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List of Cuban football players who have defected to the United States

May 11, 2024

Since 1999, 55 Cuban football players have defected to the United States in an attempt to further their professional career or improve their standard of living.

Osvaldo Alonso defected from Cuba in 2007 to pursue a professional football career.

Under the old wet feet, dry feet policy in the United States, any Cuban player who set foot in the United States was entitled to become a US resident. Maykel Galindo, one of the earlier defectors told of the incentives to leave Cuba: "They leave Cuba because they want to make something out of their lives. They are in search of the dream of playing football at a professional level and they know that Cuba will not offer them that. They do it because they feel that their family will be proud of them if they make it to the professional level and many of those players have realized that they can achieve that goal. Thankfully, in my case, doors were being opened to me."[1] The wet feet, dry feet policy ended in January 2017.

As a general rule, Cuban players who defect are not allowed to rejoin the Cuba national team for international matches. Players who defect are generally ineligible to play for the United States team, as FIFA eligibility rules only allow a player to play for one national team during his career.

Year edit

1999 edit

Rodney Valdes defected to the United States during the 1999 Pan-American Games football tournament in Winnipeg, Canada.

  • Rodney Valdes[2][3] (goalkeeper) - Cuban U23 international

2002 edit

Rey Ángel Martínez and Alberto Delgado defected during the 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup. They told Cuba national football team minders that they were going to make a phone call in the hotel lobby but ran out of the hotel and traveled in a taxi to Martinez's uncle.

2005 edit

Cuban international forward Maykel Galindo sought to stay in the United States after he had arrived in the country with the Cuba national team for the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

2007 edit

Inspired by Galindo, two players defected at the following Gold Cup, two years later.

2008 edit

Several Cuban youth players defected in 2008 following an Olympic qualifier hosted in the United States.

2010 edit

Two players defected during a 2010 World Cup qualifier.

2011 edit

Yosniel Mesa defected during the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup

2012 edit

Yosmel de Armas defected in 2012 during Cuba's qualifying campaign for the 2012 Olympics.

Prior to a World Cup qualifying game against Canada in Toronto, four players and the team's psychologist Ignacio Abreu Sánchez defected to the United States.[12] Cuba were not able to name any substitutes due to the defections.[13]

Two players defected during the 2012 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament which was hosted in Vancouver, Canada.

2015 edit

Four players defected during the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[14]

Another six defected during the 2015 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship:

One player defected during a personal visit:

One player defected having visited Mexico:

2018 edit

Twelve players defected following the 2018 CONCACAF U-20 Championship which was hosted in Bradenton, Florida.[20]

  • Arturo Hector Godoy
  • Bruno Manuel Rendon Cardoso
  • Christopher Yoel Llorente Fernandez
  • Danny Echeverria Diaz
  • Frank Leidam Nodarse Chavez
  • Geobel Pérez
  • Josue Vega Alvarez
  • Juan Manuel Andreus Milanes
  • Omar Perez Ramirez
  • Omar Proenza Calderon
  • Rivaldo Ibarra Thompson
  • Rolando Aldahir Oviendo Valdez
  • Yandri Romero Clark

Two players defected during the 2018 CONCACAF Women's Championship which was hosted in Edinburg, Texas.

  • Francis Riquelme (forward, aged 20)

2019 edit

Four players defected during the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The following player defected after the match against Mexico

The following players defected after the match against Martinique

2023 edit

Five players defected during the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The following players defected after the first group stage match against Guatemala:

The following player defected after the last group stage match against Canada:

