Diego Gutiérrez (born November 3, 1972) is a former professional
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
player, who spent his career between
Chicago Fire and
Kansas City Wizards
Sporting Kansas City is an American professional soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The administrative offices are located in downtown K ...
, both of
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
, and is currently a radio commentator for ESPN Deportes Kansas City. Born in Colombia, he played for the
United States national team.
Early life and education
Born in Colombia, Gutiérrez was part of the country's youth teams. He came to the United States to attend the
University of Evansville
The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Carnegie Hall of Moores Hill College, Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton Manor, Harlaxton College ...
and
Rockhurst University
Rockhurst University is a private Jesuit university in Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in 1910 as Rockhurst College, Rockhurst University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It enrolled 2,980 students in 2019.
History
In 1909, Fr. ...
. He was a 1994 First Team NAIA All American at Rockhurst.
Club career
The then-
Kansas City Wiz selected Gutiérrez in the second round of the
1996 MLS College Draft
The 1996 Major League Soccer College Draft was held on March 4, 1996, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
History
As Major League Soccer prepared for its first season, the league began stocking teams with players. As the teams were being created at the ...
. Gutiérrez spent two seasons in Kansas City, but missed all of 1997 with an
ACL injury.
Gutiérrez was one of the pioneer players in MLS, playing over 400 professional games. Gutiérrez's career took off after he was taken by the Chicago Fire in the
1997 MLS Expansion Draft. He helped the expansion club to the 1998
MLS Cup
MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Playoffs. The game is held in November or December and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Confere ...
and
US Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States. It is the country's oldest ongoing national soccer competition. The competition was first held duri ...
double, scoring his first goal as a professional in the 2-0 MLS Cup win over
D.C. United. Usually a left back, but equally adapts at both defense and midfield, he spent four seasons in Chicago, winning a second Open Cup in 2000. Prior to the 2002 season, Gutiérrez was re-acquired by Kansas City, winning his third Open Cup in 2004. After the 2005 season, he was traded back to Chicago for
Will John and a draft pick. In his MLS career, Gutiérrez has scored ten regular season goals and 39 assists, adding that MLS Cup goal and two assists in the playoffs. With the season-ending injury of former Fire defender
Jim Curtin, the versatile professional filled in as a defender, joining fellow "Fire Original"
C.J. Brown on the backline. In his new defending role, Gutierrez recorded an assist in the October 6 match against the
New England Revolution
The New England Revolution are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the Greater Boston area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. It is on ...
, ranking him fourth overall in Fire career assists leaders with 30 assists through six seasons. Gutierrez appeared in 23 league matches for Chicago through the 2007 season, starting in 22. Gutiérrez ranks among career leaders for total games played, playoff games played and assists.
On February 4, 2008, Gutierrez, the 2007 U.S. Soccer Federation/MLS Humanitarian of the Year, announced that the 2008 season would be the last of his professional playing career.
International career
Gutiérrez became a United States citizen in 2000, and received one cap with the
U.S. national team, coming on December 9, 2001, against
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
. He represented the United States at the international level, as a member of the U.S. National Team from 2001 through 2005.
Off field activity
He was asked to be the keynote speaker at his own citizenship ceremony, on July 4, 2000. He was invited to the join President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
and First Lady
Laura Bush
Laura Lane Welch Bush (née Welch; born November 4, 1946) is an American educator who was the first lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009 as the wife of George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States. Bush was previously the fir ...
at the White House on April 25, 2007, for
World Malaria Day
World Malaria Day (WMD) is an international observance commemorated every year on 25 April and recognizes global efforts to control malaria. Globally, 3.3 billion people in 106 countries are at risk of malaria.World Health Organizatio''World Mala ...
, and he was invited to participate as a forum speaker in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Malaria Forum in October 2007. He traveled to
Mali
Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...
in December 2007 for a United Nation's Foundation trip to observe the distribution of insecticide treated bed nets and speak about leading healthy lifestyles.
For all his community work, in 2006 he was named Chicago Fire Humanitarian of the Year, and in 2007 he was named both Chicago Fire and
Major League Soccer Humanitarian of the Year. In 2008, because of his service and his performance on the field, Gutiérrez received the Commissioner's Award, the highest honor in Major League Soccer. In 2009 Dr. Gutierrez was Inducted into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame, only the second soccer player ever inducted, after the great
Pele.
On January 6, 2009, the White House issued a press release from President George W. Bush appointing Gutiérrez to the Presidential Council for Physical Fitness and Sports, an appointment that he continued to serve under President Obama until May 2010. Gutiérrez was named Head of Scouting and Player Development for MLS side Philadelphia Union on December 16, 2010.
He joined
Sporting Kansas City
Sporting Kansas City is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The ad ...
as its lead television commentator ahead of the 2014 season while continuing to call
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
matches for
Fox Sports 1
Fox Sports 1 (branded on-air as FS1) is an American pay television television channel, channel owned by the Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. FS1 airs an array of live sporting events, including Majo ...
.
Gutiérrez received his undergraduate degree in psychology from
Rockhurst University
Rockhurst University is a private Jesuit university in Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in 1910 as Rockhurst College, Rockhurst University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It enrolled 2,980 students in 2019.
History
In 1909, Fr. ...
, an MBA from Rockhurst University's Helzberg School of Management, and a Doctorate in Business Administration from
Creighton University's Heider School of Business. Dr. Gutiérrez is currently a faculty member at Rockhurst University's College of Business and resides in Kansas City, MO with his wife Ginna and their children, Mia, Lina, and Javier.
References
World Sport Humanitarian Hall of Fame Official Press Release
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gutierrez, Diego
1972 births
Living people
Footballers from Bogotá
American men's soccer players
United States men's international soccer players
Colombian men's footballers
American sportspeople of Colombian descent
Colombian emigrants to the United States
Sporting Kansas City players
Chicago Fire FC players
MLS Pro-40 players
Evansville Purple Aces men's soccer players
Rockhurst University alumni
Colombian expatriate men's footballers
Major League Soccer players
Major League Soccer All-Stars
A-League (1995–2004) players
Sporting Kansas City draft picks
Men's association football midfielders
20th-century American sportsmen