Luís Fernando Trieweiler (born 29 March 1955,

Novo Hamburgo Novo Hamburgo ('New Hamburg', ; ) is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, located in the metropolitan area of Porto Alegre, the state capital. As of 2020, its population was 247,032. Th ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

), better known as Luís Fernando Gaúcho, is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as a forward in the 1970s and 80s in Brazil, the United States and Portugal. He was known simply as Luís Fernando while playing in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

Career

Luís Fernando Gaúcho was discovered playing in the Brazilian state of

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, ; ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative units of Brazil#List, fifth-most populous state and the List of Brazilian s ...

by the director of

América Futebol Clube (SP) América Futebol Clube (SP), also known as América de Rio Preto or simply América, is a Brazilian football team based in São José do Rio Preto, São Paulo. Founded in 1946, it plays in Campeonato Paulista Segunda Divisão. It was named aft ...

. He began his professional career on the junior team of

Sport Club Internacional Sport Club Internacional (), commonly known as Internacional, Inter de Porto Alegre, a cidade do Grêmio or simply Inter, is a Brazilian professional Association football, football club based in Porto Alegre. They play in the Campeonato Bras ...

in 1974, scoring 88 goals, before moving to

América (SP) The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

of the First Division in 1977. While at América (SP), he was the top scorer of the Campeonato Paulista League for 1979 with 27 goals. In

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

he moved to the

Los Angeles Aztecs The Los Angeles Aztecs were an American professional soccer team based in Los Angeles, California, that existed from 1974 to 1981. The Aztecs competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1974 North American Soccer League season, 1974 ...

of the NASL and promptly scored 28 goals in 28 matches that season. That total was second only to

Giorgio Chinaglia Giorgio Chinaglia (; 24 January 1947 – 1 April 2012) was an Italian association football, footballer who played as a striker (association football), striker. He grew up and played his early football in Cardiff, Wales, and began his career with ...

's 32 markers, and earned Luís Fernando a spot on the 1980 All-NASL 2nd team. In the playoffs, he carried the Aztecs all the way to the final four, before losing to the eventual champion

Cosmos The cosmos (, ; ) is an alternative name for the universe or its nature or order. Usage of the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity. The cosmos is studied in cosmologya broad discipline covering ...

in the semi-final. It was L.A.'s best playoff showing since

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

. The following year, a mid-season trade saw him acquired by the struggling

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Championship in the second tie ...

. His 9 goals in the final 16 games helped buoy the Rowdies past

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

into the last playoff spot. His 16 goals in 1982 earned him the Rowdies' team MVP honors. In 91 career NASL games from 1980 to 1983, he scored 59 goles and added 12 assists. After returning to his homeland he also played for the Brazilian sides 15 de Novembro and Grêmio. :pt:Luís Fernando Gaúcho

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaúcho, Luís Fernando 1955 births Men's association football forwards Brazilian men's footballers Brazilian expatriate men's footballers América Futebol Clube (SP) players SC Internacional players Clube 15 de Novembro players Grêmio FBPA players Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Los Angeles Aztecs players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Tampa Bay Rowdies (1975–1993) players Living people 20th-century Brazilian sportsmen