LAFC’s signing of South Korean star Son Heung-min earlier this month is a major coup not just for the team. It’s also the latest in a spate of acquisitions that has brought an unprecedented level of talent and attention to MLS as the league nears the end of its 30th anniversary season.
Since Lionel Messi joined Inter Miami shortly after winning the 2022 World Cup, MLS has welcomed more than two dozen global standouts, from World Cup champions Hugo Lloris, Olivier Giroud, Rodrigo De Paul and Thomas Mueller to Germany’s Marco Reus and Uruguay’s Luis Suárez.
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Some were a bit past their prime but others, including Messi, have proven to be dominant MLS players. The addition of Son, arguably the best Asian player of all time, opens a new chapter for the league and U.S. soccer as the country prepares to welcome the World Cup back next summer.
With that as a backdrop, here’s one man’s list of the 10 most important signings in MLS history:
1. David Beckham (Galaxy, 2007-12)
Galaxy star David Beckham, right, shakes hands with FC Barcelona’s Lionel Messi before a friendly match at the Rose Bowl in August 2009. (Robert Mora / MLS via Getty Images)
Beckham did more than anyone to change the trajectory of MLS and, by extension, soccer in the U.S. By leaving Real Madrid for the Galaxy in 2007 he put the league on the international map and forced it to make room in its salary structure for high-paid “designated players” — an exception to the payroll cap still known as the “Beckham Rule.” More important, he was bullish on MLS, helping recruit other international players such as Robbie Keane, Kaka, Frank Lampard and, as an owner, Messi and Suárez.
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2. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Galaxy, 2018-19)
Galaxy star Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates after scoring against Portland in March 2019. (Katharine Lotze / Getty Images)
If the proper and reserved Beckham, who was subsequently knighted by King Charles III, brought pomp and class to MLS, the brash and entertaining Ibrahimovic was the troublemaking media-friendly prankster who made the MLS must-see TV. In his short stay with the Galaxy he scored 52 goals and had 13 assists in 56 games. And he did it all with a smirk on his face and a chip on his shoulder, relentlessly chiding the league over its salary cap, the level of play, travel and officiating.
3. Lionel Messi (Inter Miami, 2023-present)
Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi controls the ball during a match against the Galaxy on Aug. 16. (Megan Briggs / Getty Images)
Landing the greatest player in history would have been a coup for any league at any time; MLS acquired Messi less than eight months after he won the Golden Ball while leading Argentina to a World Cup title. If Beckham built the foundation for the league and Ibrahimovic brought it international attention, Messi made it relevant. His pink Inter Miami jersey is the best-selling shirt in MLS history and he’s been successful, too, winning a Leagues Cup and Supporters’ Shield while notching 40 goals and 26 assists in 44 regular-season games.
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4. Son Heung-min (LAFC, 2025-present)
Son Heung-min is introduced as the newest player on LAFC during a news conference on Aug. 6. (Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Son, who either scored or set up a goal in each of his three games with LAFC, finished in double-digits for goals eight times and in assists three times at Tottenham, making him a playmaking double threat. For MLS, however, the addition of the greatest player in South Korean history opens up a whole new continent of marketing and sponsorship possibilities, which could make his league-record $26-million transfer fee a bargain.
5. Landon Donovan (San Jose Earthquakes, 2001 -04; Galaxy 2005-14, 2016) / Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders, 2013-18)
Landon Donovan, center, celebrates with Clint Dempsey, left, and Charlie Davies after scoring in the FIFA Confederations Cup Final between the U.S. and Brazil in June 2009. (Laurence Griffiths / Getty Images)
MLS was fighting to avoid bankruptcy when Donovan, who would soon become the best player in American soccer history, grew homesick in Germany and returned home to play domestically, giving the league a shot in the arm when it needed it most. Clint Dempsey, who would match Donovan’s U.S. record with 57 international goals, left the Premier League for Seattle a season before Donovan’s first retirement. By then the league’s survival was assured, but having the country’s top two players in MLS helped the league grow into maturity in the post-Beckham era.
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6. Thierry Henry (Red Bulls, 2010-14)
New York Red Bulls star Thierry Henry reacts during a playoff game against the New England Revolution in November 2014. (Mike Stobe / Getty Images)
Henry, a world and European champion with France and widely considered the best player in Arsenal history, was the first major player Beckham recruited to MLS. He joined the team in the league’s biggest market immediately after the 2010 World Cup and would go on to score 52 goals, still third all time for the franchise.
7. Robbie Keane (Galaxy, 2011-16)
Galaxy’s Robbie Keane controls the ball during a match against Orlando City in September 2016. (Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
When AEG president Tim Leiweke brought Beckham to the Galaxy, he knew that was only half the equation. Beckham was a superb passer but without a talented striker to get on the end of those crosses, they meant nothing. Keane, then one of a dozen players to score 100+ goals in the Premier League, was the answer to Leiweke’s prayers. Added in the summer transfer window in 2011, Keane scored 21 minutes into his MLS debut and didn’t stop, finishing with 104 goals in all competition and winning three MLS Cups, a Supporters’ Shield and a league MVP award.
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8. Carlos Vela (LAFC, 2018-24)
LAFC forward Carlos Vela chases after the ball during a match against Real Salt Lake in October 2023. (Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
John Thorrington’s decision to make Vela the first major signing for LAFC’s inaugural season is arguably the best ever made by an expansion team’s general manager. Vela, a Mexican national team star in his prime, broke the MLS single-season scoring record with 34 goals in his second season and helped LAFC to two Supporters’ Shields and two MLS Cup finals.
9. Sebastian Giovinco (Toronto FC, 2015-19)
Toronto’s Sebastian Giovinco controls the ball during the 2017 MLS Cup Final against the Seattle Sounders. (Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images)
Beginning with Beckham and Henry, who were both 32 when they joined MLS, the early designated-player signings tended to be older, big-name players who were more useful selling tickets and jerseys than in winning games. Italy’s Giovinco was an exception, joining Toronto from Juventus in 2015 at age 28. He went on to record 68 goals and 40 assists in 114 MLS matches, including a league-best 22 in his first season when he was named MVP. Two years later he led Toronto to an MLS Cup title, a Supporters’ Shield and the Canadian Championship, the only treble in MLS history.
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10. Jorge Campos (Galaxy, 1996-97)
Mexican goalie Jorge Campos waves during the second half of an exhibition match against Brazil in November 2004. (Nick Ut / Associated Press)
Campos, Mexico’s flamboyant, eccentric and colorfully dressed goalkeeper, is often left off the list of the most important MLS signings. But he was among the first international stars to join the league ahead of its first season in 1996 and he proved especially popular with the Galaxy’s Latino fan base. On the field his contributions were more meager, with Campos allowing 51 goals in 43 games over two seasons.
⚽ You have read the latest installment of On Soccer with Kevin Baxter. The weekly column takes you behind the scenes and shines a spotlight on unique stories. Listen to Baxter on this week’s episode of the “Corner of the Galaxy” podcast.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
