Williams playing for Charleston Battery in 2016
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Romario Garfield Williams[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1994-08-15) 15 August 1994 (age 29) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Portmore, Jamaica | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Indy Eleven | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| College career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2014 | UCF Knights | 51 | (18) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Orlando City U-23 | 11 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Montreal Impact | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | → FC Montreal (loan) | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | → Charleston Battery (loan) | 27 | (10) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Atlanta United | 19 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | → Charleston Battery (loan) | 22 | (15) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | → Atlanta United 2 (loan) | 12 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Columbus Crew | 7 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Miami FC | 16 | (8) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Al-Ittihad | 23 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Qadsia SC | 10 | (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | New Mexico United | 10 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks | 29 | (15) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Hartford Athletic | 11 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Indy Eleven | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Jamaica U17 | 4 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Jamaica U23 | 3 | (3) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016– | Jamaica | 13 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 July 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 September 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Romario Garfield Williams (born 15 August 1994) is a Jamaican professional footballer who plays as a forward for USL Championship side Indy Eleven. He is named after the legendary Brazilian footballer, Romário.[2]
Williams graduated from Kingston College in Jamaica and then attended university in Orlando.[3][4] He played college soccer at the University of Central Florida. With the UCF Knights men's soccer program, Williams recorded 18 goals and five assists in 51 games, 46 as starter. He was a unanimous selection to the American Athletic Conference all-conference first team in 2014. He was also the 2013 American Athletic Conference Player of the Year.[5]
Williams was selected by Montreal Impact third overall in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft on 15 January 2015. He made his professional debut on 28 March 2015 in a 2–2 draw against Orlando City SC.[6]
On 11 December 2016 Atlanta United FC acquired Williams from the Impact in exchange for a third-round selection in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft.[7] On 7 April 2018, he scored his first career MLS goal in a 5–0 rout of Los Angeles FC.
On 1 July 2019, Williams was traded to Columbus Crew SC in exchange for $100,000 of General Allocation Money.[8] After one season with the crew, Williams joined Miami FC of the USL Championship in January 2020.[9]
In December 2020 Williams moved abroad to Egypt and joined Al Ittihad of the Egyptian Premier League.[10] On 16 August 2021, Williams moved abroad to Kuwait and joined Qadsia SC of the Kuwait Premier League.[11]
In July, 2022 Williams signed a contract with USL Championship side New Mexico United[12]
Williams signed with Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC on January 5, 2023.[13]
On 4 January 2024, Williams signed with Hartford Athletic.[14] In the season opener and his debut with the club on 9 March, Williams would slot in a penalty to score his first goal for Hartford and help them defeat El Paso Locomotive in a 1–0 win.[15] Williams made 12 total league and cup appearances for Hartford in 2024, scoring 3 goals.[16]
On 14 June 2024, Williams was traded to fellow USL Championship side Indy Eleven in exchange for defender Younes Boudadi.[17] He made his debut for the Indianapolis-based club on 22 June, replacing Jack Blake at halftime in a 1–0 home loss to Orange County SC.[18][19]
Williams has represented the U-17 level of the Jamaica national U-17 team, playing in three games at the 2011 U17 FIFA World Cup. He had previously started four of five games at the CONCACAF qualifiers. Romario also played the Jamaica U-23 national team in March 2015.[20] Williams made his Jamaica senior national team debut in a 1–0 Caribbean Cup qualify win over Suriname on 13 November 2016.[21]
He was named after Romário, Brazilian football legend who won the 1994 FIFA World Cup a month before he was born.
In February 2018, Williams received a U.S. green card which qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[22]
| Club | Season | League | Playoffs[a] | Cup[b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Orlando City U-23 | 2014[25] | PDL | 11 | 7 | – | – | – | 11 | 7 | |||
| Montreal Impact | 2015 | MLS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| FC Montreal (loan) | 2015 | USL | 7 | 0 | – | – | – | 7 | 0 | |||
| Charleston Battery (loan) | 2016 | USL | 27 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 30 | 10 | |
| Atlanta United | 2017 | MLS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | 19 | 2 | |||
| 2019 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Total | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 3 | ||
| Charleston Battery (loan) | 2017 | USL | 22 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 24 | 15 | |
| Atlanta United 2 (loan) | 2018 | USL | 7 | 4 | – | – | – | 7 | 4 | |||
| 2019 | USL Championship | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 3 | |||
| Total | 12 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 7 | ||
| Columbus Crew SC | 2019 | MLS | 7 | 1 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 7 | 1 | ||
| Miami FC | 2020 | USL Championship | 16 | 8 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 16 | 8 | ||
| Al-Ittihad | 2020–21 | Egyptian Premier League | 23 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 23 | 5 | |
| Qadsia SC | 2021–22 | Kuwaiti Premier League | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 10 | 3 | |
| New Mexico United | 2022 | USL Championship | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 10 | 1 | |
| Colorado Springs Switchbacks | 2023 | USL Championship | 30 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 32 | 15 | |
| Hartford Athletic | 2024 | USL Championship | 11 | 2 | – | 1 | 1 | – | 12 | 3 | ||
| Indy Eleven | 2024 | USL Championship | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | |
| Career total | 211 | 75 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 223 | 78 | ||
| Jamaica | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 |
| 2017 | 10 | 2 |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 15 | 2 |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 9 July 2017 | Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, United States |  Curaçao |
1–0 | 2–0 | 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 2. | 20 July 2017 | University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, United States |  Canada |
2–0 | 2–1 | 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
Jamaica
Atlanta United
Individual
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Indy Eleven – current squad
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| Offensive Player of the Year |
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| Defensive Player of the Year |
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| Midfielder of the Year |
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| Goalkeeper of the Year |
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