preparatory School
Saint Benedict's Preparatory School
Saint Benedict's Preparatory School is a college preparatory school in Newark, New Jersey, United States. It is an all-boys, secondary school located on a urban campus serving students in the seventh through twelfth grades...
, the same high school attended by Claudio Reyna
Claudio Reyna
Claudio Reyna is a retired American soccer player and the current USSF US Youth Soccer Technical Director. He was the captain of the United States national team before retiring from international football following the USA's exit from the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He is widely considered one of the...
a few years later. In 1982, he became U.S. citizen. He also played for local youth club Thistle FC where he played with future Hall of Fame player John Harkes. Ramos and Harkes played together from their youth, through the U.S. National Team. They were both inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005.
Mifflin, Lawrie. "Doing a Star Turn for the Home Team, at Last", The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, August 18, 1996. Accessed January 7, 2008. "Giants Stadium is a short trip up the turnpike from Old Bridge, and it's just a few miles from where he grew up, in Harrison and Kearny, towns that have been soccer hotbeds for generations."
He was a two-time high school All-America and the 1983 Parade Magazine National High School Player of the Year. That year, he led St. Benedict's to the New Jersey State Championship. Ramos still holds the New Jersey High School boy's soccer career scoring record of 161 goals, 57 of which he scored his senior year. In 1999, he was named by The Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger
The Star-Ledger is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to The Jersey Journal of Jersey City, The Times of Trenton and the Staten Island Advance, all of which are owned by Advance Publications.The Newark Star-Ledgers daily...
as one of the top ten New Jersey high school soccer players of the 1980s.
Apart from playing soccer, Ramos also ran indoor track at St. Benedict's (60yrd. dash and 4x100 relay).
In 1984, the New York Cosmos
New York Cosmos
The New York Cosmos were an American soccer club based in New York City, New York and its suburbs. The team played home games in three stadiums around New York before moving in 1977 to Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, where it remained for the rest of its history...
of the North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League
North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...
drafted Ramos with the 10th pick of the first round, but he chose to go to college instead. The NASL folded about six months later.
College
Ramos attended college at NC StateNorth Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
where he played NCAA soccer for four years. He was All ACC his four years and a three time All American. He was tied with Bruce Murray for the Atlantic Coast Conference scoring title his senior year. In 1988, he left school briefly to play for the U.S. team at the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
. However, he returned in 1989 to leave again when he signed with the United States men's national soccer team
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
. He finally graduated in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Foreign Language (Spanish) and Literature after taking years of correspondence courses.
American Soccer League / MISL
Ramos played with the New Jersey EaglesNew Jersey Eagles
The New Jersey Eagles were an American soccer team founded in 1987 as the Cosmopolitan Eagles. In 1988, they entered the third American Soccer League as the New Jersey Eagles. They folded following the 1990 American Professional Soccer League season....
of the American Soccer League
American Soccer League
The American Soccer League has been a name used by three different professional soccer leagues in the United States. The first American Soccer League was established in 1921 by the merger of teams from the National Association Football League and the Southern New England Soccer League. For...
in 1988. That same year the Tacoma Stars of the MISL selected him with the #1 pick in the draft. He never played a game as he decided to only play the outdoor game. He then moved to the Miami Sharks
Miami Freedom
The Miami Sharks were an inaugural franchise of the third incarnation of the American Soccer League in 1988. The team were renamed the Miami Freedom and joined the American Professional Soccer League in 1990 when the ASL merged with the Western Soccer League...
for the 1989 season. He was selected as a league All Star that year.
Spain
Ramos, and several other national team players, had signed contracts with the United States Soccer FederationUnited States Soccer Federation
The United States Soccer Federation is the official governing body of the sport of soccer in the United States. Its headquarters are located in Chicago, Illinois. It is a member of FIFA and is responsible for governing amateur and professional soccer, including the men's, women's, youth, futsal...
(USSF) to play exclusively for the national team as it prepared for the 1990 FIFA World Cup
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...
. Following the World Cup, USSF began seeking club opportunities for the national team players. On July 27, 1990, USSF agreed to loan Ramos to Spanish Second Division
Segunda División B
Segunda División B is the third level of the Spanish football league system. It is administered by the RFEF. The top two levels are La Liga, also referred to as the Primera División, and the Segunda División. Immediately below Segunda División B is the Tercera Division...
club Figueres
UE Figueres
Unió Esportiva Figueres is a Spanish football team based in Figueres, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1919 and refounded in 2007, it plays in Primera Catalana, holding home matches at Estadio Municipal de Vilatenim, with a seating capacity of 9,472.-History:Figueres was first...
for the 1990-1991 season. In his first season with the team, he played 38 games, scoring 5 goals. On June 23, 1991, Figueres purchased Ramos' contract from USSF for $250,000. His excellent play continued during his second year with the Figueres, bringing considerable attention from several first division clubs. However, Ramos sabotaged this interest when he was ejected from a Nov 24, 1991 game with Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D., often abbreviated to Rayo, is a Spanish football team based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas...
