Peace Out Bryan Namoff

by Martin Shatzer on Jul 15, 2025 4:37 PM EDT

Bryan Namoff entered semi-retirement today, "suspending" his playing career due to recurring concussion symptoms.

Namoff ends his career with DC United in third place on the all time games played list, behind only Jaime Moreno and Ben Olsen. That's some elite company, but it's company that he deserves.

Namoff was also behind only Moreno and Olsen as the face of the organization over the past decade. His work ethic, resilience, consistency, and overall badassness caused him to be a fan favorite for most of his ten year career in D.C.

He'll be missed, as he has been for the past 12 months. But we're all thrilled to hear that Namoff will remain part of the family, moving into the front office as "Special Projects Manager."

Favorite Namoff memories?

Two recent ones pop into my head. There was our loss to Colorado on 5/4/08 when Namoff received a cut to the head in the first half and played the entire second while wearing a turban. Heroic, but probably not the best way to avoid a future concussion. And of course a more obvious memory: his diving header goal on 7/18/09, redeeming himself from an earlier own goal.

Thanks for coming Mr. Namoff.

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Off the top of my head

- Before Blanco punched Clyde Simms, attacked Marc Burch, headbutted a United staffer, and somehow didn’t end up in jail or banned from all US Soccer events, Namoff scored an excellent header from a Jaime Moreno corner kick in extra time against the Chicago Fire in an Open Cup game at the Soccerplex. If memory serves, the goal was the gamewinner.

- One night a few years ago I was out with friends at the Front Page (Dupont). I came back from getting another drink when I found that a couple of my friends were talking to some young women, and they brought me into the conversation. United came up, and one of the girls said she had met a United player but couldn’t remember his name. After getting a description, I guessed she had talked to Namoff. She said that’s who it was, but that she didn’t really like him. I immediately informed her that we could never be friends as a result of her negative words against Namoff, and walked away.

- Namoff was never known for his long-range shooting, but I distinctly remember a different Open Cup game at the Soccerplex (maybe 2006?) in which Namoff took a shot from all of 40 yards that whistled just wide of the post after staying about 2 feet off the ground the whole time. It was a rocket that any player at any level would be proud of.

Black and Red United

by ChestRockwell on Jul 15, 2025 5:30 PM EDT reply actions