Javier Wanchope

Javier Vicente Wanchope Watson is a former Costa Rican soccer striker who played most of his career with Deportivo Saprissa.

He was the second famous Wanchope soccer player to emerge in Costa Rica, after his dad Vicente, who played in the 1950's and 1960 with C.S. Herediano and A.D. Limonense. His younger brother is international soccer forward Paulo Wanchope, and his uncle is current coach and former player Carlos Watson.

Javier began his career with C.S. Herediano, a team where all his soccer playing family members have played. He was transferred to Club Nacional de Football of Uruguay, where he played for 2 years. His style of playing was similar to his brother Paulo's, and was projecting himself to a successful international career when a knee injury cut his career short, and almost ended it before it even started. He returned to his country to play with Deportivo Saprissa, where he won two national championships, as well as two CONCACAF Champions Cups. He was an excellent scorer for Saprissa. He played with his national team, during two World Cup qualifiers, and was part of the 1985 FIFA U-16 World Championship held in China, the first FIFA World Cup tournament where Costa Rica ever appeared.