. He was suspended for three games and interest in him dried up until the end of the season. On July 31, 1992, Figueres sold Ramos to fellow Second Division club Real Betis
Real Betis
Real Betis Balompié S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Seville, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 12 September 1907, it currently plays in La Liga, holding home games at Estadio Benito Villamarín....
for $400,000. In the 1993-1994 season, Real Betis won the Spanish Second and earned promotion to the First Division
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
. While Ramos remained with Betis for the 1994-1995 season, he never played a game in La Liga as he recovered from a skull fracture suffered during the 1994 World Cup game with Brazil.
In 1994, Ramos was chosen as the CONCACAF
CONCACAF
The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football is the continental governing body for association football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean...
Player of the Year.
Mexico
On January 3, 1995 Ramos became the first player signed with Major League SoccerMajor League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
(MLS). The league had intended to begin play in the fall of 1995, but difficulties forced it to delay its start for a year. Rather than letting players such as Ramos sit idle, the league loaned him and several others to foreign teams. For Ramos, MLS sent him to Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
First Division
Primera División de México
The Primera División Profesional , known simply as the Primera División, is the top level of the Mexican football league system and is administered by the Mexican Football Federation. It was established in 1943 and as of 2011 has 18 clubs. Up to June 2011, it was divided into three groups competing...
club Tigres
UANL Tigres
Tigres de la Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, often known only as Tigres or UANL, a Mexican football club that plays in the Primera División. It is one of the two professional football teams of the state of Nuevo León. The team plays home games at the Estadio Universitario, located in San...
for the second half of the 1994-1995 season. Ramos became the first American player to appear for the side, seeing time in twelve games. He remained on loan with Tigres for the 1995-1996 season, playing twenty-three games and scoring two goals as the team ran to the 1996 Mexico Cup champsionship, one of two Mexico Cups won by Tigres and its first title in 20 years.
MetroStars
While Ramos was in Mexico, MLS allocated1996 MLS Inaugural Allocations
The Major League Soccer Inaugural Allocations were signed by the league in 1996 and distributed to the ten initial teams prior to the beginning of the first MLS season...
him to the future New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
/New Jersey franchise, eventually known as the MetroStars
Metrostars
Metrostar may refer to:*New York Red Bulls, formerly called the "MetroStars", a soccer team from New York*Manila Metro Rail Transit System, popularly called "The Metrostar Express", a part of the metropolitan rail system in Manila...
.
Following the end of the Mexican season in April 1996, Ramos returned to the United States for the inaugural MLS season in 1996. He would play seven season for the MetroStars, earing All Star recognition in 1996, 1998 and 1999. On May 14, 2002, he announced his intentions of retiring at the end of the 2002 season. When he retired, he was the last original member of the team. Unfortunately, his flashes of brilliance were interrupted by long injury spells, as he never lived up to his potential in a MetroStars jersey. Tab totaled just eight goals and 36 assists in MLS play (ten goals and 39 assists in all competitions).
1983 FIFA U-20 World Cup
Ramos began his national team career playing at the U-20 level in 1982, just after gaining his U.S. citizenship. Ramos was 15 when he scored two goals in regional qualifying for the 1983 FIFA U-20 World CupFIFA U-20 World Cup
The FIFA U-20 World Cup, until 2005 known as the FIFA World Youth Championship, is the world championship of football for male players under the age of 20 and is organized by Fédération Internationale de Football Association...
. However, the U.S. went 0-2-1 and failed to advance out of group play in the champsionship tournament.
Cut from 1984 Olympic team as a 17 year old
In 1984, he was the last player cut from the U.S. 1984 Summer Olympics1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
soccer team. He had just left high school, but was already known as an up and coming player. However, the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
had opened the Olympic soccer tournament to professionals for the 1984 games. The U.S., as the host nation, did not need to qualify, but had assembled a team of amateurs, mostly college players. When the IOC announced their decision, USSF dumped most of the team, except for Paul Caligiuri
Paul Caligiuri
Paul David Caligiuri is a retired American soccer player.Caliguiri's professional career spanned 16 years, during which he played for numerous teams in the United States and Germany, and for the U.S. national team...
for professionals.
Ramos had further disappointment a year later when the U.S. failed to qualify for the 1985 FIFA U-20 World Cup, despite a 3-2-2 record in the qualifying tournament. He went on however, to play on the U.S. team which went 0-1-2 at the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
in Seoul, South Korea.
National teams
It would be another year before Ramos earned his first capCap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
for the senior U.S. team
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
. It came on January 10, 1988 against Guatemala
Guatemala national football team
The Guatemala national football team is the association football team representing the country of Guatemala and is controlled by the Federación Nacional de Fútbol de Guatemala. Founded in 1919, it affiliated to FIFA in 1946, and it is a member of CONCACAF....
. He soon became an integral part of national team.
