Few names are more recognizable in Sacramento soccer than Rodrigo “RoRo” Lopez.
For seven seasons the midfielder has been a constant presence after becoming the team’s first-ever player signing. He sported the captain’s armband and Republic FC’s iconic bear-and-star crest, stepping onto the pitch as Sacramento’s faithful roared his name.
But this week Lopez announced he is hanging up his cleats at the end of the 2025 season, bringing more than two decades in professional soccer to an end.
Joined by his family, Lopez spoke at a press conference downtown ahead of his final regular season game. He sat flanked by two soccer scarves — one from 2014, the other from 2025 — as well as the championship trophy he helped Sacramento Republic win in its inaugural season over a decade ago.
“We’re ready for this next chapter,” he said. “The last one was amazing, beautiful, some of my best memories. Now it’s time to turn the page and see what’s next for us.”
‘My heart is here in Sacramento’
Lopez said he had spoken with his family about retirement for about a year, particularly after suffering a season-ending ACL tear last May.
“It was just a lot harder to come in everyday and see everyone smile, enjoy the game… me having to come in and just rehab, run, put in all the work which I love doing, but at the same time it was definitely difficult,” Lopez explained.
His son Roman had also undergone heart surgery, with fellow Republic teammate Luis Felipe launching a GoFundMe that raised tens of thousands of dollars to support the team captain’s family.
“Obviously with what Roman was going through as well at home, all the work we had to do… my wife with the kids, it just became a lot. It was definitely in my head,” Lopez said.
Despite returning for 2025 Lopez did not want to risk injuring himself again at 38 years old. He said he wanted to end his career on his own terms in the right place. “We felt like this was the perfect time, and I felt like this is the perfect team to finish with,” Lopez said.
“My heart is here in Sacramento with Republic, and I just wanted to end it where I’ve truly been loved, and where this has felt home for my family and myself.”
Sacramento Republic FC captain Rodrigo “RoRo” Lopez with his wife Cristina and sons Roman and Remy Oct. 23, 2025.Sarit Laschinsky/CapRadio
Lopez said the news of his retirement took some teammates by surprise, but added that “they kind of sensed it.” He said players told him they wanted to send him off the right way, telling him “we truly want to send you out as a champion, the way you came here.”
The team captain also praised Republic FC’s fans. Lopez recalled how that passion was apparent from the moment he stepped off the plane, adding that as the city’s soccer scene grew and matured, their support never wavered.
“Ever since I landed, fans waiting at the airport… I did my first press conference at Hot Italian, full of media, full of people, “ Lopez said. “I still see the same love for the club. I see everything the club does for the community, for Sacramento, and quite frankly I think it’s the most successful, no offense to the Kings, the most successful pro franchise in the city.”
A distinguished career
Born in Guadalajara and raised in Santa Barbara, Lopez’s soccer journey spans 22 years and 13 different teams in the United States and Mexico.
He began his professional career in 2005 at now-defunct Chivas USA, with stops in Ventura County, Querétaro, Portland, Orlando and Orange County before signing for Sacramento ahead of its inaugural season in 2014.
“Going into Hughes Stadium with 22,000 fans to open up our season in 2014 was a very special moment in my career,” he said. ”Just being the first player signed for a new club and seeing all the emotions and all the excitement in the city, a city coming together to support our soccer team.”
Sacramento captured the championship that year, with Lopez named the Final MVP. He is the last member of the 2014 team still on Republic’s roster.
Lopez departed Sacramento after the 2015 season for other opportunities before coming back in 2020 for one year. He then permanently returned to the Indomitable Club in 2022. Lopez was named team captain in each of his seven seasons in the Capital City.
Under Lopez’s leadership Sacramento Republic reached the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final, beating three Major League Soccer teams along the way and becoming the first second-division club to reach the finals in two decades. Lopez himself was the competition’s Golden Boot winner, scoring four goals.
During the 2024 Open Cup he became the only active player to have a group named after him in the Round of 32, the “Lopez Division.” And this year, Lopez led Sacramento to the 2025 USL Jägermeister Cup Final, though Republic FC fell at home to Hartford Athletic.
When asked how he felt about achieving so much success in the team’s first year, but then narrowly missing out on trophies in the years that followed, Lopez cited the nature of the sport and the difficulty of competing in — and winning — a final.
But as Republic FC prepares to enter the postseason next Sunday, Nov. 2 at Heart Health Park, its 11th time making the playoffs in 12 seasons, Lopez said he has the fire to make one last championship push.
“Knowing it could be my last few games… playing the game that I love so much [and] played forever, it just makes me that much more hungry,” he said. “Hopefully, come five weeks from now, we’re lifting a trophy.”
Sacramento Republic FC captain Rodrigo “RoRo” Lopez celebrates after scoring the winning penalty kick against Sporting Kansas City in the 2022 U.S. Open Cup semifinal.Courtesy of Sacramento Republic FC
Preparing the next generation
Lopez’s presence in Sacramento will continue even after his playing days are over.
Team officials announced Tuesday Lopez will be joining their front office. He will assume a player development role starting in the 2026 season, bridging Sacramento Republic’s youth system with its first team.
Lopez already runs his own academy, and said he hopes to become a role model for younger players. He called the new position with Republic FC a “perfect role,” and said he had been wanting to work in player development for years.
“I might not contribute on the field, but I want to contribute as much as I can off it in order for some players to one day lift the cup and make the club proud,” Lopez said.
Sacramento Republic is entering a new era of its own. The team has a new majority owner in Wilton Rancheria and plans to open its new stadium in the Railyards in 2027, with aspirations to join MLS still in the pipeline.
Lopez wished he could have played in the team’s new home, but said he and his family will be there to show their support from the stands. “I still believe there’s a chance to maybe one day see the club in MLS, but I think we take pride in being in USL and being the top team in the league,” he said.
For Lopez himself, when asked about a parting message to Sacramento’s fans ahead of his last few games, the captain kept it simple: I hope I made you proud.
“I just want to put on a good show, I want to give them that last bit of me to be a good memory,” he said.