Wanna be Like Freddy

24 November 2003


Freddy Adu, 14, Signs With DC United

America's Major League Soccer hasn't quite caught fire the way fans in the US had hoped. The quality of play has improved in the last few years, and there are signs that the league's financial picture makes it viable for the long-term. But something has been missing, something to get excited about. Last week, the MLS found it. DC United signed Freddy Adu, age 14, to a contract. He could be the answer to the game's prayers -- if his handlers don't blow it.

Putting the entire future of a sports league on the shoulders of a 14-year-old boy may be taken as a desperate measure, but anyone who has seen Mr. Adu play can attest that his shoulders can bear the weight. As for the argument that his age is against him, that will change in time. Moreover, he is the same age as a great many gymnasts and ice skaters who are at the peak of their careers. The danger is that he will become a Mike Tyson, talent ruined by a lack of discipline and wisdom, of too much too soon. This is where the league needs to be smart and protect its investment.

On the other hand, he is what American soccer needs. First, he became an American this year, his mother having won a State Department visa lottery a few years back (immigrant kid makes good). Second, he is not a manufactured star but rather a real talent who opted for the MLS instead of Chelsea (Kensington's team of choice), Manchester United (possibly the world's most famous team), Inter Milan (perennial Italian powerhouse), PSV Eindhoven (the mighty Dutch team) and Barcelona (Brazilian star Ronaldinho's side). Third, he is black -- the game of white suburbanites and Spanish-speaking immigrants could genuinely penetrate the black community of the US in a way it has failed to do thus far with his face on the product. Fourth, his personality is endearing enough to make him popular young man without being a soccer star. Finally, the future of the game lies in the children of the US, and he is one of them -- the identification factor cannot be ignored.

While the NBA searches for its next Michael Jordan, the MLS may have found one. "I was hooked on basketball for a while," the AP quoted Mr. Adu as saying. Fortunately for soccer fans, he unhooked himself.

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