After playing for the US in the 1990 FIFA World Cup
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...
, he was named U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year
U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year
The U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year is given by the United States Soccer Federation to the American soccer players judged best in the calendar year. It is the longest running major American soccer award...
in 1990.
Early in his national team career, the coaches had difficulty finding a role for Ramos. At the time Hugo Perez
Hugo Perez
Hugo Ernesto Pérez Granados is a former Salvadoran American soccer midfielder.During his fourteen year career, he played professionally in the United States, France, Sweden, Saudi Arabia and his native El Salvador. Although born in El Salvador, he gained his U.S. citizenship as a youth and earned...
was the creative force on the team and for some reason he and Ramos never gelled as midfielders. It seemed that Ramos would disappear during games when Perez was also playing. It wasn't until Perez faded from the national team scene that Ramos became a force and his attacking creativity came to the forefront.
Among his career highlights were his two assists in the June 9, 1993 2-0 World Series of Soccer
World Series of Soccer
The term World Series of Soccer was initially a series of senior international soccer matches held by USSF between 1991 and 1994.In 2005, Major League Soccer re-introduced the name for a series of professional matches in the United States.-1991:...
victory over England. Later that year, he also a member of the U.S. team which went 1-1-1 at the Copa America
Copa América 1993
The 1993 Copa América was the 36th Copa América, CONMEBOL's football tournament for national teams. It was held in Ecuador between June 15 and July 4. All 10 CONMEBOL members took part, but for the first time two nations from outside CONMEBOL were invited to take part in the tournament. Mexico and...
In 1994, Tab once again played in the World Cup, being a starting player for the USA National Team in all its matches. Late in the round of 16, Ramos had to be replaced after suffering a skull fracture
Skull fracture
A skull fracture is a break in one or more of the bones in the skull usually occurring as a result of blunt force trauma. If the force of the impact is excessive the bone may fracture at or near the site of the impact...
caused by a vicious elbow to the head by Brazilian leftback Leonardo on the first half of the game. USA came to be eliminated of the World Cup in the end of the match, as Bebeto
Bebeto
José Roberto Gama de Oliveira, known as 'Bebeto', is a former football forward, a World Champion for Brazil in the 1994 World Cup...
scored Brazil's winning goal. Tab Ramos was in the hospital for a few weeks where he was visited by a crying and apologetic Leonardo.http://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/08/sports/08iht-ian_0.html
Ramos saw more success in 1995 as a member of the U.S. team when it placed fourth at the Copa America
Copa América 1995
The 1995 Copa América football tournament was staged in Uruguay. It was won by Uruguay, who beat Brazil 5-3 in the penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in the final. All 10 CONMEBOL members took part, with Mexico and the USA invited in order to reach 12 teams....
.
On September 7, 1997, Ramos scored one of the most important goals in US history, against Costa Rica
Costa Rica national football team
The Costa Rica national football team, nicknamed La Sele, is the national team of Costa Rica and is controlled by the Federación Costarricense de Fútbol. Costa Rica is the third most successful team in CONCACAF after Mexico and the United States...
in a 1-0 World Cup qualifier win. In 1998, he played in his third World Cup. With coach Bruce Arena
Bruce Arena
Bruce Arena is a former coach of the United States men's national soccer team as well as a former professional soccer and lacrosse player...
looking for veteran leadership for a must-win qualifier against Barbados
Barbados national football team
The Barbados national football team, nicknamed Bajan Pride, is the national association football team of Barbados and is controlled by the Barbados Football Association. It has never qualified for a major international tournament...
, Ramos made his last appearance in a 4-0 US win on November 15, 2000. Two days later he announced his retirement from the national team. He finished his national team career with 81 caps and eight goals.
Ramos also played 8 games, scoring 3 goals, for the U.S. Futsal
Futsal
Futsal is a variant of association football that is played on a smaller pitch and mainly played indoors. Its name is a portmanteau of the Portuguese futebol de salão and the Spanish fútbol de salón , which can be translated as "hall football" or "indoor football"...
team which finished 3rd at the 1989 FIFA Futsal World Championship
FIFA Futsal World Championship
The FIFA Futsal World Cup is the international championship for futsal, an indoor version of association football.The world championship tournament is held every four years, on the even year between two FIFA World Cups. The first event was held in 1989, the year FIFA became the world governing body...
.http://www.ussoccer.com/common/stContent.jsp_88-TFAR.html
Ramos was elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame
National Soccer Hall of Fame
The National Soccer Hall of Fame is a private, non-profit institution established in 1979 that honors soccer achievements in the United States.-History:...
on the first ballot, in 2005.
He is currently the Head Coach of the USA Men's U-20 National Team
He lives with his girlfriend, Tracey, and their daughter, Sarah, and his two other children from a previous marriage, Alex and Kristen, in Old Bridge Township, New Jersey
Old Bridge Township, New Jersey
Old Bridge Township is a Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the township had a total population of 60,456...
.