Fredy Henkyer Montero Muñoz (born 26 July 1987), known as Fredy Montero (, is a Colombian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a forward for

Real Cartagena Real Cartagena is a professional Colombian football team based in Cartagena, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera B. They play their home games at the Jaime Morón León stadium. History The origins of Real Cartagena date back to 197 ...

. He was the all-time top scorer for the Seattle Sounders until being surpassed by

Raúl Ruidíaz Raúl Mario Ruidíaz Misitich (; born 25 July 1990) is a Peruvian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Atlético Grau in the Peruvian Primera División. His nickname, "The Flea", stems from his small frame and his ability to get ...

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

. He scored 79 goals with the club across two stints: from 2009 to 2012, and from 2021 to 2023. Montero has been called up to the Colombia national team five times, scoring once in an unofficial match against

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

. Montero began playing youth soccer at

Deportivo Cali Asociación Deportivo Cali, best known as Deportivo Cali, is a Colombian sports club based in Cali, most notable for its football team, which currently competes in the Categoría Primera A. Deportivo Cali is one of the most successful football t ...

at age six. He earned his professional debut at age 18 in 2005 before being sent on loan to

Academia An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

for the season. Montero was loaned to

Atlético Huila Atlético Huila is a professional Colombian association football, football team based in Neiva, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera B. The club was founded in 1990, making it one of the youngest professional football clubs in Colombia. ...

for two additional years, becoming the league topscorer in the 2007 Torneo Apertura before returning to Deportivo Cali and becoming league top scorer for a second time in the 2008 Torneo Finalización. Montero was loaned to the Major League Soccer expansion team Seattle Sounders in 2009, where he was named Newcomer of the Year and led the team in goals. Montero was sold to the Sounders in 2010 and became a Designated Player and a

permanent resident Permanent residency is a person's legal resident status in a country or territory of which such person is not a citizen but where they have the right to reside on a permanent basis. This is usually for a permanent period; a person with such l ...

of the United States. During his four seasons as a Sounders player, Montero was named to the

MLS All-Star The Major League Soccer All-Star Game is an annual Association football, soccer game held by Major League Soccer featuring selected players from the league against an international club or selected players from another league. MLS initially ado ...

squad twice, playing against Everton in 2009 and being named inactive in 2010. Montero played for a number of years in Portugal at

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,

; across two stints from 2013 to 2016 and 2018 to 2019, he netted 43 goals across all competitions for ''Os Leões''. He also played in Canada for

Vancouver Whitecaps Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March 18, ...

and in China for Tianjin TEDA.

Club career

Atlético Huila

Montero was loaned to

in 2006, where he was named top goalscorer of the 2007 Apertura, tied on 13 goals with Sergio Galván Rey. Despite rumors and interest from European clubs, he returned to

in 2007; he was again the top goalscorer, with 16 goals in the 2008 Finalizacion.

Seattle Sounders

Montero was acquired by Seattle Sounders in January 2009 on loan from Deportivo Cali. There were unconfirmed reports that suggested Montero's contract was owned by a third-party. Montero adapted well to the club, scoring nine goals in nine preseason games. He made his MLS debut on 19 March 2009, in the 2009 season opener against

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...

, and scored the first and third goals in club history. Montero was named the MLS Player of the Week for the first week of the 2009 MLS season for his two goals. An additional goal against

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake (RSL) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Fou ...

helped Montero be named MLS Player of the Month for March 2009 as he won the first two Goals of the Week. In April 2009, Montero told Sports Illustrated that he would like to play in Europe in the future and that the mix of players in MLS appealed to him as a place to learn. He later dismissed a rumor of a transfer to

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

and told the press that he was focused on the Sounders. Montero was selected to the 2009 MLS All-Star Game against Everton and played during the first half alongside teammates

Kasey Keller Kasey C. Keller (born November 29, 1969) is an American former professional association football, soccer player who played in Europe and the United States, and was the starting Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for the United State ...

and

Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Valencia (born May 16, 1984) is a Colombian footballer who last played for Chivas USA in Major League Soccer. Career Professional Hurtado began his career in the youth ranks of Deportivo Cali. In 2004, he began his profess ...

. He would go on to be named the MLS Newcomer of the Year. In August 2009, it was incorrectly reported that MLS had negotiated the transfer of

's portion of Montero's rights to Major League Soccer. It was believed that the league owned his rights, but details of any such deal were never publicly clarified. Fredy Montero v

Montero did not meet the high expectations of coach Schmid and the fans at the beginning of the

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

. He was left out of the starting lineup for the ninth game of the year. By July, he was named player of the month and selected to the inactive roster of the 2010 MLS All-Star Game. A scheduling conflict between a team

CONCACAF Champions League The CONCACAF Champions Cup, formerly known as CONCACAF Champions League (2008–2023), is an international association football competition organized by CONCACAF as its top continental tournament for clubs from North America, Central America, ...

match and the game made him unable to start in the exhibition game. Montero earned his second career MLS Player of the Month in July 2010. Although he failed to score a goal in league play between 1 September and the end of the season on 23 October, Montero finished the year with 10 goals and 10 assists. He totaled 12 goals, of which 6 were game-winners, and 11 assists in all competitions. A total of 22 goals and 17 assists in league play between 2009 and 2010 was the third most in the league. Montero was also named as the top player in the MLS "24 Under 24" list, which honors players under 24 years old who perform well in MLS. On 1 December 2010, Seattle Sounders FC announced that Montero had agreed to a contract extension with his rights permanently transferred to the club and

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 ...

