MLS: Top 5 centre-backs in league history

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7 Apr 2001: Jeff Agoos #12 of the San Jose Earthquakes dribbles downfield against the Los Angeles Galaxy at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Earthquakes won 3 – 2. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Gross/ALLSPORT /

2. Jeff Agoos

Taking the No.2 spot on our list is one of just four men to have lifted the MLS Cup trophy five times in their career, along with a flurry of other trophies, former D.C., San Jose and MetroStars centre-back Jeff Agoos.

Like Fraser and team-mate Pope, Agoos was part of the debut season in 1996, having spent time in the American Professional Soccer League before its inception. After graduating from college, he played for Maryland Bays and Los Angeles Salsa, along with a spell in Germany, where he featured for SV Wehen during the 1994-1995 season, before moving back to the States for the league’s first campaign.

MLS Career & Honours:

D.C. United (1996-2000)
San Jose Earthquakes (2001-2004)
MetroStars (2005)

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MLS Defender of the Year – 2001
MLS Best XI – 1997, 1999, 2001
MLS All-Time Best XI

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MLS Cup – 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003
Supporters’ Shield – 1997, 1999
U.S. Open Cup – 1996
CONCACAF Champions Cup – 1998
Copa Interamericana – 1998
CONCACAF Gold Cup – 2002

Agoos was allocated to D.C. United for the first season in the newly-formed league and the Swiss-born defender had immediate success, as the franchise would go on to dominate the early part of Major League Soccer’s 25-year history.

His first season in the league saw him start all 32 regular-season games for the side from the capital, with Pope alongside him at the heart of the team’s defence for the majority of the campaign. D.C. won the first MLS Cup, beating LA Galaxy in the final, thanks to a golden goal from Agoos’ defensive partner Eddie Pope. They also won the U.S. Open Cup in that same season, as the side from the capital took home the double.

A year later, and there was another double on the cards, but this time, United got their hands on the Supporters’ Shield trophy for the first time, before going on to defend their MLS Cup crown, with a victory over Colorado Rapids. The 1997 season was a good one for Agoos from an individual standpoint as well, as he was named to the MLS Best XI, alongside team-mates Pope, Marco Etcheverry and Jaime Moreno.

20 Oct 1996: Jeff Agoos of D.C. United celebrates during the United 3-2 MLS Championship game win over the Los Angeles Galaxy at Foxboro Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. Mandatory Credit: Rick Stewart /Allsport /

A year later, and the club was successful on the international stage, becoming the first American side to win the CONCACAF Champions Cup and the Copa Interamericana, and remaining the only team from the United States to have won the defunct latter competition. 1999 saw the club win another double, they’re fourth successive season with two trophies.

D.C. replicated their double-winning campaign from two years previous, by wrapping up the Supporters’ Shield title before going on to win the MLS Cup for a third time in four seasons, beating LA Galaxy in the final for the second time. Agoos was named to the MLS Best XI for the second time in his career, with the Bolivian duo joining him as the three D.C. players to make it.

After a fifth season in the nation’s capital, the centre-back made the move to San Jose and would play for the Earthquakes for the next four years, and there would be plenty more success to come. It started in his first year with the club in 2001, as Agoos was a key member of the ‘Quakes team that won the MLS Cup for the first time in their history. His performances saw him named MLS Defender of the Year, along with a nod to the Best XI.

The defender would then taste international success a year later, as the United States took home the CONCACAF Gold Cup trophy, as they defeated Costa Rica in the final. Agoos scored the second goal in the final, as the USMNT took the victory 2-0, winning the Gold Cup for the second time in the tournament’s history. He was also named into the tournament’s Best XI, alongside team-mates Landon Donovan and Brian McBride.

Back in the domestic game, and San Jose went on to win the MLS Cup for a second time in 2003, clinching Agoos’ fifth crown, which was a record at that time, only broken by former Earthquakes team-mate Landon Donovan, who remains the only man to have won the MLS Cup more times than Agoos.

After a fourth year in San Jose, the American international made the move to the MetroStars but would spend just a single season with the New York-based club, before retiring from the beautiful game. He was named to the MLS All-Time Best XI at the end of the 2005 season, which celebrated a decade of Major League Soccer history, and ended his career with more than 240 regular-season appearances, plus an additional 39 playoff matches under his belt. Easily one of the best-ever defenders to have played in the American top-flight.

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