Paul Rothrock

Paul Rothrock scored on his MLS debut against Houston Dynamo and kept finding the net in each of his first three appearances for the club — a first in Sounders history. He was also the first player to score for the club while on a short-term contract.

He came up through the Sounders' own pathway, playing for Seattle United and the club's academy before a first taste of senior football with Sounders 2 in USL. He played at Notre Dame before transferring to Georgetown, where he won an NCAA championship in 2019.

His route into professional football ran through Toronto FC, who picked him in the third round of the 2021 MLS SuperDraft. He made two MLS appearances for Toronto's first team in 2022.

Rothrock returned to Seattle as a free agent in January 2023, signing with Tacoma Defiance, the Sounders' reserve side. He became a regular starter for the first team by 2024 and 2025.

The high point came in the 2025 Leagues Cup final, where he scored the third goal as Seattle beat Inter Miami 3-0 to lift the title. A fracture in his right foot required surgery in July 2025; he had already kept him out of matches the previous year. Earlier in his career, he was called into the United States under-18 squad in 2017, earning a single cap.