Dominic Oduro (born 13 August 1985) is a Ghanaian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays 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) ** Smal ...

. Oduro is currently the assistant coach of the

Charlotte FC Charlotte Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team is owned by David Tepper, who was awarded the e ...

Academy side competing in the

United Premier Soccer League The United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) is an American for-profit soccer league that was founded in Santa Ana in Southern California, with teams in regionalized conferences throughout the United States, and recently Canada and Mexico. The leagu ...

Early career and education

Oduro started his playing career in Ghana, playing for both

Prempeh College Prempeh College is a public secondary boarding school for boys located in Kumasi, the capital city of the Ashanti Region, Ghana. The school was founded in 1949 by the Asanteman traditional authority, the British Colonial Government, the Metho ...

and the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It is the oldest public university in the country. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the British colony of the Gold Coast ...

before transferring to

Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a Public university, public research university in Richmond, Virginia, United States. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virgin ...

in 2004. He appeared in 41 matches for VCU, scoring 18 goals and earning five assists, and being honoured with the 2004

Colonial Athletic Association The Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), formerly the ECAC South Conference and the Colonial Athletic Association, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA' ...

Player of the Year award and a Third Team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

spot. Oduro helped the Rams reach the quarterfinals of the 2004 NCAA Tournament, VCU's highest ever appearance. He also played for

Richmond Kickers Future Richmond Kickers Future was an American soccer team based in Richmond, Virginia, United States. Founded in 2002 as part of the development system of the Richmond Kickers USL Second Division franchise, the team played in the USL Premier Developmen ...

in the

USL Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States, forming part of the United States soccer league system. The league will featu ...

in 2005, scoring 16 goals in 13 games.

Club career

FC Dallas

Oduro was selected in the second round (22nd overall) of the

2006 MLS SuperDraft The 2006 MLS SuperDraft, held in Philadelphia on January 20, 2006, was the seventh incarnation of the annual Major League Soccer MLS SuperDraft, SuperDraft. The first selection originally belonged to Chivas USA, but they traded it to the MetroSt ...

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

. He made his first team debut on 28 June 2006, as a substitute for

Kenny Cooper Kenneth Scott Cooper Jr. (born October 21, 1984) is an American former soccer player who played as a forward. He began his soccer career with Manchester United but failed to break through to the first team. He went on to play for clubs in Por ...

and scored his first MLS goal on 8 July 2006 against

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, 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 (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...

. During his three-year stay in Dallas, Oduro impressed fans and coaches with his blazing speed and effort. He was primarily used as a second-half substitute, to provide a spark to the clubs attack, and ultimately appeared in 70 league matches for FC Dallas, with his most productive season coming in 2008 in which he netted 5 goals in 25 matches.

New York Red Bulls

He was traded to

on 12 January 2009, while

Dave van den Bergh Dave van den Bergh (; born 7 May 1976) is a Dutch football coach and former player who played as a left winger. Playing career Europe A product of the famed AFC Ajax youth program, Van den Bergh played for Ajax from 1995 to 1997, winning one l ...

went in the other direction to

. In the deal, New York also acquired the #11 and #18 picks in the

2009 MLS SuperDraft The 2009 MLS SuperDraft took place on January 15, 2009, in St. Louis, Missouri. It was the tenth annual Major League Soccer MLS SuperDraft, SuperDraft. The first selection was owned by the expansion Seattle Sounders FC. Unlike previous years, ...

while Dallas acquired the No. 14 pick.

Houston Dynamo

Less than five months later, New York traded Oduro to

Houston Dynamo Houston Dynamo Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Established on December 15, 2005, the club was founded after their fo ...

on 27 May 2009 for a first-round pick in the

2010 MLS SuperDraft The 2010 MLS SuperDraft was the eleventh annual MLS SuperDraft, SuperDraft presented by Major League Soccer. It was held on January 14, 2010 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during the 2010 National Soccer Coaches Association of America, NSCAA Conv ...

and a second-round pick in the

2011 MLS SuperDraft The 2011 MLS SuperDraft was the twelfth annual SuperDraft presented by Major League Soccer. It was held on January 13, 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland, during the 2011 NSCAA Convention at the Baltimore Convention Center. The 2011 SuperDraft consi ...

