Ronnie Michael Ekelund (born 21 August 1972) is a Danish former 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 played as both a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

and forward. He notably played in

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

for

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 ...

and in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

for

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

and

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

. In his native land he played

Brøndby IF Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening (, usually abbreviated to Brøndby IF (), is a Danish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Brøndbyvester. Brøndby IF denotes the professional football section of Brøndbyernes ...

where he won two Danish football championships and later had spells with

Lyngby Kongens Lyngby (, Danish language, Danish for "the King's Heather Town"; short form Lyngby) is the seat and commercial centre of Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Lyngby Hovedgade is a busy shopping stre ...

and

Odense Boldklub Odense Boldklub (; also known as Odense BK or the more commonly used OB) is a Danish professional football club based in the city of Odense, in southern Denmark. The club has won three Danish championships and five Danish Cup trophies. OB play ...

. He would also play in

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

with

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

and in the English

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

with

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

before finishing his career in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

with

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 ...

side

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional association football, soccer club based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Origin ...

. Ekelund played 21 matches and scored three goals for the Danish under-21 national team and represented Denmark at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Olympiad (, ) and officially branded as Barcelona '92, were an international multi-sport event held from 25 July to 9 August 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Beginning in 1994 ...

football tournament. He was named 1988 Danish ''under-17 Talent of the Year''. Following retirement, he briefly played indoor soccer for

California Cougars The California Cougars were an indoor soccer team, founded in 2004. The team was a charter member of the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL-Pro), the first division of arena (indoor) soccer in North America. They played their home matches a ...

before returning to San Jose Earthquakes for a period as their technical advisor.

Playing career

Brondby

Ekelund started his professional career with Danish club

in 1988. He made his first team debut at the age of 15, becoming the youngest player ever to appear in the top-flight

Danish 1st Division The 1st Division (''1. Division'') is the second-highest football league in Denmark, also known as NordicBet Liga for sponsorship reasons. From 1945 to 1991, the 1. Division was the name of the highest level of football in Denmark. With the for ...

. Ekelund was a part of the 1990 and 1991 Danish championship winning Brøndby team. He played a total 63 games for Brøndby in all competitions.

Barcelona

His involvement in the

impressed defending Spanish La Liga champions

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

. He joined Danish-Spaniard Thomas Christiansen at

FC Barcelona B FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Paki ...

, the second-string team of the club. Due to league restrictions on the number of foreigners in the playing line-up, Ekelund had a hard time displacing stars like

Michael Laudrup Michael Laudrup (, born 15 June 1964) is a Danish professional Association football, football coach and former player. Renowned for his composure, passing, vision, technical skills, ball control, and dribbling ability, Laudrup is widely regarded ...

Hristo Stoichkov Hristo Stoichkov Stoichkov (; born 8 February 1966) is a Bulgarian former professional Association football, footballer and current football commentator for TUDN. A prolific Forward (association football), forward, he is widely regarded as the g ...

and

Romário Romário de Souza Faria (born 29 January 1966), known simply as Romário (), is a Brazilian politician and former professional association football, footballer who is currently a Senator for Rio de Janeiro (state), Rio de Janeiro and the presi ...

in the Barcelona attack. He played a single league match during the 1993–94 season, coming on the field as a substitute and playing 33 minutes, before leaving the club.

Southampton

Ekelund went to England, to

FA Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football ...

club

in 1994. In the 1994 pre-season, Southampton and Barcelona stayed at the same hotel during a training camp. Before leaving, Barcelona manager Johann Cruyff asked Southampton manager Alan Ball what he wanted as a parting gift. Ball replied "A left sided midfielder", and the next day Ekelund was ready to play for the "Saints". Ekelund was an instant hit at Southampton's The Dell stadium with his skills on the ball, forming a great understanding with English forward

Matthew Le Tissier Matthew Paul Le Tissier (; born 14 October 1968) is a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Le Tissier spent his entire professional club career with Southampton, before turning to non-League football in 2002; his loyalty gar ...

, who Ekelund later described as being on level with

Ronald Koeman Ronald Koeman (; born 21 March 1963) is a Dutch professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the manager of the Netherlands national football team, Netherlands national team. Koeman scor ...

and

.Gensyn med Ronnie Ekelund
at 90minutter.dk Ekelund soon suffered a back injury, and which the Southampton medical team felt that this could only be cured by surgery. As Ekelund refused to "go under the knife", the disagreement put paid to any hopes of a permanent transfer deal. Ekelund underwent brief loan deals with English clubs

and

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Coventry, West Midlands. The club plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club is nicknamed The Sky Blues after the sky blue colou ...

, but injuries limited his playing time there. He was loaned out to

Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...

club

Lyngby FC Lyngby Boldklub () is a professional football club based in Lyngby, Denmark, founded in 1921. It is based at Lyngby Stadion. The club play in the Danish Superliga. From 1994 to 2001 the club was known as Lyngby FC. The club has won the Danish c ...

, playing four games for the club in May 1996.Ronnie Ekelund
at DanskFodbold.com

Later career

Ekelund went back to Denmark on a permanent basis in 1996, when he moved to

Odense BK Odense Boldklub (; also known as Odense BK or the more commonly used OB) is a Danish professional football club based in the city of Odense, in southern Denmark. The club has won three Danish championships and five Danish Cup trophies. OB play ...

