Tab Ramos

Youth and school

Born in Uruguay, Ramos immigrated to the United States with his family when he was 11. His father played professional soccer in Uruguay with CA River Plate and instilled a love for the game into Tab from an early age. While living in Uruguay, he played for the Union Vecinal Youth Soccer Club in Montevideo. When his family arrived in the U.S., they settled in New Jersey where Ramos lived in Harrison and Kearny. He attended Saint Benedict's Preparatory School, the same high school attended by Claudio Reyna a few years later. In 1982, he became U.S. citizen. He also played for local youth club Thistle FC where he played with future United States captain John Harkes. Ramos and Harkes played together from their youth through the U.S. National Team. They were both inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005. Ramos was a two-time high school All-America and the 1983 Parade Magazine National High School Player of the Year. That year he led St. Benedict's to the New Jersey State Championship. Ramos still holds the New Jersey High School boys' soccer career scoring record of 161 goals, 57 of which he scored in his senior year. In 1999, he was named by The Star-Ledger as one of the top ten New Jersey high school soccer players of the 1980s. Apart from playing soccer, Ramos also ran indoor track at St. Benedict's (60 yards and 4 × 100 m relay). In 1984 the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League drafted Ramos with the 10th pick of the first round but…

American Soccer League / MISL

Ramos played with the New Jersey Eagles of the American Soccer League in 1988. That same year the Tacoma Stars of the MISL selected him with the #1 pick in the draft. He did not play a game as he decided to only play the outdoor game. He then moved to the Miami Sharks for the 1989 season. He was selected as a league All Star that year.

Spain

Ramos and several other national team players signed contracts with the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) to play exclusively for the national team as it prepared for the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Following the World Cup, USSF began seeking club opportunities for the national team players. On July 27, 1990, USSF agreed to loan Ramos to Spanish Second Division club Figueres for the 1990–1991 season. He played with Tito Vilanova who would later become FC Barcelona's manager. In his first season with the team he played 38 games, scoring 5 goals. On June 23, 1991, Figueres purchased Ramos' contract from USSF for $250,000. His excellent play continued during his second year with the Figueres, bringing considerable attention from several Primera División clubs. However, Ramos sabotaged this interest when he was ejected from a November 24, 1991 game with Rayo Vallecano. He was suspended for three games and interest in him dried up until the end of the season. On July 31, 1992, Figueres sold Ramos to fellow Second Division club Real Betis for $400,000. In the 1993–1994 season Real Betis won…

NJSA 04

In 2004, with the help of partners, Ramos founded a soccer club based out of Aberdeen, New Jersey. NJSA 04 later morphed into Cedar Stars Monmouth and is currently one of four clubs in New Jersey to participate in the MLS Next League.

United States U-20 national team

Ramos is one of the most accomplished figures in U.S. Soccer history qualifying for the fourth World Cup as U-20 MNT head coach in 2019. He led the under-20 age group team to the final of the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship where they lost to Mexico. The team qualified for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup, however they failed to make it out of the group stage, finishing bottom with 1 point. In November 2013, he signed a contract to remain in the position. He won the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship with the United States, with assistant coaches Omid Namazi and Brad Friedel. In 2019 Ramos qualified the team to the third straight FIFA U-20 World Cup quarterfinal. In 2015 after a scoreless draw through 120 minutes Serbia eliminated the team in quarterfinals on penalties. Ultimately Serbia won the championship beating Brazil 2–1 in the final of the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Auckland

United States men's national soccer team

On March 31, 2014, Ramos was appointed to the assistant coach position of the United States men's national soccer team by head coach Jürgen Klinsmann, less than three months before the 2014 World Cup, replacing Martín Vásquez.

Houston Dynamo

On October…

Ramos lives in Colts Neck, New Jersey, with his girlfriend Tracey and three children, Alex, Kristen, and Sarah.