For 30 years, the Richmond Kickers have entertained. For 30 years, the Richmond Kickers have excelled (well, mostly).
Over these 30 years, the team has taken the field over 700 times. I don’t know the exact number of players who have put on the shirt, but a safe estimate is over 400. These men have scored over 1000 goals for this club, won three league championships, a US Open Cup, and countless other individual accolades.
Kickers players have achieved not only in Richmond, but beyond. They’ve represented their countries not only in World Cup Qualifying, but at World Cups. They’ve won MLS Cups, MVP awards, earned transfers to European clubs, and eventually coached professional clubs and shaped some of the most successful academies in this country.
To celebrate these accomplishments, RiverCity93 is launching a countdown of the Top 30 Richmond Kickers of All-Time. We’ve consulted fans, media, players, and staff to get a wide array of perspectives. And let me tell you this: it wasn’t a clear cut decision. Over 50 players got mentioned as viable options for this list, and making finals cuts was really tough. Do you value longevity at the club more than a short stint with exceptional play? How much does what the player did off the field impact the decision? There’s no way to answer this, and everyone polled brought their own unique perspective.
Over the next couple months, we will be introducing you to our Top 30. Most names you’ll probably know, and if you’re reading this you can probably guess a lot of the names that will show up on the final list. We hope to honor these men who have helped to shape the Richmond Kickers, and share their excellence with the fans and soccer community as a whole.
Will the list be perfect? Of course not, it’s opinion based! Let us know when you think someone’s been overlooked, underrated, or anything else. We hope you enjoy this series as much as we’ve enjoyed working on it the past few months.