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ . tropigol.com. 26 March 2003. Archived from the original on 6 May 2012. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  2. ^ (PDF). Laredo Morning Times. 3 August 1999. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
  3. ^ Wilner, Barry (2 August 1999). . CubaNet.org. Archived from the original on 2 December 2005. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
  4. ^ a b . Miami Herald. 14 June 2004. Archived from the original on 14 June 2006. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  5. ^ a b c "Cuban soccer stars Pedro Faife and Reynier Alcantara defect to America". nydailynews.com. 11 October 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  6. ^ "'Special edge' for Cuban defector Alonso". USAToday.com. 30 June 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  7. ^ "Charleston Battery signs Cuban striker Lester Moré". oursportscentral.com. 7 March 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Five Cuban Soccer Players Defect in Florida, Miami Herald Says". Bloomberg. 13 March 2008.
  9. ^ a b "Cuban soccer officials stunned by desertions of up to 7 players". Ny Daily news. 13 March 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  10. ^ "Cuba defender Yosmel De Armas is believed to be attempting to defect to the United States". Yahoo Sports. 26 March 2012. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  11. ^ "Laredo Heat roster (2013)". USLsoccer.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  12. ^ "Desertaron en Canadá cuatro futbolistas del equipo cubano" (in Spanish). Clarin.com. 14 October 2010. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  13. ^ . FIFA.com. 12 October 2012. Archived from the original on October 9, 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  14. ^ "Gold Cup: Striker Ariel Martinez becomes the fourth player to defect from Cuba". MLSsoccer.com. 18 July 2015. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  15. ^ . futbol.univision.com. 8 July 2015. Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  16. ^ (in Spanish). Univision (Miami). 10 July 2015. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  17. ^ "2 Cuban players believed to have defected before match at BofA stadium Dario Suarez and Arichel Hernandez were both no-shows before match". Charlotte Observer. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
  18. ^ "Gold Cup: Striker Ariel Martinez becomes the fourth player to defect from Cuba". 18 July 2015. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  19. ^ a b c d "United States beat Canada in CONCACAF Olympic qualifying". ESPN. 1 October 2015.
  20. ^ "Doce futbolistas del equipo Cuba sub-20 se quedan en Estados Unidos". CiberCuba (in Spanish). 12 November 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  21. ^ "Deportes El futbolista Yasmani López escapó luego de jugar contra México en la Copa Oro". Periódico Cubano (in Spanish). 17 June 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  22. ^ a b c Online, La Razón (21 June 2019). "Tres cubanos más desertan de su selección en la Copa Oro" (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  23. ^ a b c d "Cuatro futbolistas de la selección de Cuba escaparon tras el primer partido de la Copa Oro en Miami". Infobae (in Spanish). 29 June 2023. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  24. ^ a b c d "Reportes: Cuatro futbolistas abandonaron la concentración de Cuba en Miami durante la Copa Oro". ESPN Deportes (in Spanish). 2023-06-28. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  25. ^ "Cinque giocatori cubani hanno abbandonato la Nazionale durante la Gold Cup, e ora sono irreperibili". Rivista Undici (in Italian). 2023-07-07. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  26. ^ "Sandy Sánchez, portero de Cuba y Pantoja, desertó después de Copa Oro". ESPN Deportes (in Spanish). 2023-07-05. Retrieved 2023-07-09.

