Bobby Rhine (April 18, 1976 – September 5, 2011) was an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who last played for

FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The franchise be ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

. Rhine played

college soccer College soccer, called college football in some countries, is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. While it is most widespread in the United States, it is also prominent in Japan, South Kore ...

at the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

from 1994 to 1998. In 1997, he redshirted his senior season in order to complete his master's degree requirements. In 1998, he returned for his last season, earning second-team All-American recognition. In February 1999, the Dallas Burn selected Rhine in the first round (sixth overall) in the

1999 MLS College Draft The 1999 Major League Soccer College Draft was held on February 6 and 7, 1999 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The first round of the draft took place on February 6 with the second and third rounds on February 7. The College Draft was followed by th ...

. During his Dallas career, Rhine filled a variety of positions as an on-and-off starter, usually playing up front or in the

midfield In many sports, midfield is the part of a sports field that is near the line that is equally far from the end lines. That is, in American football it is the part of the field near the 50-yard line; in association football (soccer) and field hoc ...

. His versatility even led to a switch to

defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

for the 2005 season. His best season came in 2002, when he scored seven goals and six assists and added another goal in the playoffs. In eight MLS seasons, Rhine's regular-season totals stand at 23 goals and 33 assists. In 1999, he went on loan to the

Milwaukee Rampage The Milwaukee Rampage is a former professional United States, American soccer team, that was located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which played in the A-League (1995-2004), A-League. History Founded in 1993 by Milwaukee area businessmen Dan Doucette a ...

of the

USL A-League The USL First Division (USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It was organized by the United Soccer League as its premier league for men from 1996 to 2010, above the USL Second Di ...

. In 2000, he played one game on loan with the Tennessee Rhythm. Rhine played his final career game against

Los Angeles Galaxy The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Gal ...

on October 26, 2008, a game in which normal team captain

Duilio Davino Duilio César Jean Pierre Davino Rodríguez (born 21 March 1976) is a Mexican former professional footballer. Playing career Davino was called up to play in the 1995 Pan American games and played for Mexico in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta ...

insisted Rhine take the captain's armband. Rhine retired at the end of the 2008 season. Upon retiring, he accepted the position of Manager of Community Development with the

front office. In addition, Rhine also worked as the color commentator for the team's television broadcasts. On September 5, 2011, while vacationing with his family in Florida, Rhine died from a sudden heart attack at the age of 35.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhine, Bobby 1976 births 2011 deaths American men's soccer players UConn Huskies men's soccer players FC Dallas players Milwaukee Rampage players New Orleans Riverboat Gamblers players Tennessee Rhythm players Major League Soccer players A-League (1995–2004) players Soccer players from Missouri FC Dallas draft picks Men's association football midfielders