. He became the third Designated Player and the highest paid player on the team with a base salary of $500,000. Before the second game of the 2011 season, Montero fractured his wrist. He missed two matches and played with a cast that may have contributed to multiple matches of reduced performance. His play improved by midseason. Schmid attributed it to increased growth, maturity, and fitness. The addition of

Mauro Rosales Mauro Damián Rosales (born 24 February 1981) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Best known for his pace and crossing ability, he won a gold medal with Argentina at the 2004 Summer Olympics. ...

to the team's midfield also helped Montero in the second half of the season. Montero ended the regular season of league play with 12 goals. He ended the year with 18 goals in all competitions. His goals scoring efforts made him the MLS player who scored the most goals across all competitive match in 2011. The Sounders won the

2011 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup The 2011 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 98th edition of the USSF's annual national soccer championship, running from June through early October. Seattle Sounders FC, who entered the competition as the two-time defending champions, successfull ...

. Montero was named Player of the Tournament after scoring three game-winning goals in the final three games.

Millonarios

Montero was officially loaned to Colombian champions

Millonarios Millonarios Fútbol Club, known simply as Millonarios, is a Colombian professional football club based in Bogotá, that competes in the Categoría Primera A, top flight of football in Colombia. It is one of the most successful and iconic clubs i ...

, playing in the

Categoría Primera A The Categoría Primera A (), commonly referred to as Liga BetPlay Dimayor due to Sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is a professional association football league in Colombia and the highest level of the Colombian ...

, on 21 January 2013, also signing a multi-year extension to his contract with the Sounders.

Sporting CP

Montero was loaned to

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga ...

side

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,

on 22 July 2013 for US$1.2 million with an option to buy. On his debut for the Portuguese club, Montero scored a hat-trick against newly promoted side Arouca, in a 5–1 win in the first round of the

season. On 31 August, Montero opened the scoring with a header in a 1–1 draw with Lisbon rivals Benfica at the

Alvalade Alvalade () is a (civil parish) and typical Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter of Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal. Located in central Lisbon, Alvalade is south of Lumiar and Olivais, Lisbon, Olivais, west of Marvila, Lisbon, Marvila, east ...

. Montero was named the SJPF Player of the Month for the months of August and September, having scored nine goals in the first six games. On 30 January 2014, it was announced that Montero had signed a four-and-a-half-year deal with Sporting for an additional $1.55 million transfer fee plus bonuses. Montero scored his first goal for Sporting since December 2013, netting in a 4–0 win over

Penafiel Penafiel ( or ) is a Municipalities of Portugal, municipality and former bishopric (now a Latin Catholic titular see) in the Norte Region, Portugal, northern Portugal, Portuguese Porto District, district of Porto. Capital of the Tâmega Subregion ...

on 4 October 2014.

Tianjin TEDA

On 6 February 2016, Montero transferred to

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Super League (), commonly known as the Chinese Super League or the CSL (), also known as the China Resources Beverage Chinese Football Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Ch ...

side Tianjin TEDA for €5 million.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC

On 15 February 2017, Montero transferred to

side

on loan from

side Tianjin TEDA.

Return to Sporting CP

On 17 January 2018, it was announced that Montero had returned to

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,

on an 18-month contract. Months later, on 15 May, he and several of his teammates, including coaches, were injured following an attack by around 50 supporters of Sporting at the club's training ground after the team finished third in the league and missed out on the UEFA Champions League qualification. Despite the events, he and the rest of the team agreed to play in the Portuguese Cup final scheduled for the following weekend.

Return to Vancouver

On 15 February 2019, Montero and Sporting agreed to mutually terminate his contract with the club. The same day, Vancouver announced he had joined the club on a permanent deal.

Return to Seattle

On 4 March 2021, Montero re-joined

Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The club was established on ...

. He had expressed a desire to return to the Seattle area and retire as a Sounder, while the club were in need of a new forward to replace the injured Jordan Morris. Montero retook the all-time scoring record for the Sounders in April 2021, surpassing

Clint Dempsey Clinton Drew Dempsey (; born March 9, 1983) is an American former professional soccer player who is a sports analyst on the television program '' Soccer on CBS Sports''. He played as a forward and midfielder for Premier League clubs Fulham and ...

, and ended the season with two goals. Following the 2021 season, Seattle declined their contract option on Montero. He returned on a new deal before the 2022 season. That season, he played an important role in Seattle's

title, which led the board to resign him for the 2023 season.

Return to Deportivo Cali

After his contract with Seattle Sounders expired at the end of the 2023 season, Montero's return to

was announced on 2 April 2024.

