Ricardo Alonso was a

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 began 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 ...

before moving to defender later in his career. Alonso spent six seasons in 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 ...

, four in Major Indoor Soccer League, at least three in the

American Indoor Soccer Association American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

, one in the American Soccer League and two in the

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

. He was born in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Outdoor

NASL

Alonso signed with the

Minnesota Kicks The Minnesota Kicks were a professional soccer team that played at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota, from 1976 to 1981. The team was a member of the now defunct North American Soccer League (NASL). Initiall ...

of the

in 1979 and spent three seasons with the team. He then moved to the

Jacksonville Tea Men The Jacksonville Tea Men were a soccer team based in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Overall, the Tea Men played a total of four seasons in Jacksonville, first in the major league-level North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1980–1982, ...

for the 1982 season. That year, he scored twenty-one goals in thirty games, earning first team All Star recognition. In 1983, he signed with the

Chicago Sting The Chicago Sting (1974–1988) was an American professional soccer team representing Chicago. The Sting played in the North American Soccer League from 1975 to 1984 and in the Major Indoor Soccer League in the 1982–83 season and again from 1 ...

when the Tea Men left the NASL. He played one full season with the Sting, earning 1983 second team All Star recognition, but was traded, along with

Charlie Fajkus Charlie Fajkus (born March 4, 1957 in the United States) is a retired American soccer midfielder who spent six seasons in the North American Soccer League and five in the Major Indoor Soccer League. He also earned three caps with the U.S. nati ...

, to the

Golden Bay Earthquakes Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...

in exchange for

Hayden Knight Hayden Knight (born March 15, 1957 in Port of Spain, Trinidad) is a retired Trinidad-American soccer defender and current high school soccer coach. He earned three caps with the United States men's national soccer team in 1984. Playing career ...

and

Manny Rojas Manuel Antonio "Manny" Rojas Zúñiga (born June 13, 1954) is a retired football midfielder from Chile, who represented his native country at the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain. His professional career took him from his native Chile to Mexico a ...

on July 10, 1984. Alonso finished the 1984 season with the Earthquakes, but the NASL folded at the end of the season and the Earthquakes moved to the semi-professional

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 ...

ASL/APSL

Following the collapse of the NASL following the 1984 season, Alonso spent several seasons playing indoor soccer. He returned to the outdoor game in 1989 with the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994), member of American Soccer League from 1988 to 1989 and American Profes ...

of the American Soccer League. That year he led the league in scoring with ten goals and seven assists. He was also named a first team All Star. In 1990, the ASL merged with the

Western Soccer League 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 ...

to form the

. Alonso remained with the Strikers, now in the APSL. In 1991, he then moved to the

Miami Freedom The Miami Sharks were an inaugural franchise of the third incarnation of the American Soccer League in 1988. The team was renamed the Miami Freedom and joined the American Professional Soccer League in 1990 when the ASL merged with the Western Soc ...

for the 1991 season before retiring.

Indoor soccer

NASL

Alonso played the 1983-1984 NASL indoor season with the Chicago Sting.

MISL

The year before that, the

entered the 1982-1983 Major Indoor Soccer League season. With the collapse of the NASL in 1984, Alonso became a dedicated indoor player. He signed with the

Minnesota Strikers The Minnesota Strikers were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) for the 1984 season and in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1984 through 1988. The team was based in Minneapolis/St. Paul metropoli ...

for the 1984-1985 season. When he was released by the Strikers, he returned to the Sting, which was now competing in MISL. On October 24, 1985, he signed a one-year contract with the Sting after a month-long trial. On April 29, 1986, he signed another one-year contract with the

of MISL. That year, he moved to defender.

AISA

The Sting released Alonso after a disappointing 1986-1987 season and he signed with the

Jacksonville Generals Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

of the

for the 1987-1988 season. He then moved to the

Memphis Storm The Memphis Storm was an American soccer team based in Memphis, Tennessee which existed from 1986 to 1994. They underwent several names changes including the Rogues, the Survivors, the United Express and finally the Jackals. They played in the Am ...

for the 1988-1989 season, however, he was traded to the

Fort Wayne Flames The Fort Wayne Flames were an indoor soccer club based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, that competed in the American Indoor Soccer Association, playing home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum from 1986–1989. History The team was foun ...

during the season. Alonso then spent the 1989-1990 season with the

Memphis Rogues The Memphis Rogues were a professional soccer team in the former North American Soccer League. They operated in the 1978, 1979, and 1980 seasons and played their home games in Memphis' Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. They also played indoor s ...

References

External links

NASL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alonso, Ricardo 1957 births Living people American Indoor Soccer Association players American Professional Soccer League players American Soccer League (1988–89) players Argentine expatriate footballers Argentine expatriate sportspeople in the United States Argentine footballers Chicago Sting (MISL) players Chicago Sting (NASL) players Expatriate soccer players in the United States Association football defenders Association football forwards Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994) players Fort Wayne Flames players San Jose Earthquakes (1974–1988) players Tulsa Tornados players Jacksonville Generals players Jacksonville Tea Men players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Memphis Rogues players Memphis Storm players Miami Freedom players Minnesota Kicks players Minnesota Strikers (MISL) players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players United Soccer League (1984–85) players Western Soccer Alliance players