Fernando Clavijo, a US 1994 World Cup defender who became a top coach, has died at age 63 after a battle with cancer, his family announced Saturday. Uruguayan-born Clavijo died Friday at his home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, after a five-year fight with multiple myeloma, cancer of plasma cells (white blood cells).
A career that spanned more than 45 years as a player, coach and technical director led to Clavijo being inducted into the US Soccer Hall of Fame in 2005. "All of us in the US Soccer family are deeply saddened by the passing of Fernando Clavijo, one of the pioneers of soccer in the United States," said US Soccer Federation president Carlos Cordeiro. Clavijo, who played indoor soccer from 1981 through 1992, had 61 caps for the United States from 1990 through 1994.
He served as coach of Major League Soccer's New England Revolution from 2000-2002 and the Colorado Rapids from 2005-2008, serving as coach for the Haiti national team in between. Since 2012, he served as technical director for MLS side FC Dallas, stepping down last September to focus on health issues.
Comments
Comments are closed.