Ricardo Emmanuel Rivera de León (born 17 April 1997) is a Puerto Rican footballer who plays as a forward for USL Championship club Miami FC, and for the Puerto Rico national team.
Career
Youth and college
Rivera played most of his youth career at Club Atlético de San Juan, before moving to Valencia in 2015, where he played one year at Racing Algemesí. From 2016 to 2018, he played college soccer at UPR Mayagüez, where he won the championship twice, and earned awards including MVP and top goalscorer.[1]
Senior career
In 2018, Rivera tried out and signed with Villamarxant CF of the Tercera División.[2]
Rivera signed with USL Championship club Miami FC in January 2025.[3]
International
Rivera was called up to the Puerto Rico national under-17 team under manager Jeaustin Campos in 2012, for the FIFA U17 World Cup Qualifiers. In 2016 he played for the Puerto Rico national under-20 team.[4] In the same year, he was called up, and made his debut for the senior national team, for friendly matches against the Dominican Republic.[5] In July 2019, he was called up to the Puerto Rico national under-23 team, for the 2020 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Tournament. He scored the winning goal in the 93' minute in his debut against Antigua and Barbuda.[6]
Rivera concluded the 2022 World Cup qualifiers as the team’s leader in goals, with four.[7] Puerto Rico finished this stage second in their group, but only Saint Kitts and Nevis advanced.[7]
Career statistics
International goals
- As of match played 21 November 2023.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 March 2021 | Estadio Centroamericano, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico |  Trinidad and Tobago |
1–1 | 1–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 2 June 2021 | Estadio Centroamericano, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico |  Bahamas |
2–0 | 7–0 | |
| 3 | 4–0 | |||||
| 4 | 8 June 2021 | Georgetown Football Stadium, Georgetown, Guyana |  Guyana |
1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 5 | 12 June 2022 | Estadio Centroamericano, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico |  British Virgin Islands |
2–0 | 6–0 | 2022–23 CONCACAF Nations League C |
| 6 | 4–0 | |||||
| 7 | 5–0 | |||||
| 8 | 6–0 | |||||
| 9 | 26 March 2023 | Mayagüez Athletics Stadium, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico |  Cayman Islands |
1–0 | 5–1 | |
| 10 | 3–0 | |||||
| 11 | 9 September 2023 | Thomas Robinson Stadium, Nassau, Bahamas | Bahamas |
2–1 | 6–1 | 2023–24 CONCACAF Nations League B |
| 12 | 12 September 2023 | Mayagüez Athletics Stadium, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico |  Antigua and Barbuda |
2–0 | 5–0 | |
| 13 | 3–0 | |||||
| 14 | 21 November 2023 | Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium, Bayamón, Puerto Rico | Bahamas |
1–0 | 6–0 | |
| 15 | 2–0 | |||||
| 16 | 3–0 |
References
- ^ Time/Results. "CAAMpeones los Tarzanes de la UPRM | FutbolBoricua.net". Futbolboricua.co. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- ^ "Ricky, un Tarzán a la conquista de España". ¡Que Palo! Deportes.
- ^ "Miami FC Signs Puerto Rican International Ricardo Rivera". MiamiFC.com. Miami FC. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
- ^ "Noticias: Le llega el turno a la Sub20 rumbo a la Copa Mundial". Archived from the original on 2020-09-21. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
- ^ Time/Results. "A Escena El Clásico Caribeño En Bayamón: #Nuestraselepr Vs. República Dominicana | Futbolboricua.Net". Futbolboricua.co. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- ^ "Primera victoria de la Selección Olímpica en 12 años".
- ^ a b "Termina con victoria Puerto Rico la clasificación al mundial Catar 2022 | FutbolBoricua.net".