Rene Ortiz (born April 23, 1969 in

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...

) is a retired Mexican-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 ...

player. He spent most of his playing career in indoor soccer with two seasons in the

Western Soccer Alliance Western Soccer Alliance was a professional soccer league featuring teams from the West Coast of the United States and Western Canada. The league began in 1985 as the Western Alliance Challenge Series. In 1986, it became the Western Soccer Alli ...

and one season in

Major League Soccer 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 ...

. He currently coaches the Mexican national futsal team and the Hilltop High School soccer teams.

Player

Professional

Although born in the United States, Ortiz was raised in

Tijuana, Mexico Tijuana ( ,"Tijuana"
(US) and < ...

. While in Mexico, he played for several youth clubs including Tecolatlan of the Major League of Tijuana. In 1985, he played for Atletico Tijuana in the Mexican Third Division. He returned to the United States as a teenager and attended

Southwest Senior High School Southwest Senior High (SOH), in San Diego, California, United States, is a high school established in 1975. It was built on the site of a small railroad yard owned by the Southern Pacific Railroad along the original San Diego-Tijuana line. It exis ...

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

for one year. He played one season of high school soccer in 1987, scoring at such a high rate that the

San Diego Sockers San Diego Sockers may refer to: *San Diego Sockers (1978–1996), a soccer team in the North American Soccer League *San Diego Sockers (2001–2004), a soccer team in the World Indoor Soccer League and second Major Indoor Soccer League *San Diego S ...

drafted him selected him in the 1987 Major Indoor Soccer League draft. He played three indoor winter seasons with the Sockers, winning the three consecutive championships. In the summer of 1988 and 1989, he played for the

San Diego Nomads Nomads Soccer Club (formerly San Diego Nomads) is an American soccer club based in San Diego, California. From 1986 to 1990, the club fielded a professional senior team, but has since operated as an amateur and youth club. History The Nomads wer ...

of the outdoor

, winning the 1989 WSA championship. In 1990, he moved to the

Milwaukee Wave The Milwaukee Wave is an American professional indoor soccer team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1984, they have been the oldest continuously operating professional soccer team in the United States and are seven-time league champions, m ...

in the National Professional Soccer League. In 1993, the Sockers moved to a new league, 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 ...

which played a summer indoor schedule. At the end of the 1992–1993 NPSL season, Ortiz signed with the Sockers for the 1993 CISL season, returning to the Wave for the 1993–1994 NPSL season. Ortiz returned to the Sockers for the 1994 and 1995 seasons. In February 1996, the

Dallas Burn Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

selected Ortiz in the seventh round (63rd overall) in the

1996 MLS Inaugural Player Draft The MLS Inaugural Player Draft, held before Major League Soccer 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 State ...

. In the fall of 1996, he was loaned for the winter to the

Cincinnati Silverbacks The Cincinnati Silverbacks was an indoor soccer club based in Cincinnati, Ohio that competed in the National Professional Soccer League. History They performed under the leadership of All-Star goalkeeper Carlos Pena. Other star players include ...

of the NPSL where he sustained a serious knee injury. In the summer of 1997, he played for the Monterrey La Raza in the CISL. The CISL collapsed at the end of the season and Ortiz moved to the

Arizona Thunder The Arizona Thunder was a professional indoor soccer team based in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1997, the team was a member of the Premier Soccer Alliance. In 1998, the alliance, with some additional teams, reconstituted itself as the World Indoor Socce ...

of the

World Indoor Soccer League The World Indoor Soccer League (WISL) was a United States-based indoor soccer league that existed from 1998 to 2001 and consisted of nine teams. History After the demise of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, four of its teams decided to create ...

. He retired when the Thunder folded in 2000.

National team

In 1995, Ortiz earned five

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

, scoring one goal, with 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 ...

as the team took fourth place at the

Futsal Mundialito The Futsal Mundialito is an international futsal competition of the same kind of the FIFA Futsal World Cup but with invited nations similar to the Grand Prix de Futsal. It was first held in 1994. Results Medal count Participating nations ;Legen ...

.All Time Player Register
/ref> In 1996, he played for the

United States national beach soccer team The United States men's national beach soccer team represents the United States in international beach soccer competitions and is controlled by the USSF, the governing body for soccer in the United States. History Early years The sport of be ...

which finished fourth at the

Beach Soccer World Cup 1996 The 1996 Beach Soccer World Championships was the second edition of the '' Beach Soccer World Championships'', the most prestigious competition in international beach soccer contested by men's national teams until 2005, when the competition was th ...

Coach

Through his extensive playing career, Ortiz managed to establish his coaching career. In 1992, he began his coaching career with the Germantown High School soccer team in

Germantown, Wisconsin Germantown is a village in Washington County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 19,749 at the 2010 census. The village surrounds the Town of Germantown. In July 2007, Germantown was ranked the 30th most appealing place to live in th ...

. In 1994 and 1995, he was an assistant coach with

. In 1995, he became a staff coach with the Bonita Rebels youth soccer club in

Bonita, California Bonita (Spanish for "Beautiful") is a census-designated place (CDP) in southern San Diego County, California, nestled between the cities of Chula Vista, National City, and San Diego. The population was 12,538 at the 2010 census. Geography ...

. He remained on the Bonita Rebels staff for ten years. From 1998 to 2000, he was an assistant coach at

El Cajon Valley High School El Cajon Valley High School (ECVHS) is a comprehensive public secondary school located in El Cajon, California, which is in the eastern county of San Diego, and serves students in grades nine through twelve. Established in 1955, El Cajon Valley is ...

. In 2001, he moved to the Marian Catholic High School in

, a position he held until 2003. In 2002, he coached the Mexican Futsal Team. He was head coach of the Express Diesel, a Mexican indoor soccer team in Baja. In 2006, he became the head coach of the Mexican national futsal team, a position he holds today. He is also the head coach of the Hilltop High School boys and girls soccer teams. Ortiz gained his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

in 2006.

References

External links

Ortiz Still Passionate About Soccer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ortiz, Rene 1969 births Living people American men's futsal players American soccer coaches American soccer players Arizona Thunder players Cincinnati Silverbacks players Continental Indoor Soccer League players FC Dallas players American people of Mexican descent Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Major League Soccer players Milwaukee Wave players Monterrey La Raza players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players Soccer players from Anaheim, California Nomads Soccer Club players San Diego Sockers (CISL) players San Diego Sockers (original MISL) players San Diego State University alumni Western Soccer Alliance players World Indoor Soccer League players Association football midfielders American beach soccer players