Top 5 legends of MLS history

We are going to discuss about the top 5 legends of US football and MLS. This list is finalized by counselors with a lot of pundits and experts. Here are the all-time stars of MLS.

1. Landon Donovan

Landon Donovan is considered one of the Greatest US footballers in history. His tenure in the MLS was nothing short of spectacular.
His remarkable scoring ability, creativity, and leadership played a significant role in LA Galaxy’s success.
Donovan, a six-time MLS Cup winner, remains one of the league’s all-time leading scorers, with 144 goals in 340 games.
He is a successful player both as Winger and Forward. In his professional career, he played in the German Bundesliga, French League 1, and MSL. He enjoyed in America from 2001-2004 representing Sanjose Earthquakes. He entered there in loan from Bayer liverkusen.

He was attached to LA Galaxy from 2005-2014 With a lot of success. Whereas Donovan scored 112 in 247 appearances. He moved to English premiership club Everton two seasons ago and Bayern Munich on loan. He returned to La Galaxy in 2016. He moved to Leon in 2018 and then played for San Diego Sockers 1t 2018-19.
He scored 57 international goals in one hundred 57 appearances in USA National team.

2. lionel Messi

Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. He has won numerous awards, including seven Ballon d’Or awards. Messi Had played for Paris Saint-Germain in the French Ligue 1 before moving to the Major Soccer League.
Following confirmation of his departure from PSG, Messi was linked with a return to his former club Barcelona, as well as with a big-money move to Saudi Professional League club Al-Hilal, but his eventual decision to sign for Major League Soccer club Inter Miami was communicated to Barcelona president Joan Laporta by 5 June 2023. Barcelona were unable to sign him due to financial constraints.
He explained that even though La Liga had accepted everything and was fine for him to return to Barcelona, there were many things left to be done such as lowering salaries and selling players, and he did not want to go through it again or be responsible for it. He confirmed that other European clubs approached him, but that Barcelona was the only European team he wanted to play for.

On 15 July 2023, Inter Miami announced the signing of Messi on a two-and-a-half-year contract. He was formally introduced to fans at a live-streamed event, dubbed “La PresentaSÍon”, at DRV PNK Stadium the following day alongside fellow signee and former Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets. His base salary is set at $12 million with guaranteed compensation totaling $20.4 million for the 2023 season; Messi is also set to earn additional shares from jersey sales, MLS Season Pass subscriptions, and a stake in the club itself.

https://twitter.com/MLS/status/1760510268960842157/photo/1

3.David Beckham – LA Galaxy

David Robert Joseph Beckham was born on 2 May 1975. He is an English former professional footballer, the president and co-owner of Inter Miami and co-owner of Salford City.
Primarily a right winger and known for his range of passing crossing ability, and free-kick taking, Beckham has been hailed as one of the greatest and most recognizable midfielders of 1990 and 2000 decade, as well as one of the best free-kick takers of all time. He won 19 major trophies in his career and is the first English player to win league titles in four different countries. He won league titles in England, Spain, the United States, and France.

His professional career was begins from 1987 when he joined Tottenham Hotspur. He move to Manchester United in 1991, where he became star. He scored 62 goals for Manchester United from 1992-2003 in 265 appearance. From 2003 -2007 he played for Real Madrid. Where Raul Gonzalez, Roberto Carlos, Zinedine Zidane, and Ronaldo were in team. He moved to lA Galaxy at 2007. he move to season AC Milan 2009 and 2010 in loan .
Beckham’s involvement with Major League Soccer (MLS) began while he was still a Real Madrid player when it was confirmed on 11 January 2007 that he would be leaving Madrid in six months to join MLS side LA Galaxy. The speculation about his new contract in Madrid was thus put to an end and the following day Beckham’s official press conference was held in conjunction with the 2007 MLS SuperDraft.
The announcement made global headlines and elevated the league’s profile. Though many worldwide media outlets reported the deal to be worth US$250 million,[106] the astronomical figure was soon revealed to be something of a PR stunt engineered by Beckham’s media handlers (British representative agency 19 Entertainment).[107] To maximise the media effect, in the press release they decided to list the potential sum that Beckham could make over the five-year period from all his revenue sources, which in addition to his Galaxy pay, also include his personal endorsements. Beckham’s actual deal with the Galaxy was a five-year contract worth US$32.5 million in total or $6.5 million per year.

Beckham’s contract with LA Galaxy took effect on 11 July, and on 13 July, he was officially unveiled as a Galaxy player at the Home Depot Center, to much fanfare and world media interest, in front of more than 5,000 gathered fans and some 700 accredited media members. Beckham chose to wear number 23. It was announced that Galaxy jersey sales had already reached a record figure of over 250,000 prior to this formal introduction.
On 15 May,2011 Beckham scored his first goal of the season for the Galaxy from a 30-yard free kick, in a 4–1 victory over Sporting Kansas City. On 9 July, Beckham scored directly from a corner in a 2–1 win over Chicago Fire.

