Sam Sundermeyer
With the signing of English international David Beckham in 2007, Major League Soccer proved to the international community that it could attract top flight players from all over the world. Other stars such as Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Juan Pablo Angel, and Luciano Emilo soon followed, helping the MLS establish itself among other foreign domestic leagues.
Along with the influx of older, foreign talent, MLS has developed its own homegrown talent over the league’s thirteen seasons with a high degree of success. Many American players have created stellar careers in MLS, along with others who have made a name for themselves overseas and on the national team circuit. As the league continues to gain exposure and popularity internationally, Americans continue to grow on the pitch while taking their game to a new level.
Starting From Scratch
When MLS began play in 1996, the league was just an infant. The player development aspect of the league was even younger than that; still in the womb you could say. With no top flight professional league existing in the United States since the dissolution of the North American Soccer League in 1985, the development of American talent was almost non-existent. With the U.S. National Team the only real method of developing players in the States, American talent was forced to compete overseas with European talent that had years to develop with their home nations.
With the formation of MLS, the available American talent finally had a stage to showcase their abilities on. In the early years of the league, officials made sure that the scarce American talent was placed in big market areas, allocating national team stars like Eddie Pope to DC United, and Tony Meola to Red Bull New York. No player development system like the youth academies in Europe existed in the new American league, and teams relied heavily on proven international players like Columbia’s Carlos Valderrama and Serbia’s Preki to lead the charge.
As MLS stumbled through its first couple of seasons, previously unknown Americans began to stand tall next to the Valderrama’s of the league. Players like goalkeeper Brad Friedel and forward Cobi Jones are considered some of the league’s first great American players who grew out of MLS to establish themselves not only in the U.S., but the international game as well.
Friedel, who started his career exclusively with the U.S. National Team, signed with the Columbus Crew in 1996, and was named the to the MLS best XI the same year after posting a 0.78 goals against average. This led to England’s Liverpool F.C. purchasing Friedel’s contract after the 1997 season, where he made twenty-five appearances over the next 3 years. In 2000, Blackburn Rovers acquired Friedel’s services and he has remained there ever since, becoming one of the English Premier League’s top goalies.
There are many fans who consider Cobi Jones to be one of America’s best ever talents. Jones started his career with English side Coventry City in 1992 and after a short stint with Brazilian club Vasco de Gama, signed with the Los Angeles Galaxy in 1996. Jones soon became one of the most feared strikers in MLS, posting seventy goals and ninety-one assists over his eleven year playing career before retiring in 2007. Jones’ number thirteen was retired by the Galaxy following his retirement, making it the first number retired in MLS history.
Other Americans like midfielders Alexi Lalas and Chris Armas, along with forward Clint Mathis injected the MLS with flare and style over its first couple of years, dazzling fans all over the country. Mathis in particular was one of MLS’ first “golden boots”, scoring an MLS record 5 goals in a game versus FC Dallas in 2000.
These players were to set the stage for the first wave of new talent that finally had time to develop under the MLS system. Teams were discovering more and more American talent as the league continued play, and finding room for them on rosters. Names like Donovan, Beasley, and Howard were soon to become unforgettable to MLS fans across the country as their skill ushered in a ne era of play in the new millennium.
The First Wave
With the emergence of forward Landon Donovan in 2001, MLS fans were to get their first glimpse at one of America’s brightest talents. Donovan had started his career in Germany with Bayer Leverkusen, but was loaned to the San Jose Earthquakes in 2001. Donovan had an immediate impact, helping San Jose win the MLS Cup in 2001 and 2003. With his combination of speed and pin-point shooting accuracy, Donovan soon became one of MLS’ top draws, having won the U.S. Soccer Honda Player of the Year 4 times since 2002. Donovan has been a standout on the international scene as well, scoring thirty-five goals in ninety-nine national team appearances, making him the team’s all-time leading scorer. Now with the Los Angeles Galaxy, Donovan has teamed up with fellow star David Beckham to become one of MLS’ greatest scoring threats.
Donovan was not alone in his emergence onto the MLS scene. As the league continued to grow, player development expanded along with it. In 1997, MLS teamed up with Nike to create the player development program Project-40. The program operates much like the aforementioned European academy programs by taking teenage soccer talents and developing them in the regions where they live. In 2005 Adidas replaced Nike in the program and renamed it Generation Adidas. Players like DaMarcus Beasley and Tim Howard were some of the first players to emerge from this program, and led the group of new American talent that was fast making a name for itself. With Beasley’s breakneck speed, and Howard’s lightning reflexes in the net, international clubs soon began to take an interest in American MLS players with bids coming in from all over the world.
Beasley, after a stellar 4 year career with the Chicago Fire, signed with Dutch side PSV Eindhoven in 2004 and won 3 trophies with the club in 3 seasons. He was loaned to Manchester City of the English Premier League for a short stint in 2006, and then signed with Scottish powerhouse Rangers in 2007, so far having scored 4 goals in eighteen appearances with the club.
