The Seattle Sounders have parted ways with midfielder Braudilio Rodrigues, choosing not to exercise his 2025 option, Sounder at Heart has confirmed. Although the decision apparently could have been delayed a bit longer, it was timed to coincide with the team moving preseason to Marbella, Spain and gives Rodrigues a bit more time to find a new team. Niko Moreno was first to report that Rodrigues did not travel.
Complicating Rodrigues’ roster status is that he occupies an international spot. With the Sounders’ signing of Kim Kee-Hee, they would have had no open spots remaining. Although no new signing is imminent, the Sounders have made it clear they intend to sign an international U22 player and would need that spot. Parting ways with Rodrigues saves the Sounders to the trouble of needing to acquire one from another MLS team where the going price is about $175,000 in General Allocation Money.
When Rodrigues, 25, signed last January it was with the hope that he’d be able to build on his previous season with Tacoma Defiance in which he set a team record with 17 goals.
Unfortunately, a series of injuries conspired to limit him to just eight appearances and about 340 minutes with Defiance, all of which came toward the end of the season. Rodrigues had one particularly promising performance when he had two goals and an assist in just 21 minutes against Portland Timbers 2, but he was largely ineffective in his next six appearances. He never even made the bench for the first team.