May 11, 2024
list, cuban, football, players, have, defected, united, states, since, 1999, cuban, football, players, have, defected, united, states, attempt, further, their, professional, career, improve, their, standard, living, osvaldo, alonso, defected, from, cuba, 2007,. Since 1999 55 Cuban football players have defected to the United States in an attempt to further their professional career or improve their standard of living Osvaldo Alonso defected from Cuba in 2007 to pursue a professional football career Under the old wet feet dry feet policy in the United States any Cuban player who set foot in the United States was entitled to become a US resident Maykel Galindo one of the earlier defectors told of the incentives to leave Cuba They leave Cuba because they want to make something out of their lives They are in search of the dream of playing football at a professional level and they know that Cuba will not offer them that They do it because they feel that their family will be proud of them if they make it to the professional level and many of those players have realized that they can achieve that goal Thankfully in my case doors were being opened to me 1 The wet feet dry feet policy ended in January 2017 As a general rule Cuban players who defect are not allowed to rejoin the Cuba national team for international matches Players who defect are generally ineligible to play for the United States team as FIFA eligibility rules only allow a player to play for one national team during his career Contents 1 Year 1 1 1999 1 2 2002 1 3 2005 1 4 2007 1 5 2008 1 6 2010 1 7 2011 1 8 2012 1 9 2015 1 10 2018 1 11 2019 1 12 2023 2 See also 3 ReferencesYear edit1999 edit Rodney Valdes defected to the United States during the 1999 Pan American Games football tournament in Winnipeg Canada Rodney Valdes 2 3 goalkeeper Cuban U23 international 2002 edit Rey Angel Martinez and Alberto Delgado defected during the 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup They told Cuba national football team minders that they were going to make a phone call in the hotel lobby but ran out of the hotel and traveled in a taxi to Martinez s uncle Rey Angel Martinez 4 Alberto Delgado 4 2005 edit Cuban international forward Maykel Galindo sought to stay in the United States after he had arrived in the country with the Cuba national team for the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup Maykel Galindo 5 2007 edit Inspired by Galindo two players defected at the following Gold Cup two years later Osvaldo Alonso 6 Lester More 7 2008 edit Several Cuban youth players defected in 2008 following an Olympic qualifier hosted in the United States Yeniel Bermudez Cuban U23 international 8 Jose Miranda goalkeeper Cuban U23 international 8 Erlys Garcia Cuban U23 international 8 Yordany Alvarez midfielder Cuban U23 international 8 Loanny Cartaya defender Cuban U23 international 8 Yendry Diaz Cuban U23 international 9 Eder Roldan Cuban U23 international 9 2010 edit Two players defected during a 2010 World Cup qualifier Pedro Faife 5 Reynier Alcantara 5 2011 edit Yosniel Mesa defected during the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Yosniel Mesa Cuban international 2012 edit Yosmel de Armas defected in 2012 during Cuba s qualifying campaign for the 2012 Olympics Yosmel de Armas Cuban U23 international 10 he signed for Laredo Heat in 2013 11 Prior to a World Cup qualifying game against Canada in Toronto four players and the team s psychologist Ignacio Abreu Sanchez defected to the United States 12 Cuba were not able to name any substitutes due to the defections 13 Reysander Fernandez midfielder from Ciego de Avila Heviel Cordoves forward aged 23 from Havana Maikel Chang forward aged 21 from Havana Odisnel Cooper goalkeeper aged 20 from Camaguey Two players defected during the 2012 CONCACAF Women s Olympic Qualifying Tournament which was hosted in Vancouver Canada Yezenia Gallardo forward aged 20 Yisel Rodriguez midfielder aged 22 2015 edit Four players defected during the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup 14 Keiler Garcia forward aged 25 from FC Camaguey 15 Arael Arguellez goalkeeper aged 28 from FC Cienfuegos 16 Dario Suarez midfielder aged 22 from FC La Habana 17 Ariel Martinez midfielder aged 29 from FC Sancti Spiritus 18 Another six defected during the 2015 CONCACAF Men s Olympic Qualifying Championship Emmanuel Labrada midfielder aged 21 from CF Granma 19 Dairon Perez midfielder aged 20 from FC La Habana 19 Frank Lopez Garcia forward aged 20 from FC Cienfuegos 19 Yendry Torres defender aged 19 from FC Cienfuegos 19 Brian Rosales defender aged 20 from FC Matanzas Pedro Anderson midfielder aged 21 from FC Pinar del Rio One player defected during a personal visit Jorge Luis Corrales defender aged 24 from FC Pinar del Rio One player defected having visited Mexico Hector Morales attacker aged 21 from FC La Habana Jonathan Moliner defender aged 19 from FC Cienfuegos also defected 2018 edit Twelve players defected following the 2018 CONCACAF U 20 Championship which was hosted in Bradenton Florida 20 Arturo Hector Godoy Bruno Manuel Rendon Cardoso Christopher