HERRIMAN, Utah (Thursday, February 3, 2022) – Real Salt Lake has signed FW Sergio Cordova via loan from FC Augsburg (German Bundesliga) for the 2022 Major League Soccer season, the Utah-based Club announced today. The transaction is official, pending receipt of work visa and international transfer certificate.
Cordova’s signing marks the first player arrival to Real Salt Lake under the auspices of new Owner David Blitzer and partner Ryan Smith since their acquisition of the Utah-based Club less than one month ago.
“Bringing Cordova to Salt Lake was amongst our top priorities when we began discussing potential options for 2022,” said Real Salt Lake General Manager Elliot Fall, now in his 15th year with the Club. “We’ve seen him excel with Venezuela, both as a youth and senior national team member, and during his Bundesliga ascension as well. Cordova provides additional versatility to our attack, service from the wings, the ability to go at opponents and lethal finishing. He immediately makes us deeper with his quality, providing intensity, incisiveness and intelligence.”
Cordova, 24, joined FC Augsburg prior to the 2017 season, where he has scored 7 goals in 75 appearances for the Bundesliga side. Prior to joining Augsburg, Cordova began his professional career in his native Venezuela for Caracas FC, where he notched four goals in 36 appearances from 2015 to 2017. Most recently, the striker was loaned from Augsburg to fellow German Bundesliga squad Arminia Bielefeld, scoring two goals in 23 appearances last Fall.
“My arrival to RSL has been very nice, everything is well-organized. We have everything to bring out the best version of us, to get in form for the best performances of your career,” said Cordova, nicknamed “La Pantera,” following his first week training with the Club at preseason in Tucson.
“I think the Club is very good, the style of play, with a good group of guys. From day one I could see this group is a family by the way my teammates received me. I don’t want to talk too much about it, because as they say, ‘Those who talk a lot, do little,’ but I want to compete with my teammates, fight for the badge and make big achievements here in the MLS. I think anything is possible when you see the group of guys we have and their capacity. We know we can get very far this season.”
Internationally, Cordova features for the Venezuela National Team (Los Vinotintos), appearing in 10 matches since 2017. Prior to featuring for the senior national team, Cordova scored five goals in 15 appearances for the Venezuela U20s in 2017.
Pronunciation: CORE – doh – vuh
Hometown: Calabozo, Venezuela
Date of Birth: 09 August 1997 (24)
How Acquired: Signed via one-year loan from FC Augsburg (Germany)
As of February 1, 2022, Real Salt Lake’s current roster headed into the upcoming MLS campaign, listed alphabetically by position, is as follows:
Goalkeepers (4): Gavin Beavers, Jeff Dewsnup, Zac MacMath, David Ochoa
Defenders (9): Andrew Brody, Zack Farnsworth, Justen Glad, Bret Halsey, Aaron Herrera, Erik Holt, Jaziel Orozco, Marcelo Silva, Tate Schmitt
Midfielders (8): Julio Benitez, Nick Besler, Scott Caldwell, Maikel Chang, Damir Kreilach, Everton Luiz, Pablo Ruiz, Jude Wellings
Forwards (8): Sergio Cordova, Bode Davis, Chris Garcia, Axel Kei, Jonathan Menendez, Justin Meram, Rubio Rubin, Bobby Wood
Real Salt Lake finished last season in dramatic fashion, booking its place in the Audi 2021 MLS Cup Playoffs on Decision Day before making a run to the Western Conference Final following a 14-14-6 regular-season record. RSL will open the 2022 season on the road against Houston Dynamo FC on Sunday, February 27 before returning to Rio Tinto Stadium for the home opener against Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday, March 5.
TRANSACTION: Real Salt Lake sign FW Sergio Cordova on loan from FC Augsburg on Tuesday, February 1, 2022.
**2022 RSL PRESEASON SCHEDULE (ALL SUBJECT TO CHANGE)_
_**Fri., February 4 – Sat., February 12: Training at Zions Bank Training Center
Wed., February 9: Match #3 against Utah Valley University – 11a MT**_
_**Sun., February 13 – Sat., February 19: Training in Portland, Oregon
Sun., February 13 – Match #4 against Viking FC (Norway) – 3:30p MT
Wed., February 16 – Match #5 against Minnesota United – 6p MT
Sat., February 19 – Match #6 against Portland Timbers – 6p MT
During the first week of January, 2022, the RSL compendium of properties was acquired by global sports entrepreneur David Blitzer – who boasts interests in the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), the New Jersey Devils (NHL), and six European soccer entities, including Crystal Palace (England), FC Augsburg (Germany), Estoril (Portugal), ADO Den Haag (Netherlands), Alcorcon (Spain) and Waasland-Beveren (Belgium). The Blitzer group also includes Utah-based Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), which owns the Utah Jazz (NBA), led by Ryan Smith and including Dwayne Wade, among others.
Real Salt Lake kicks off its 18th Major League Soccer season this Spring, its first full season under Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni, who led the Utah side for the final 100 days last year, advancing RSL to the 2021 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs for the 11th time in the last 14 years.
The club’s MLS Cup 2009 victory marked the state of Utah’s only major professional championship in nearly 40 years, the title preceding an historic run to the 2010/11 CONCACAF Champions League Final. Buoyed by a passionate base boasting several thousand season ticket holders, RSL has enjoyed a prominent home-field advantage – posting a dominant 145-43-46 (Win-Loss-Draw) record across all competitions at home (2.06 points per game for a 0.771 win pct.) – since building its permanent Rio Tinto Stadium home in Sandy 13 years ago.
In 2015, the club expanded its development pyramid with the addition of Real Monarchs SLC, one of several MLS-operated clubs playing in the USL Championship, the United States’ Division II setup. The Monarchs boast a pair of titles in its brief history, as the 2017 USL regular-season champions, later winning the USL Final in 2019. For the 2022 season and beyond, Real Monarchs will compete in the newly launched “MLS NEXT Pro” as part of a joint United States and Canada endeavor to complete the professional player pathway by connecting youth academies in MLS NEXT to first teams in Major League Soccer.
The entire RSL pyramid, which includes the RSL Academy’s U-15 and U-17 teams, calls the expansive Zions Bank Training Center in Herriman, Utah their daily training home. With five world-class grass fields, two indoor turf fields, a residential dormitory, the STEM-based RSL Academy High School and the 5,000-seat Zions Bank Stadium located on a 42-acre campus, Utah’s sporting future is bright.
Added in 2020 was the elite RSL Academy basketball program, already earning accolades internationally for its vision, mission, and accomplishments.
The RSL Community Foundation was established in 2016, created with the goals of being active in the community year-round, utilizing the popularity and reach of RSL and the Monarchs in promoting health and wellness in children throughout the region, engaging supporters of soccer to raise funds and volunteer time for various local initiatives.
2022 RSL Full- and Half-Season Ticket Packages are now on sale
at www.RSL.com or by calling 844.Real.Tix.
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