# Raúl Díaz Arce

Raúl Díaz Arce (born February 1, 1970) is a Salvadoran former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is El Salvador's most prolific goal scorer, with 39 goals in just 68 appearances.

## Playing career

From 1985 to 1986, Arce played for Deportivo Jalapa in Guatemala. From 1988 to 1991, Arce played for Dragon in the Salvadoran second division, where he was the league's leading scorer in the 1991–92 season with 21 goals. Playing for Dragon, in two seasons in first division, "Ignacio Raul" scored 34 goals (13 in 1989–90 and 21 in 1990–91), in the second season he was the scoring champion of the regular season when he played four laps.
He then moved up to play for C.D. Luis Ángel Firpo of the Salvadoran first division from 1991 to 1996. Here he was the league's top scorer three season in a row (1993–1996) with 24, 21 and 25 goals, respectively. In Luis Ángel Firpo he scored in five seasons with a total of 119 goals. These early achievements earned him a spot in the national team and a move to the United States.

### D.C. United

In 1996, Diaz Arce signed with Major League Soccer, and was drafted tenth overall in the MLS Inaugural Player Draft by D.C. United on February 6. On April 20, Diaz Arce recorded the first goal in D.C. United's history when he scored in the 7th minute against the LA Galaxy. He quickly established himself as a dangerous striker in the league, scoring 23 goals in his first season with United, second in the league behind Roy Lassiter. Diaz Arce was also the first player in MLS history to score a hat-trick in postseason play. He scored 3 against the Tampa Bay Mutiny on October 10, 1996. DC United won 4-1 and went on to become the first MLS champions. Diaz Arce continued to perform well in his second season, registering 15 goals, and helping D.C. United to win their second consecutive MLS Cup.

### New England Revolution

Salary cap pressures and reported conflicts between Diaz Arce and Marco Etcheverry, resulted in D.C. trading one of the league's most prolific scorers to the New England Revolution. The deal was not well-received by D.C. United's fanbase.
On February 5, 1998, in what would become the first three-team trade in MLS history, New England acquired Diaz Arce from D.C. United in exchange for Alexi Lalas and a second-round pick in the 1999 MLS College Draft, which were traded to the MetroStars with the MetroStars’ second-round pick in the 1999 MLS College Draft and future considerations going to D.C. United along with New England’s first-round pick in the 1999 MLS College Draft. Diaz Arce made his Revolution debut in the first match of a season, a loss to his former club, on March 29, 1998. He scored his first Revolution goal the following match, in a 2-1 defeat to the Miami Fusion on April 4. Diaz Arce made his Revolution home debut on April 18, providing an assist in a 1-1 draw against D.C. United in front of a crowd of 24,133 at Foxboro Stadium. The Revolution would lose the subsequent shoot out.
Diaz Arce's success continued in New England. In the 1998 New England Revolution season, he started all 32 league matches, leading the team in minutes played and games played. He was named the Revolution's 1998 scoring champion, notching 18 goals and recording 8 assists. His 18 goal tally was the highest in a single season in club history for a Revs player - a record that would stand for four more seasons, until it was broken by Taylor Twellman in 2002. He represented New England in the 1998 MLS All-Star Game alongside his teammate Mike Burns.
On January 20, 1999, the Revolution traded Diaz Arce to the MetroStars in return for Giovanni Savarese and a second-round pick in the 2000 MLS SuperDraft.

### End of MLS career

Nevertheless, Diaz Arce was traded again, and eventually played for the Tampa Bay Mutiny and San Jose Clash, as well as briefly with the MetroStars, registering 13 goals and 7 assists in the 1999 season. Diaz Arce continued to be shuttled around in 2000, playing for Tampa Bay and D.C. again in 2000, and scoring a career low 9 goals. Diaz Arce continued to decline in 2001, playing only briefly for D.C. United, before being traded again to the Colorado Rapids, with whom he ended his career in MLS.
Diaz Arce left MLS second in career goals scored with 82, behind only Roy Lassiter; although he has fallen as others have surpassed both of their totals.

### Charleston & Puerto Rico

For the 2002 season, Diaz Arce played for the Charleston Battery of the A-League, scoring 6 goals and 4 assists in 1319 minutes. He was not the success Charleston had hoped for, however, and left following the year. In 2004, Diaz Arce joined the struggling expansion Puerto Rico Islanders, and gave the team a significant boost, scoring two goals in his first game and a total of 7 in 1233 minutes, and helping the team attain a level of respectability. He is now the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Director at the Chicago Magico Soccer Club.