Howard patrolled the posts for New York from 1998 to 2003, winning the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year award twice in over eighty-five appearances for the club. In 2003 Howard was transferred to English giants Manchester United and became the first American to win an F.A. Cup with the Red Devils in 2004. Howard has continued his career with fellow English side Everton after a 2005 loan spell, and soon became a fan favorite. A permanent 5 year deal followed in 2007, with Howard becoming the U.S. National Team’s starting goalie in the process.
With the ongoing development of American talent, MLS was not the only benefactor. The U.S. National Team soon began to reap the benefits as well. In 2002 the world watched as the Americans advanced to the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time in team history with players like Brian McBride, Frankie Hejduk, and the afore mentioned Donovan leaving America’s mark on the tournament. After losing a highly contested match 1-0 lto eventual runners-up Germany, skeptics could not doubt the team anymore. German captain Michael Ballack, who scored the lone goal, admitted that Germany was “lucky” to win the game, and German legend Franz Brekenbauer commented, "America was clearly the better team for ninety minutes.”
After the team reached its highest FIFA ranking of 4 on the eve of the 2006 World Cup, many believed that the American’s time had finally come. However, the optimism was not to be long lived. The team turned in a lackluster performance in the tournament by not advancing out of the group stages, and stars like Donovan and McBride turned in disappointing performances on the game’s biggest stage.
With the defeat of the World Cup fresh on the minds of fans, and the dismal debuts of expansion clubs Real Salt Lake and Chivas USA in the MLS, it seemed that the window had closed on American soccer just as quickly as it had opened a few years before. Stars like McBride, Beasley, Howard, and Friedel were long gone from the league, and the energy and excitement of 2002 was gone with them. The critics were soon to be quieted however as yet another wave of American talent was on the horizon; bringing with them their own style and flare that few had seen in the American game before.
Rise of the Phenoms
In 2004 MLS fans were introduced to America’s first true “soccer phenom” with the signing of fourteen year-old Freddy Adu by DC United. Adu’s signing made nationwide news, and being featured on one of the league’s most prominent teams helped MLS create one of its first true superstars.
Adu had an up and down career with DC; at times scoring incredible goals and burning defenders with his blazing speed, but at other times making crucial mistakes and complaining about playing time. However, Adu’s pure skill could not be denied as he helped DC win the MLS Cup in 2004, while being named an MLS All-Star in 2004 and 2006. Following the 2006 season, Adu was transferred to Real Salt Lake where he made only eleven appearances before transferring to Benfica of Portugal in July of 2007. Adu’s combination of speed, raw ability and youth helped inject a much needed boost into MLS’ game, and like Donovan before him, he was not alone in his emergence.
The explosion of talent that followed Adu was unique in a couple of ways. In previous years, American stars had emerged here and there, but not in the numbers and youth as it did after Adu’s signing. The fourteen year-old proved that younger players could hold their own in the league, and teams responded.
Players like sixteen year old Jozy Altidore, seventeen year old Danny Szetela, and twenty-one year old Maurice Edu headlined a long list of American players that was starting to take MLS’ game to a new level. Altidore became the youngest player to score in the MLS playoffs in 2006 when he helped New York return to the playoffs after a 2 year draught. Szetela played an effective defensive midfielder role for the Columbus Crew on their road to claiming the MLS Supporters Shield in 2004 as the team with the best regular season record. Edu was the number one overall pick in the 2007 MLS Superdraft by expansion side Toronto FC, and the midfielder has helped create one of the league’s most festive atmospheres in Toronto, scoring 4 times in twenty-five appearances while picking up the 2007 MLS Rookie of the Year award.
Building off its previous success, MLS continues to implement player development programs. In 2007, the league created Sueño MLS, a competition sponsored by 2 league teams: FC Dallas and Chivas USA. The teams each hold month long tryouts with players from all over the country and award the best player a developmental contract with the team. The competition allows the league to yet again expand its development base and reach out to new talent. Up and coming players like Salt Lake’s Chris Seitz, Kansas City Wizards’ Chance Myers, and Dallas’ Brek Shea look to continue the success of the developmental programs and lead yet another wave of American MLS talent into the future.
The emergence of young, talented, American players has given Major League Soccer the vital piece it was missing in its early years. The league can now identify itself with countless American players that are easily recognised on an international level. England has Wayne Rooney, Spain has Raùl, and now the United States and MLS has its homegrown stars in Jozy Altidore, Landon Donovan, and countless other talents that are emerging across the country.
With the continued international exposure of the league, one’s opportunistic mind might imagine these American names next to the Rooney’s of the world in the coming years as American talent continues its growth on the pitch.