International career

Montero received his first international cap during a 4–0 win against

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

on 9 May 2007, playing the final 13 minutes of the match at

Estadio Rommel Fernández The Estadio Olímpico Rommel Fernández Gutiérrez, named after the Panamanian football star Rommel Fernández (1966–1993), is a multi-purpose stadium in Panama City. It is used for different sports, but mainly football (soccer) games. It was ...

Panama City Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...

. In October 2008, he started and played 55 minutes in a 1–0 World Cup qualifying loss to

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

. The forward scored his first goal for Colombia in the 2nd minute of

extra time Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required t ...

against

on 29 December 2008 during a 2–1 loss at

Camp Nou Camp Nou (), meaning ''New Field'' and often referred to in English as the Nou Camp, is a stadium in Barcelona and the home of La Liga club FC Barcelona since its opening in 1957. It is currently undergoing renovation, and with a planned increa ...

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

. Montero last played for Colombia in a 2–1 loss against

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

during a friendly on 12 August 2009. Montero has expressed interest in returning to the national team but has failed to receive a call-up.

Personal life

Fredy was born to parents Fredy Montero Sr., a policeman, and Jaynne, who currently reside in

Barranquilla Barranquilla () is the capital district of the Atlántico department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Caribbean coast region; as of 2018, it had a popul ...

, Colombia. He is the oldest of four children and has two sisters, Jaynne Jr. and Fyorella, as well as a brother named Luiggi. Montero married his girlfriend Alexis Immig, a

Gig Harbor Gig Harbor () is the name of both a bay on Puget Sound and a city on its shore in Pierce County, Washington. The population was 12,029 at the 2020 census. Gig Harbor bills itself as "the Maritime City" and maintains a strong connection to its ...

native, during a private ceremony in April 2012. They have three daughters and live in

Bellevue, Washington Bellevue ( ) is a city in the Eastside (King County, Washington), Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle. It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area, and the f ...

. Montero was named MLS Humanitarian of the Month for March 2011 after raising over $29,000 to donate towards relief for victims of the 2010 Colombian floods. Montero threw out first pitch for the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. The Mariners compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The team joined the American ...

baseball team against the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

on 21 August 2012, shortly after honoring

Félix Hernández Félix Abraham Hernández García (born April 8, 1986), nicknamed "King Félix", is a Venezuelan-American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners from 2005 through 2019. Hernánd ...

's perfect game in his goal celebration against the

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The MLS ite ...

. Montero was also the subject of an episode of the MLS 36 documentary series that debuted on 10 August 2012. The episode filmed his preparations and gameplay during a friendly against

Chelsea F.C. Chelsea Football Club is a professional football club based in Fulham, West London, England. The club was founded in 1905 and named after neighbouring area Chelsea. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football, pl ...

on 18 July 2012. The episode revealed that his dog is named FIFA (after the governing body of the sport) and that Montero is a fan of

EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they imitated real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network" (EASN) ...

' ''FIFA'' video game franchise. Montero gained permanent residency in the United States in 2010. He was accused of sexual assault in April 2010, but the charges were dropped after a prosecutor found insufficient evidence. He is a part-owner of Santo Coffee Company, a coffeeshop in Seattle's Roosevelt neighborhood that opened in 2019.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Seattle Sounders FC *

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

* Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup:

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

Sporting CP *

Taça de Portugal The Taça de Portugal (; ) is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...

: 2014–15, 2018–19 *

Taça da Liga The Taça da Liga (), known outside Portugal as Portuguese League Cup, is an annual club football competition organised by the Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional (LPFP) for teams competing in the top two tiers of Portuguese football – the ...

: 2017–18, 2018–19 *

Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira The Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira (; English: Cândido de Oliveira Super Cup, or simply Portuguese Super Cup) is an annual Portuguese association football, football match played since 1979 between the winners of the top-tier league (Primeira L ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

Individual *

top goalscorer: 2007 Torneo Apertura, 2008 Torneo Finalización * Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Player of the Tournament: 2011 *MLS 24 Under 24 Top Player: 2010 *

*MLS Humanitarian of the Month: March 2010 *FutbolMLS.com's 2010 Latino del Año: November 2010 *

MLS Newcomer of the Year Award The MLS Newcomer of the Year Award is awarded by Major League Soccer to a player who has professional experience in another league and has an outstanding season in his first season of play in MLS. The award was introduced in 2007; its votes are c ...

: 2009 *Major League Soccer Player of the Month: March 2009, July 2010

References

External links

* *
Fredy Montero
at

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Montero, Fredy 1987 births Living people Colombian men's footballers Men's association football forwards Categoría Primera A players Categoría Primera B players Deportivo Cali footballers Academia F.C. players Atlético Huila footballers Millonarios F.C. players Major League Soccer players Seattle Sounders FC players Vancouver Whitecaps FC players Major League Soccer All-Stars Designated Players (MLS) Primeira Liga players Sporting CP footballers Chinese Super League players Tianjin Jinmen Tiger F.C. players Real Cartagena footballers Colombian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal Expatriate men's footballers in China Colombian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Canada Colombian expatriate sportspeople in China Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Colombia men's international footballers Footballers from Atlántico Department CONCACAF Champions Cup–winning players 21st-century Colombian sportsmen