Kenneth Scott Cooper Jr. (born October 21, 1984) is an American former

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 ...

player who played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

. He began his soccer career with

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

but failed to break through to the first team. He went on to play for clubs in Portugal, Germany, England, the United States, and Canada.

Early life

Cooper's father,

Kenny Cooper Sr. Kenny Cooper Sr. (born 11 October 1946) is an English former football player and coach. A goalkeeper, he spent ten seasons playing for the Dallas Tornado of the North American Soccer League and eighteen seasons coaching indoor soccer. He wa ...

, played professional soccer as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

in England before moving to the United States to play for

Dallas Tornado The Dallas Tornado was a soccer team based in Dallas, Texas that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1967 to 1981. Of the twelve teams that comprised the U.S. in 1967, the Tornado franchise played the longest–15 seasons. ...

of the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

. Cooper was born in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, and, under the mentorship of his father, he became an outstanding youth player. After retiring from coaching professional soccer, Cooper's father had settled the family in Dallas, Texas, where Cooper attended high school at

Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas (commonly referred to as Jesuit Dallas or Dallas Jesuit, and formerly known as Jesuit High School) is a private, college-preparatory school for young men under the direction of the Society of Jesus a ...

. He was the Dallas area high school player of the year while playing, graduating in 2003.

Club career

Manchester United

While playing with the Dallas Solar 85 Soccer Club in the Dallas Cup, an international youth tournament, Cooper caught the attention of several former NASL players who contacted Jimmy Ryan, Director of Youth Football at

. Ryan had also once played with Cooper's father when they were both with the Tornado. Ryan contacted the Coopers and invited Kenny to England for a trial. The fact that Cooper's father was a native of England helped grease the skids for Cooper as United did not need to acquire a work permit for him. Following a successful week-long trial, United signed him on a free transfer. At the time Cooper had intended to attend

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

, but decided to forgo playing

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

in order to pursue his professional career.

FC Dallas

Cooper signed with

FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). The franchise be ...

on February 6, 2006, and made an immediate impact on the team. He made his first MLS appearance on April 1, 2006, and scored his first MLS career goal helping FC Dallas to a 3–2 victory against the Chicago Fire. Cooper made his first MLS start the following week against

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in 20 ...

on April 8, 2006, scoring the team's first goal in a 2–1 victory. He finished his first MLS season tied for sixth in goals scored with 11 and made 31 appearances. At the start of the 2007 MLS Season, Cooper scored four goals in the first eight games before he suffered a broken right

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...

in a 3–1 win against the

Los Angeles Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began play ...

by a strong tackle from

Tyrone Marshall Tyrone Everton Marshall (born 12 November 1974) is a retired Jamaican footballer and current head coach of FC Cincinnati 2, the reserve team of Major League Soccer's FC Cincinnati. Career Youth and College Marshall moved to the Fort Lauderdal ...

that put him out for a majority of the season. This ended his hopes of playing in the

2007 Copa América The 2007 Campeonato Sudamericano Copa América, known simply as the 2007 Copa América or 2007 Copa América Venezuela, was the 42nd edition of the Copa América, the South-American championship for international association football teams. The c ...

and for the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

. Cooper ended the 2007 season with a total of 12 starts out of 14 appearances, four goals, and two assists. Cooper was linked with a possible move to Cardiff City on July 27, 2008, after the club made a £2,000,000 bid. Norway's Rosenborg bid more than that and also offered a salary of $1.2 million. MLS ultimately rejected both bids and decided to keep him. In the 2008 MLS season, Cooper led FC Dallas with 18 goals and started all 30 games. He was the only FC Dallas player to appear in all regular season games that year. Cooper finished the season tied for the league lead with four game-winning goals. Fourteen of Cooper's 18 goals either tied or gave FC Dallas the lead, while the other four goals helped increase the team's lead. He was named to his first MLS All-Star First XI selection and MLS Best XI team. He earned back-to-back MLS Player of the Week honours for his two-goal performances against the

(4–0 win) on July 27, 2008, and

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

(2–0 win) on August 8, 2008. Cooper was also named the MLS Comeback Player of the Year for 2008.

