Christian Ramirez

Christian Ramirez spent his first professional seasons well away from Major League Soccer, working through Orange County Blue Star and Charlotte Eagles before a move to Minnesota United in the NASL turned his career. Twice he finished as the league's top scorer there, once with 20 goals, and he was named its best young player as well.

A move to Los Angeles FC followed, then a switch to Houston Dynamo brought in through a $250,000 allocation-money deal. In 2021 he left for Scotland, joining Aberdeen for two seasons and scoring 10 goals in 45 appearances before returning to MLS with Columbus Crew in 2023.

Columbus is where Ramirez produced the moment his career will be remembered for: in the Eastern Conference final he scored in the 115th minute against FC Cincinnati, a goal that sent the club on to win the MLS Cup. The following year he scored again in the Leagues Cup final against Atlanta United. LA Galaxy signed him in a trade worth $500,000 in allocation money at the start of 2025, but he was released before signing this year with Austin FC.

Ramirez's two caps for the United States national team came in early 2019. He scored on his debut, coming off the bench against Panama and finding the net within minutes to make it 3-0, then featured again days later against Costa Rica. Before turning professional he played college soccer at Concordia University Irvine, where he was named conference player of the year and made the NAIA's first-team selection.