Yoel Llorente Fernandez Danny Echeverria Diaz Frank Leidam Nodarse Chavez Geobel Perez Josue Vega Alvarez Juan Manuel Andreus Milanes Omar Perez Ramirez Omar Proenza Calderon Rivaldo Ibarra Thompson Rolando Aldahir Oviendo Valdez Yandri Romero Clark Two players defected during the 2018 CONCACAF Women s Championship which was hosted in Edinburg Texas Francis Riquelme forward aged 20 2019 edit Four players defected during the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup The following player defected after the match against Mexico Yasmany Lopez 21 midfielder aged 31 from Ciego de Avila The following players defected after the match against Martinique Luismel Morris midfielder aged 21 from FC Camaguey 22 Reynaldo Perez midfielder aged 25 from Delfines del Este FC Dominican Republic 22 Daniel Luis Saez midfielder aged 25 from Delfines del Este FC Dominican Republic 22 2023 edit Five players defected during the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup The following players defected after the first group stage match against Guatemala Roberney Caballero midfielder aged 27 from La Habana 23 24 Denilson Milanes midfielder aged 20 from Desamparados Costa Rica 23 24 Neisser Sando midfielder aged 24 from Cienfuegos 23 24 Jassael Herrera defender aged 20 from Cienfuegos 23 24 The following player defected after the last group stage match against Canada Sandy Sanchez goalkeeper aged 29 from Atletico Pantoja Dominican Republic 25 26 See also editList of baseball players who defected from CubaReferences edit Background story Cuba missing player crisis tropigol com 26 March 2003 Archived from the original on 6 May 2012 Retrieved 21 June 2012 Cuba critical of Pan Am organizers PDF Laredo Morning Times 3 August 1999 Archived from the original PDF on 4 March 2016 Retrieved 29 July 2012 Wilner Barry 2 August 1999 Cuban Defects at Pan Am Games CubaNet org Archived from the original on 2 December 2005 Retrieved 29 July 2012 a b Cuban defectors a first for MLS Miami Herald 14 June 2004 Archived from the original on 14 June 2006 Retrieved 21 June 2012 a b c Cuban soccer stars Pedro Faife and Reynier Alcantara defect to America nydailynews com 11 October 2008 Retrieved 21 June 2012 Special edge for Cuban defector Alonso USAToday com 30 June 2009 Retrieved 21 June 2012 Charleston Battery signs Cuban striker Lester More oursportscentral com 7 March 2008 Retrieved 21 June 2012 a b c d e Five Cuban Soccer Players Defect in Florida Miami Herald Says Bloomberg 13 March 2008 a b Cuban soccer officials stunned by desertions of up to 7 players Ny Daily news 13 March 2008 Retrieved 21 June 2012 Cuba defender Yosmel De Armas is believed to be attempting to defect to the United States Yahoo Sports 26 March 2012 Retrieved 21 June 2012 Laredo Heat roster 2013 USLsoccer com Retrieved 10 July 2013 Desertaron en Canada cuatro futbolistas del equipo cubano in Spanish Clarin com 14 October 2010 Retrieved 18 October 2012 Canada vs Cuba match report FIFA com 12 October 2012 Archived from the original on October 9 2012 Retrieved 18 October 2012 Gold Cup Striker Ariel Martinez becomes the fourth player to defect from Cuba MLSsoccer com 18 July 2015 Retrieved 18 July 2015 Keilen Garcia deserto de la seleccion de Cuba futbol univision com 8 July 2015 Archived from the original on 10 July 2015 Retrieved 9 July 2015 Deserta otro jugador cubano en Chicago in Spanish Univision Miami 10 July 2015 Archived from the original on 13 July 2015 Retrieved 12 July 2015 2 Cuban players believed to have defected before match at BofA stadium Dario Suarez and Arichel Hernandez were both no shows before match Charlotte Observer 16 July 2015 Retrieved 16 July 2015 Gold Cup Striker Ariel Martinez becomes the fourth player to defect from Cuba 18 July 2015 Retrieved 18 July 2015 a b c d United States beat Canada in CONCACAF Olympic qualifying ESPN 1 October 2015 Doce futbolistas del equipo Cuba sub 20 se quedan en Estados Unidos CiberCuba in Spanish 12 November 2018 Retrieved 13 November 2018 Deportes El futbolista Yasmani Lopez escapo luego de jugar contra Mexico en la Copa Oro Periodico Cubano in Spanish 17 June 2019 Retrieved 17 June 2019 a b c Online La Razon 21 June 2019 Tres cubanos mas desertan de su seleccion en la Copa Oro in Spanish Retrieved 23 June 2019 a b c d Cuatro futbolistas de la seleccion de Cuba escaparon tras el primer partido de la Copa Oro en Miami Infobae in Spanish 29 June 2023 Retrieved 29 June 2023 a b c d Reportes Cuatro futbolistas abandonaron la concentracion de Cuba en Miami durante la Copa Oro ESPN Deportes in Spanish 2023 06 28 Retrieved 2023 07 09 Cinque giocatori cubani hanno abbandonato la Nazionale durante la Gold Cup e ora sono irreperibili Rivista Undici in Italian 2023 07 07 Retrieved 2023 07 09 Sandy Sanchez portero de Cuba y Pantoja deserto despues de Copa Oro ESPN Deportes in Spanish 2023 07 05 Retrieved 2023 07 09 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title List of Cuban football players who have defected to the United States amp oldid 1215291181, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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