Columbus Crew SC striker Kei Kamara said he would have retired had his side been able to beat the Portland Timbers, who won the MLS Cup final for the first time in their history as they claimed a 2-1 victory over Columbus in an error-strewn clash.
The 31-year-old joked with reporters after the loss, saying, "I'm about to make an announcement. I'm retiring," and then adding: "I would have done that if we had won the Cup, by the way. Just letting you know."
Kamara said that despite a season in which he scored 22 regular season goals and four more in the playoffs and was a finalist in the 2015 MVP race, he would aim for next season and keep playing "until I win a Cup."
"Time to play for another one. We'll see what happens," he said. "I came here [and] I wanted to be part of this team that goes to the Cup to win the Cup.
"The fact that I was able to go that far, I'm really, really excited and really pleased about it.
"As a striker they ask you about being tied for the Golden Boot or the MVP and this, and I told everyone that's not what I wanted to play for. I have no regrets [about] anything that happened this year."
"I'm at my peak right now," he said. "I'm 31 and I want to win something. I haven't won anything yet. So when I win something, [I'll retire]."
"I came here to win something, and I haven't done that yet. So for now, I'm staying put."