After spending last week on trial with the Seattle Sounders, Herculez Gomez has signed a contract, the club announced on Thursday.
The 33-year-old striker joins the Sounders after being waived by Toronto FC earlier this month. This will be Gomez’s second stint in Seattle – he spent a year with the USL Sounders in 2003.
“We’re happy to add a player with Herculez’s experience to our current roster,” Sounders GM and president of soccer Garth Lagerwey said in a statement released by the club. “He has done well in training and we look forward to seeing what he can bring to the team.”
A member of the US national team at the 2010 World Cup, Gomez has had an extensive career in both the US and Mexico, appearing in 323 matches across 14 seasons of professional soccer in North America. He has 24 goals in 131 career MLS regular season matches.
Gomez began his time in MLS with the LA Galaxy in 2002, before going on loan to Seattle in 2003 and moving to Colorado in 2007. He spent nearly two seasons with the Rapids before being traded to Kansas City, where he remained until he moved to Mexico following the 2009 season.
His career took off south of the border, as he led Liga MX in scoring with 10 goals for Puebla in the 2010 Clausura season. He ended up spending five years in Mexico, playing for Puebla, Estudiantes Tecos, Santos Laguna, Tijuana and Tigres UANL before returning to MLS with Toronto FC last August.
The Las Vegas native, who scored six goals in 24 career caps with the USMNT, joins a Seattle forward corps that includes Clint Dempsey, Jordan Morris and Nelson Valdez.
“Herculez is a veteran player who has played in some big games,” Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid said in the club’s statement. “I look forward to his team play, hard-working attitude and his goal scoring as an addition to our team.”
