COMMERCE CITY — Colorado Rapids’ defender, fan favorite and eldest statesman Drew Moor announced Friday that he will retire at the end of this season, his 10th as a Burgundy Boy.
The 38-year-old has been a part of Major League Soccer for 18 of its 27 seasons. During that time, the league has more than doubled in size, expanding from 12 teams when he first stepped onto a professional pitch in 2005 to 28 by the start of next season.
The Rapids legend is one of six field players in MLS history to appear in 400-plus matches (now at 410) having played a staggering 33,806 minutes entering Saturday’s final home match against FC Dallas. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, that’s the sixth-most in league history. If he plays this weekend, it would make 210 appearances — the second-most in club history.
“This is a decision that I’ve been thinking about for the last couple of months now, and although I’ve been emotional about it at times, I think it’s time for me to step into the next part of my life and my career,” Moor said in a statement released by the Rapids.
Moor entered MLS when he was selected sixth overall ahead of the 2005 campaign by his hometown team FC Dallas. That came on the heels of back-to-back NCAA Division I championships at Indiana University.
He spent five seasons with Dallas before being traded to the Rapids in 2009. One year later, he helped lead the club to its first, and only, MLS Cup.
He stayed with the Rapids until 2015, when he headed north of the border in what would become Toronto FC’s most successful stint in its history.
In Toronto, Moor won a number of honors and lifted a second MLS Cup in 2017. He was also part of three consecutive Canadian Championships from 2016-18, and the 2017 Supporters’ Shield for the best mark in the regular-season. As a result of the triumphs, Toronto FC became the first treble-winning team in MLS history in 2017.
Moor returned to Colorado ahead of the 2020 season. A year later, he helped Colorado notch a club-record 61 points in the regular season while reaching the 400-appearance mark. He has appeared in double-digit games in every season but three in his career. Entering Saturday, he has played eight times in 2022.
He also has represented the U.S. Men’s National Team on five occasions, including the 2007 Copa America.
Now a father of two, Moor has been involved as a coach at the Academy level and nearly earned his managerial debut as a player-coach in the chaos of the 2020 season amidst the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has helped call games for the DU Pioneer’s men’s soccer team as well during the fall.
“As I look back on my career, there are a countless number of people that I would like to thank — my wife and family in particular, along with the Rapids for believing in me and giving me an opportunity twice over the course of my career, and especially (general manager) Pádraig Smith, Wayne Brant, Robin (Fraser) and his coaching staff and all of my teammates,” Moor said in a statement.
“I also want to thank all the fans who have supported me for all these years, even while I was away for a bit and who welcomed me back. It’s a tight-knit group and there are faces and people that I remember from my first year here in 2009 who continue to come out and support me and support the organization. I’ve seen people and kids during my time here grow with the club and some of those are fans that I still see up in the crowd on game days. I hope that continues to be a bond that we share moving forward because the fans are the most important thing and they’re the reason that we’re able to pull the jersey over our head every Saturday and go out and play and try to win trophies for them.”
The Rapids will kick off against FC Dallas at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. The game will air on Univision’s TUDN and on Twitter.
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