D.C. United defender Bryan Namoff doesn’t speak Spanish. But this season he’s learned the Spanish words for right and left — derecho and izquierdo — as well as he knows them in English.
He better.
On the eve of Major League Soccer’s 13th year, Latin Americans, such as United’s five South American signings this past offseason, have become the face of a now-adolescent league no longer preoccupied with simply surviving.
Instead, MLS is determined to create a standard on the field that matches its ambitions off it, an effort resulting in an expected total of 24 new international signings, mostly from Central and South America, across 14 teams by this weekend’s first regular-season matches.
“We have to focus on the international player pool in order to continue to develop our product,” said MLS deputy commissioner Ivan Gazidis in a teleconference with reporters last week. “We’re not going to be able to develop overnight new domestic players in the domestic market, and so the international player pool is where we look.”
In many ways, English midfielder David Beckham opened the door, stunning the world with his decision last winter to sign with the Los Angeles Galaxy. But his influence paled in comparison to that of D.C. United forward and MLS most valuable player Luciano Emilio (Brazil), New York forward Juan Pablo Angel (Colombia) or Chicago playmaker Cuauhtemoc Blanco (Mexico).
Add to that list World Cup veterans like Marcelo Gallardo (D.C. United) and Claudio Lopez (Kansas City), both Argentines and players who MLS believes have a capacity to attract a level of interest that goes beyond the appeal of U.S. stars such as Landon Donovan.
“Now it’s less about the national team,” said MLS commissioner Don Garber. “It’s more about how we connect with the international audience that’s so knowledgeable about the game. It’s not just the Hispanic audience, it’s that core fan.”
The international influx, ironically, has coincided with the departure from MLS to lesser European leagues by a steady stream of mid-level American players (such as former United goal keeper Troy Perkins’ transfer to Norway), many who’ve felt handcuffed by domestic salary constraints. In part, their absence means MLS teams are hardly as deep as their 28-man rosters might appear.
“You need depth,” said United midfielder Ben Olsen. “If you have your guys who are your starting eleven and then have a gap in between, where you’re talking now about developmental players and guys who you’re just looking to fill out your roster, that’s not a good thing.”
But after more than a decade of wondering whether or their sport might succeed in this country, American and international players both know that if they raise their game enough, there’s a future for them in Major League Soccer.
“We’re eager to learn the terms that will get us through games and vice versa,” said Namoff. “The guys that have trouble speaking English are eager to learn the English words, especially in our back line.”