1860 Munich

On July 31, 2009,

announced that Cooper had been sold to 2. Bundesliga club

TSV 1860 Munich , commonly known as TSV 1860 München (; lettered as ) or 1860 Munich, is a sports club based in Munich. The club's football team currently plays in the 3. Liga, the third tier of German football. 1860 Munich was one of the founding members o ...

. As per league policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. However, German teams do disclose the amounts of transfers, Cooper was sold for $700,000 in 2009 it is known that the contract ran for three years. He scored his first goal for 1860 Munich in his debut on August 9, 2009.

Plymouth Argyle

On January 28, 2010, Cooper left Munich to return to England, signing for

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...

on loan until the end of the 2009–10 season with a view to a permanent move at the end of the season. However, this option was not taken up by the club.

Portland Timbers

On January 13, 2011,

announced that Cooper would not fulfil his contract which had been set to run until June 2012 and would be joining

Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...

on a free transfer. While Timbers technical director

Gavin Wilkinson Gavin Wilkinson (born 5 November 1973) is a former New Zealand footballer who served as general manager and President of Soccer for the Portland Timbers from 2009 to 2022. Prior to this position, Wilkinson was manager of Portland Timbers in th ...

initially cautioned that a deal had yet to be struck, on January 17, 2011, he announced Portland had finally completed Cooper's transfer and that he would be joining the team pending the receipt of his International Transfer Certificate. He scored the first MLS goal for the Portland Timbers in a 3–1 loss on their MLS debut, against

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, la ...

on March 19, 2011. He scored his third goal of the season in a 1–0 win over

. This marked the Timbers first shutout win and snapped Salt Lake's 18-game unbeaten streak.

New York Red Bulls

On January 12, 2012, Cooper was traded to the New York Red Bulls for a first-round

2013 MLS SuperDraft The 2013 MLS SuperDraft was the fourteenth SuperDraft presented by Major League Soccer. The draft took place on January 17, 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Indiana Convention Center. The Colorado Rapids enjoyed returns from the 2013 draft, ...

pick and an undisclosed amount of allocation money. He made his

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

regular season debut with the

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The club was established in October 1994 and be ...

on Sunday, March 11, and scored his first goal for the Red Bulls against

, his former team, at

FC Dallas Stadium Toyota Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium located in Frisco, a suburb of Dallas, Texas, United States. Built and owned by the city of Frisco, the 20,500-seat stadium opened in 2005. Its primary tenants are Major League Soccer club FC Dallas ...

. Cooper was the top scorer for the team during the 2012 MLS Season.

FC Dallas

Cooper was re-acquired by FC Dallas from New York on February 4, 2013, in exchange for allocation money. He appeared in 31 regular-season games during the 2013 season, scoring 6 goals.

Seattle Sounders FC

Having failed to agree to a new contract with FC Dallas, Cooper was due to be made available in the

2013 MLS Re-Entry Draft The two-stage 2013 MLS Re-Entry Draft took place on December 12, 2013 (Stage 1) and December 18, 2013 (Stage 2). All 19 Major League Soccer clubs were eligible to participate. The Stage 1 and Stage 2 Drafts were conducted in the same order as the ...

. However, on 13 December 2013, prior to the draft, Seattle Sounders FC announced that they had acquired the rights to negotiate a contract with Cooper, as well as allocation money, in exchange for midfielder

Adam Moffat Adam John William Moffat (born 15 May 1986) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder and spent the majority of his career playing in the various professional leagues in the United States. After beginning his caree ...

, and signed him to a contract on December 19, 2013. In his first season with the club Cooper helped Seattle in capturing the 2014 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup scoring six goals in four games, including a two-goal, two-assist effort in the semifinals against Chicago on August 13. He was named the U.S. Open Cup Player of the Tournament.

Montreal Impact

On April 12, 2015, Cooper moved to Montreal Impact via MLS waivers. He made only one appearance with the club due to an injury. Cooper had trials with

Orlando City SC Orlando City SC is an American professional soccer club in Orlando, Florida, that competes as a member of the Eastern Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). Orlando City SC began play in 2015 as the 21st franchise in MLS, succeeding the USL ...