## International career

Diaz Arce made his debut for El Salvador in an April 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification match against Nicaragua in which he scored two goals. Over his career, he earned a total of 68 caps, scoring a record 39 goals. He represented his country in 28 FIFA World Cup qualification matches and played at several UNCAF Nations Cups as well as at the 1996 and 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cups. His final international was a September 2000 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Honduras.

### International goals

    Scores and results list El Salvador's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each El Salvador goal.
List of international goals scored by Raúl Díaz Arce :
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 4 April 1991 | Dennis Martínez National Stadium, Managua, Nicaragua | Nicaragua | 1–0 | 3–2 | 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification |
| 2 | 4 April 1991 | Dennis Martínez National Stadium, Managua, Nicaragua | Nicaragua | 3–2 | 3–2 | 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification |
| 3 | 24 April 1991 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Nicaragua | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification |
| 4 | 29 May 1991 | Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica | Costa Rica | 1–0 | 1–7 | 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup |
| 5 | 6 December 1992 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Jamaica | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 18 February 1993 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States | Russia | 1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 7 | 7 March 1993 | Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino, Tegucigalpa, Honduras | Panama | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1993 UNCAF Nations Cup |
| 8 | 12 March 1993 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Bolivia | 1–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 9 | 12 March 1993 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Bolivia | 2–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 10 | 23 March 1993 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | United States | 1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 11 | 9 May 1993 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Honduras | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 12 | 3 May 1994 | Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States | Honduras | 1–0 | 3–1 | Miami Cup |
| 13 | 3 May 1994 | Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States | Honduras | 2–0 | 3–1 | Miami Cup |
| 14 | 3 May 1994 | Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States | Honduras | 3–0 | 3–1 | Miami Cup |
| 15 | 29 November 1995 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Belize | 3–0 | 3–0 | 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup |
| 16 | 10 December 1995 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Costa Rica | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup |
| 17 | 10 January 1996 | Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, United States | Trinidad and Tobago | 1–0 | 3–2 | 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 18 | 10 January 1996 | Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, United States | Trinidad and Tobago | 3–2 | 3–2 | 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 19 | 8 September 1996 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Cuba | 1–0 | 5–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 20 | 8 September 1996 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Cuba | 4–0 | 5–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 21 | 8 September 1996 | Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama | Panama | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 22 | 10 November 1996 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Panama | 1–1 | 3–2 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 23 | 1 December 1996 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Cuba | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 24 | 4 May 1997 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Costa Rica | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 25 | 29 June 1997 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | United States | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 26 | 14 September 1997 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Canada | 4–1 | 4–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 27 | 16 November 1997 | Foxboro Stadium, Foxboro, United States | United States | 2–3 | 2–4 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 28 | 8 October 1999 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States | Canada | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification |
| 29 | 10 October 1999 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States | Cuba | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification |
| 30 | 29 February 2000 | Estadio Jorge "Mágico" González, San Salvador, El Salvador | Panama | 2–0 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 31 | 29 February 2000 | Estadio Jorge "Mágico" González, San Salvador, El Salvador | Panama | 3–1 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 32 | 5 March 2000 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Belize | 3–0 | 5–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 33 | 28 March 2000 | Estadio Jorge "Mágico" González, San Salvador, El Salvador | Haiti | 1–0 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 34 | 2 April 2000 | Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala | Guatemala | 3–0 | 5–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 35 | 16 April 2000 | People's Stadium, Orange Walk Town, Belize | Belize | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 36 | 7 May 2000 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Guatemala | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 37 | 23 July 2000 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 5–1 | 7–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 38 | 23 July 2000 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 6–1 | 7–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 39 | 23 July 2000 | Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 7–1 | 7–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |

## Honours

C.D. Luis Ángel Firpo
* Primera División de Fútbol de El Salvador: 1991/92, 1992/93
D.C. United
* MLS Cup: 1996, 1997
* MLS Supporters' Shield: 1997
* U.S. Open Cup (1): 1996
Charleston Battery
* USL First Division: 2003
* Southern Derby: 2003
Individual
* MLS All-Star: 1997, 1998, 1999
* DC United Hall of Tradition: August 26, 2009