. He played two Superliga seasons for Odense, before the club was

relegated Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...

to the secondary

. He played one season for Odense in the 1st Division before moving on in the summer 1999. He moved to French club

Toulouse FC Toulouse Football Club () is a French professional association football, football club based in Toulouse. The club was founded in 1970 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the first division of Football in France, French football. Toulouse plays it ...

in Ligue 2. Ekelund helped Toulouse win

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

for the top-flight

championship, but the manager was fired and Ekelund left the club. During a training session while on trial with English club

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

in the second-tier

Football League First Division The Football League First Division was the top division of the Football League in England from 1888 until the end of the 1991–92 season, when its teams broke away to form the Premier League. From 1992 to 2004, the name First Division was g ...

, Ekelund suffered an injury which forced him out of the game for three months. When he recovered, Ekelund signed with English team

in the third-tier

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier ...

in December 2000, Flemming Fjeldgaard
Ronnie Ekelund til Walsall
B.T., 2 December 2000. to play under manager Ray Graydon who Ekelund knew as a coach from his time at Southampton. Ekelund played nine league games for Walsall, scoring once against Bournemouth. He was offered a new contract by Graydon, but decided to leave

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

in 2001. In April 2001, Ekelund transferred to US club

, who competed with

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

for Ekelund's signature. Lars Hendel
USA lokker Ronnie Ekelund
B.T., 27 February 2001. Ekelund suffered a knee injury in his first season at Earthquakes, but recovered and soon became ever-present in the starting lineup. With great passing skill and leadership qualities, Ekelund helped the team win the 2001

MLS Cup MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Playoffs. The game is held in November or December and pits the winner of the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the Western Confere ...

in his first Earthquakes season. In the following season, Ekelund was named in the 2002

MLS Best XI The MLS Best XI is an annual acknowledgment of the best eleven players in Major League Soccer. The selection is determined by a collection of media, players, and MLS club technical staffs. Winners Appearances by player The following players ...

selection. In 2003, he helped the Earthquakes win the MLS Cup once more, as he scored in the 4–2 win against Chicago Fire. In 2004, the Earthquakes management team changed, and Ekelund was deemed surplus to requirements. In four seasons with San Jose, Ekelund scored 11 goals (five of them

penalty kick A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...

s) and made 16 assists in the regular season. He also scored a goal and made four assists in the playoffs. He left the team after the 2004 MLS season, and made the move to indoor soccer in 2005 joining the

, coached by his good friend and former teammate

Troy Dayak Troy Michael Dayak (born January 29, 1971) is an American former soccer player who played as central defender. He spent his entire Major League Soccer career with the San Jose Clash/Earthquakes and nearly all of his professional career playing ...

. During the 2005–06 season, Ekelund offered his experience to Southampton as a coaching staff member unsuccessfully. He joined the coaching staff of the Earthquakes in 2008 as Technical Advisor, helping with the day-to-day training of the team.Earthquakes Staff/Front Office - Ronnie Ekelund - Technical Advisor
at

International career

Ekelund made his name known when he debuted for the Danish under-17 national team in October 1987.Ronnie Ekelund - Alle hold (Alle kampe)
at

Danish Football Association The Danish Football Association (; DBU) is the governing body of football in Denmark. It is the organization of Danish football clubs and runs the professional Danish football leagues, alongside the men's and women's national teams. Based ...

He scored 10 goals in 23 games for the Denmark under-17s, and was named 1988 Danish ''under-17 Talent of the Year''.Arlas talentpriser 2009 - 1987
at

He represented the under-17 national team at the 1989 European Under-17 Championship, and was called up for the Denmark under-21 national football team in June 1990. He represented the Denmark under-21 team in the

hosted at

Personal life

Ronnie Ekelund and his wife own and operate a small company called ''Bébé au Lait'', with Ronnie holding the CEO position at the company. ''Bébé au Lait'' develops and markets fashionable nursing covers for breastfeeding mothers. According to ''Bébé au Laits website, Ronnie's wife invented the Hooter Hiders nursing cover because she wanted to nurse her child discreetly, while attending Ronnie's football games. These nursing covers have been endorsed by Hollywood celebrities such as

The View ''The View'' is an American talk show created by broadcast journalist Barbara Walters. , in its 28th season, the show has aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC as part of the network's ABC Daytime, daytime programming block since August ...

Elisabeth Hasselbeck Elisabeth DelPadre Hasselbeck (; born May 28, 1977) is an American television personality and talk show host. She rose to prominence in 2001 as a contestant on the second season of the American version of ''Survivor'', where she finished in fo ...

. and

Mira Sorvino Mira Katherine Sorvino (; born ) is an American actress. She rose to stardom with her performance as a prostitute in the comedy film ''Mighty Aphrodite'' (1995), which won her both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Academy Award for Best S ...

Photo Shows Mira Sorvino wearing a ''Bébé au Lait'' Nursing Cove
Mira Sorvino on Celebrity Baby Blog
/ref>

Honours

*1988 Danish ''under-17 Talent of the Year'' * Danish championship: 1990 and 1991 *

: 2001 and 2003 *

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ekelund, Ronnie 1972 births Living people Sportspeople from Glostrup Municipality Denmark men's under-21 international footballers Brøndby IF players California Cougars players Coventry City F.C. players Danish expatriate men's footballers Danish expatriate sportspeople in Spain Danish expatriate sportspeople in England Danish men's footballers Danish Superliga players FC Barcelona Atlètic players FC Barcelona players Footballers at the 1992 Summer Olympics La Liga players Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Major Indoor Soccer League (2001–2008) players Major League Soccer players Manchester City F.C. players Odense Boldklub players Olympic footballers for Denmark Premier League players San Jose Earthquakes players Southampton F.C. players English Football League players Toulouse FC players Walsall F.C. players Men's association football midfielders Footballers from the Capital Region of Denmark Danish expatriate sportspeople in the United States