Sporting Kansas City Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional Association football, soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and t ...

, and

but no playing contracts were agreed.

International career

After the retirement of

Brian McBride Brian Robert McBride (born June 19, 1972) is an American former soccer player who played as a forward for Columbus Crew, Fulham and Chicago Fire. He is the fifth-highest all-time leading goalscorer for the United States national team. For m ...

, Cooper was considered to be a potential long-term solution at striker for the national team. Cooper got his first cap and first goal for the national team on January 20, 2007, against

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where he scored a goal after coming on near the end of the game. He then appeared in a game against

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

, which was played in his MLS club's home stadium,

Pizza Hut Park Toyota Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium located in Frisco, a suburb of Dallas, Texas, United States. Built and owned by the city of Frisco, the 20,500-seat stadium opened in 2005. Its primary tenants are Major League Soccer club FC Dallas ...

, as a second half sub. He was unable to take part in the 2007

Copa América The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...

after he was sidelined with a broken right

. On November 20, 2008, Cooper got his first World Cup Qualifying start and his first World Cup qualifying-round goal against Guatemala in the final game of the semifinal group stage. On July 18, 2009, Cooper took a boot to the chest from Roman Torres of Panama, resulting in a penalty kick which he took to put the U.S. through to the semifinal round of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Five days later, Cooper scored near the end of the match against Honduras to give the U.S. a 2–0 lead and to put them safely into the final of the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He has a total of 10 international appearances (caps) with 4 goals.

Personal life

Cooper married Molly Grimm in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

on January 7, 2012. Currently, he lives in Charleston where he is involved with youth soccer coaching.

Career statistics

Club

International

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Home Depot Center Dignity Health Sports Park is a multi-use sports complex located on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills in Carson, California. The complex consists of the 27,000-seat Dignity Health Sports Park soccer stadium, the Dignit ...

Carson Carson may refer to: People *Carson (surname), people with the surname *Carson (given name), people with the given name Places ;In the United States * Carson, California, a city * Carson Township, Fayette County, Illinois *Carson, Iowa, a city * ...

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Dick's Sporting Goods Park Dick's Sporting Goods Park, also known as DSG Park, is a soccer-specific stadium located in Commerce City, Colorado that is home to the Colorado Rapids men's professional soccer team. The stadium seats up to 18,061 people for soccer matches, bu ...

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

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2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation — the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (O ...

,

, - , style="text-align:center", 3 , , July 19, 2009 , ,

Lincoln Financial Field Lincoln Financial Field is an American football stadium located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It serves as the home stadium of the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL) and the Temple Owls football team of Temple University. ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

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2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup The 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup was the tenth edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition, and the twentieth soccer championship of North America, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF). It was played from July 3 to 26, 2009 in the United States ...

,

, - , style="text-align:center", 4 , , July 24, 2009 , ,

Soldier Field Soldier Field is a multi-purpose stadium on the Near South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1924 and reconstructed in 2003, the stadium has served as the home of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) since 1 ...

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Honours

Individual *

MLS Best XI The MLS Best XI is an annual acknowledgment of the best eleven players in Major League Soccer. Winners *Players in bold were awarded the Landon Donovan MVP Award for that season. Most appearances by a player The following players have appeared ...

: 2008 * CONCACAF Gold Cup All-Tournament Team:

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Kenny 1984 births Living people American people of English descent American soccer players Soccer players from Maryland Soccer players from Dallas Association football forwards Manchester United F.C. players American expatriate soccer players Expatriate footballers in England Associação Académica de Coimbra – O.A.F. players American expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Expatriate footballers in Portugal Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players English Football League players FC Dallas players Portland Timbers players New York Red Bulls players Seattle Sounders FC players CF Montréal players FC Montreal players United States men's international soccer players TSV 1860 Munich players Expatriate soccer players in Canada American expatriate soccer players in Germany Plymouth Argyle F.C. players 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Major League Soccer players Major League Soccer All-Stars 2. Bundesliga players USL Championship players Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas alumni