Ryan Stewart Gauld (born 16 December 1995) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps, whom he captains, and the Scotland national team.
[8] Later on in the 2012–13 season, on 1 April, he made his first start against St Johnstone at McDiarmid Park and marked the occasion with his first senior goal to open a game which ended 1–1.
[23] Despite being put into the club's B-team, Gauld was named in the 25-man squad to play in the UEFA Champions League after impressing manager Marco Silva during training sessions.
[32] Gauld made his debut for the first team on 29 December 2014 in a Taça da Liga game against Vitória de Guimarães, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 win.
[34] Four days later, he made his Primeira Liga debut, replacing André Martins for the last 25 minutes of a 4–2 win over Rio Ave at the Estádio José Alvalade.
[38] Gauld matched his goal tally in Segunda Liga from the previous season on 3 October, when he opened a 1–1 draw at Famalicão,[39] and succeeded it on 28 November with his fourth goal of the campaign, assuring the same result at Gil Vicente[40] On 20 July 2016, amidst interest from England's Sheffield Wednesday, Gauld was loaned to Portuguese top-flight team Vitória de Setúbal for the upcoming season, alongside his teammate André Geraldes.
[41] He made his debut for Vitória on 26 October 2016 in a Taça da Liga tie against lower-league Santa Clara, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 win.
[42] He made his league debut three days later, coming on as a late substitute for Nenê Bonilha in a scoreless draw at home to Porto, his first game in Primeira Liga for 20 months.
[46] He was unable to play against his parent team on the first day of the season, however, he came on as an added-time substitute for Salvador Agra in the next game, a 2–2 draw with Paços de Ferreira on 13 August.
[31] Gauld left Sporting to rejoin Farense on a permanent basis in July 2019, signing a two-year contract with an option for a third year and a €4 million release clause.
[51][52] On 29 February 2020, he scored his first career hat-trick in a 3–1 win over Académico de Viseu to put his team top of the second division; this concluded a run of six goals from seven games.
[57] Vancouver retained the Canadian Championship in 2023, with Gauld scoring the decisive goal from the penalty spot in a 2–1 final win over Montréal at BC Place on 7 June 2023.
[61] Nineteen days later, Gauld was named MLS Player of the Matchday for Week 21 of the 2023 season, for recording a goal and two assists against Los Angeles.
[67] He made his debut on 9 October 2012 against Armenia, replacing Matty Kennedy after 66 minutes of an eventual 4–0 win in a European qualifier at New Douglas Park in Hamilton.
[71] He scored his first goals for the under-21 team on his third cap on 8 September 2014, a brace in a 3–0 win away to Luxembourg at the Stade Municipal de Differdange, at the end of a failed European qualification campaign.
[72] On 30 September 2014, Gauld was called up to the senior Scotland national football team for Euro 2016 Group D qualifying matches against Georgia and Poland,[73] but did not play.
[78][79] In August 2024, it was announced that Gauld had been invited to join the Scotland squad for its upcoming UEFA Nations League matches against Poland and Portugal in September 2024, for his first call-up in a decade.
[81] In the subsequent fixtures against Croatia and Portugal, Gauld again came on as a substitute, playing on the same team as childhood companion John Souttar for the first time since their Dundee United spell in 2014.
[3] Gauld himself has spoken of his preference for Portuguese football over its Scottish equivalent, and expressed relief at the lower media interest in him at Sporting, opining that comparisons with Messi were exaggerated and premature.