Denison Cabral is a retired Brazilian-American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

forward /midfielder who played professionally in the

Continental Indoor Soccer League The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) was a professional indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997. History In the summer of 1989 Dr Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and California Sports, told his executive Vice Pre ...

, National Professional Soccer League and

USISL United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues currently organized are the ...

. He played three games for the

United States national futsal team The United States national futsal team represents the United States at international competitions. It is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and affiliated with CONCACAF. The U.S. Futsal Federation was founded in 1981 and the first ...

at the

2008 FIFA Futsal World Cup The 2008 FIFA Futsal World Cup was the sixth edition of the FIFA Futsal World Cup, the quadrennial international futsal championship contested by the men's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It was the first tournament to use th ...

, scoring one goal for the American team. In 2007 the Brazilian-American participated in his first official

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

event as a member of the US Futsal Men's team in the 2007 Pan American games in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Denison served as the captain of the

United States national futsal Team The United States national futsal team represents the United States at international competitions. It is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and affiliated with CONCACAF. The U.S. Futsal Federation was founded in 1981 and the first ...

in the world cup qualifying tournament

CONCACAF The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football,, ; french: Confédération de football d'Amérique du Nord, d'Amérique centrale et des Caraïbes, . Dutch uses the English name. abbreviated as CONCACAF ( ; typese ...

in Guatemala 2008. Cabral began his career with Sadia F.A. and Palmeiras. In 1994, he moved to the United States to train and perhaps play with a local outdoor team. While in Florida, he saw an indoor game on television. He decided to attend a trial with the

Washington Warthogs The Washington Warthogs were a professional indoor soccer team in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) from 1994 to 1997. They played their home games in the USAir Arena in Landover, Maryland, an arena they shared with the Washington Bulle ...

of the

and gained a contract. Cabral went on to play four seasons with the Warthogs. In the fall of 1995, Cabral attended an open tryout with the

Baltimore Bays The Baltimore Bays were a professional soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland founded in 1967 as one of the ten charter members of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL). When the NPSL and the rival United Soccer Association (USA) me ...

of the

. He impressed the Bay’s coach,

Kevin Healey Kevin Healey is an American soccer coach who took the Baltimore Bays (1993–98), Baltimore Bays to three USISL indoor championships. Healey grew up in Dundalk, Maryland and graduated from Calvert Hall College High School. He attended Loyola Un ...

, enough to gain a contract. Since the Warthogs played a summer indoor season and the Bays played from November through February, this allowed Cabral to move between the two teams without conflict. In his first season with the Bays, Cabral won the USISL indoor championship, scoring five goals in the final and gaining both regular season and playoff MVP awards. Cabral began the 1997–98 USISL I-League season with the Bays. In January 1998, the Bays released Cabral to allow him to sign with the

Baltimore Spirit The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with ...

of the National Professional Soccer League as the Spirit released Jason Dieter in order to allow him to sign with the Bays. That summer the Spirit were renamed the Baltimore Blast. Cabral remained with the Blast until September 2010, when the Blast released Cabral after the team could not come to a contract agreement with him. In November 2004, he injured his right knee, losing most of the season. Then in February 2006, he injured his left knee, again losing most of the season. During his years with Baltimore, Cabral won five championships (2003, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009), was a six-time All Star, and was MVP of the 2003 championship series. Cabral was named the head coach of the Harrisburg Heat prior to the 2016-2017 MASL Season. Cabral lead the Heat to a 10-10 record, and their first playoff appearance in the MASL, being named Coach of the Year in the process. In 2023, the

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The team is a part of the Major Arena Soccer League. The team has won 10 championships since it was founded in 1980. Beginning with t ...

retired jersey #5 to honor Cabral and

Mike Stankovic Mike Stankovic (born November 11, 1956) is a retired Serbian Americans, Serbian-American association football, soccer defender (association football), defender who played professionally in the North American Soccer League (1968–1984), North Ame ...

International

In May 2007, Cabral became an American citizen. He immediately began to play for the

, participating in the 2007 Pan American games in Rio, 2008 COMCACAF in Guatemala, and at the

External links

SportsPlex: Denison Cabral

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cabral, Denison Living people 1974 births American men's soccer players American soccer coaches American men's futsal players Baltimore Bays (1993–1998) players Baltimore Blast (NPSL) players Baltimore Blast (2001–2008 MISL) players Baltimore Blast (2008–2014 MISL) players Baltimore Spirit players Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Brazilian men's footballers Continental Indoor Soccer League players Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) players Major Indoor Soccer League (2008–2014) players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players USISL players Washington Warthogs players Men's association football forwards Men's association football midfielders Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Brazilian emigrants to the United States Harrisburg Heat (MASL) players Major Arena Soccer League coaches Player-coaches Sportspeople from Florianópolis Footballers from Santa Catarina (state)