. Oduro made his first start for the

on 1 July 2009 against the

USL-1 The USL First Division (USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It was organized by the United Soccer League as its premier league for men from 1996 to 2010, above the USL Second D ...

side

Austin Aztex The Austin Aztex were a soccer team based in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 2011 as a member of the Premier Development League, the team played the 2015 season in the United Soccer League, the second tier of the United States soccer p ...

. The game was the third round of the

Lamar Hunt 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 ...

. Houston won the match, played at Nelson Field in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, 2–0. Oduro stayed with Houston through the 2009 and 2010 MLS seasons. After the 2010 season, he decided to make a move overseas but was unsuccessful in securing a contract and re-signed with Houston on 2 March 2011.

Chicago Fire

After missing a sitter in the opening game of the 2011 season, Oduro was traded to Chicago Fire in exchange for

Calen Carr Calen Carr (born October 4, 1982) is an American former professional soccer player. He played in Major League Soccer for the Chicago Fire and Houston Dynamo as a forward and winger. He currently works for MLS as a match analyst for MLS Season P ...

on 23 March 2011. Oduro performed well with Chicago, scoring 12 goals during his first season with the team. For his outstanding play in 2011 he was awarded the Supporters Player of the Year award by Section 8 Chicago, the supporters section of the Chicago Fire.

Columbus Crew

Oduro was traded to

Columbus Crew The Columbus Crew are an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team began play in 1996 as one of the 10 cha ...

on 1 February 2013 in exchange for

Dilly Duka Dilaver Duka (born September 15, 1989) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for FC Motown in the National Premier Soccer League. Career Youth and college Duka grew up in Montville, New Jersey, to an Albanian family ...

. He featured for the club for two seasons from 2013 to 2014, playing 43 matches and scoring 13 goals in all competitions.

Toronto FC

Oduro was traded to

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matc ...

on 6 June 2014 for winger Alvaro Rey.

Montreal Impact

He was traded to Montreal Impact on 27 January 2015 for allocation money. He played from 2015 to 2018, playing 108 matches and scoring 18 goals in all competitions.

San Jose Earthquakes

Oduro was traded to

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional association football, soccer club based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Origin ...

on 8 August 2018 for

Quincy Amarikwa Quincy Obinna Amarikwa ( ; born October 29, 1987) is an American former professional soccer player. Career Early career Amarikwa attended Liberty High School. He was a member of the Bakersfield Alliance club soccer team and played college soc ...

Charlotte Independence

On 15 February 2019, Oduro signed with

Charlotte Independence Charlotte Independence is an American soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, that plays in the USL League One, the third tier of the American soccer pyramid. The Independence currently play their home games at American Legion Memoria ...

of the

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the second tier of the United States soccer league system#Men's leagues, United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) a ...

. He was released by Charlotte at the end of the 2019 season.

International career

On 26 February 2012, Oduro was called up to the

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

squad to face

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

. Oduro made his Ghana debut against Chile on 29 February 2012 at

PPL Park Subaru Park is a soccer-specific stadium in Chester, Pennsylvania, located next to Commodore Barry Bridge on the waterfront along the Delaware River. The venue is home to the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer. Subaru Park was designed ...

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the Philadelphia metropolitan area (also known as the Delaware Valley) on the western bank of the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware. ...

Coaching

Oduro began coaching the

U14 team in 2022. In 2023, he was named coach of Charlotte FC's semi-pro

side.

Personal life

Oduro holds a U.S. green card which qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.

Career statistics

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oduro, Dominic 1985 births Living people Ghanaian men's footballers Men's association football forwards Ghana men's international footballers Major League Soccer players USL Championship players USL League Two players VCU Rams men's soccer players FC Dallas draft picks Richmond Kickers Future players FC Dallas players New York Red Bulls players Houston Dynamo FC players Chicago Fire FC players Columbus Crew players Toronto FC players CF Montréal players San Jose Earthquakes players Charlotte Independence players Ghanaian expatriate men's footballers Ghanaian expatriate sportspeople in Canada Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada Ghanaian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Footballers from Ashanti Region United Premier Soccer League coaches 21st-century Ghanaian sportsmen