HARRISON, N.J. (August 4, 2016) – The New York Red Bulls have added forward Omer Damari on loan from RB Leipzig of the German Bundesliga pending receipt of ITC and P-1 visa, the club announced today. Damari will join New York for the rest of the MLS season and occupy a Designated Player spot on the roster.
Damari, a native of Rishon LeZion, Israel, joined RB Leipzig in January of 2014. He spent a half-season with the club before going on loan to Red Bull Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga, where he scored four goals and four assists in 16 appearances in 2015-16.
“We’re really looking forward to Omer joining the team,” said Red Bulls Sporting Director Ali Curtis. “We follow a lot of the Red Bull-associated clubs pretty closely, so we’ve gotten to see him play on a number of occasions, and we think he can add a lot of quality to what we’re doing in the final third.”
“There was good teamwork and communication in terms of bringing him aboard,” continued Curtis. “Fortunately, at the end of the day, we’re able to add a quality striker, also in the prime of his career, and we think he can help us this year.”
The 27-year-old has won the Austrian league championship, the Austrian cup, and Israeli Cup. He has nine goals in 20 appearances for Israel.
Before moving to Leipzig, Damari spent the 2014-15 season with Austria Wien, where he was teammates with Daniel Royer, who was signed by New York yesterday
Damari will be the first player in the Red Bull global system to play for Leipzig, Salzburg and New York.
Prior to his time in the Austrian Bundesliga with Wien, Damari played for two Israeli clubs, Maccabi Petah Tikva and Hapoel Tel Aviv. He racked up 85 goals and 13 assists in 180 appearances between the two clubs, with most of the appearances and success coming with Tel Aviv.
Transaction: New York Red Bulls acquire Omer Damari on loan from RB Leipzig of the Bundesliga, pending receipt of ITC and P-1 visa, for the remainder of the MLS season.
Omer Damari
Position: Forward
Height: 6-0
Weight: 170
Date of birth: Mar 24, 1989
Hometown: Rishon LeZion, Israel
Citizenship: Israel
Status: International
Previous club: RB Leipzig
How acquired: Loaned from RB Leipzig for the remainder of the season on August 4, 2016.