After having his best season with the Galaxy to date, and finishing second in the league in assists, Beckham finished his fifth MLS season on a high. On 20 November 2011, he joined an elite group of players to have won league titles in three countries, when Los Angeles won their third MLS Cup against the Houston Dynamo, winning 1–0 on a goal by captain Landon Donovan, with assists from Beckham and fellow designated player Robbie Keane.
Following the 2011 season, in which the Galaxy won their second consecutive Supporters’ Shield, having the second most points in MLS history, Beckham’s five-year contract with the Galaxy expired on 31 December 2011. Despite being 36, he stated that he did not intend to retire. Beckham was heavily linked with Paris Saint-Germain, but on 18 January 2012, Galaxy announced Beckham had signed a new two-year contract to remain in Los Angeles. In May 2012, Beckham and his victorious teammates were received by President of the United States Barack Obama at the White House.

On 5 February 2014, MLS announced that Beckham had exercised his option to buy a MLS expansion team for $25 million, which he had received as part of the contract he signed with the LA Galaxy in 2007. The ownership group, led by Beckham, originally hoped the Miami-based team would begin play in 2016 or 2017. After delays getting a stadium deal completed, MLS announced in January 2018 that the team had been approved, and would likely begin play in 2020. The team name and crest were revealed on 5 September. Club Internacional de Futbol Miami – more commonly known as, Inter Miami – is represented by a black crest with neon pink trimmings and herons whose legs clasp to form an “M” for Miami.
The club made its MLS debut on 1 March 2020 with a 1–0 away loss to Los Angeles.

4.Zlatan Ibrahimovic – LA Galaxy

After playing for top European sides in PSG, Manchester United, Barcelona, and both Milan clubs, Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined the most successful club in MLS and set the league on fire. The Lion has scored over 350 goals in his club career and didn’t disappoint in Hollywood.

Ibrahimović was a Swedish football star born on 3 October 1981. Ibrahimovic who played as a striker, is renowned for his acrobatic strikes and volleys, technique and ball control, as well as his physical dominance.
He is regarded as one of the greatest strikers of all time and is one of the most decorated footballers in the world, having won 34 trophies in his career. He has scored over 570 career goals, including more than 500 club goals, and has scored in each of the last four decades.

Ibrahimović began his career at Malmö FF in 1999 and signed for Ajax two years later. He gained a reputation as one of the most promising forwards in Europe while playing for Ajax. He departed two years later to sign for Juventus before joining domestic rivals Inter Milan in 2006. At Inter Milan, he won three consecutive Serie A titles and his popularity experienced a significant increase. In the summer of 2009, he moved to Barcelona in one of the world’s most expensive transfers.

After just one season, he returned to Italy having signed for Inter’s rival Milan. With them, he won the Serie A title in his debut season. In 2012, Ibrahimović joined Paris Saint-Germain, leading them to their first Ligue 1 title in 19 years and soon establishing himself as a leading figure in their dominance of French football. During his four-season stay in France, he won four consecutive Ligue 1 titles, was the top scorer in Ligue 1 for three seasons, and became PSG’s all-time leading goa lscorer at the time. In 2016, he joined Manchester United on a free transfer and won his first European honor in his debut season.
Ibrahimović joined American club LA Galaxy in 2018 and rejoined Milan in 2020, winning his fifth Serie A title in 2022.
He made his debut on 31 March as a substitute against Los Angeles FC in the inaugural El Tráfico derby, where he scored twice, including a 45-yard (41 m) half-volley and a header in stoppage time, helping the Galaxy come from three goals down to win the match 4–3.
He scored twice for the Galaxy in a 3–2 defeat to FC Dallas on 30 May; he railed against his team after the match, saying “Every game we shouldn’t be losing two or three goals and then you have to catch the game and try to win. This is not the game; this is not the game. Even if you are in MLS or Premier League, wherever, it doesn’t work like that. We need to be the leading team and play from there, not catch the goal all the time, so obviously it’s not good.

In his first year, despite the Galaxy missing out on the playoffs, Ibrahimović managed to be selected for the MLS All-Star Game and the MLS Best XI, as well as being awarded the MLS Newcomer of the Year Award and MLS Goal of the Year for his strike from distance against Los Angeles FC.
Ibrahimović scored a second hat-trick of the season on 15 September, in a 7–2 win against Sporting Kansas City. This brought his tally for 2019 to 26 goals, breaking the club record for most goals scored in a single regular season.[198] Ibrahimović was again named both an MLS All-Star and to the Best XI for a second consecutive season.

Ibrahimović managed to lead the LA Galaxy to the 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs, where on 24 October, despite recording a goal and an assist, his side was eliminated in the Western Conference Semifinals, following a 5–3 away defeat against Los Angeles FC. On 13 November 2019, Ibrahimović announced he was to leave the LA Galaxy through his Twitter account.

5. Thierry Henry – New York Red Bulls

Thierry Henry entered French National football team as a Midfield and created a lot of glorious history as a forward. He is also among those Star, spent time at MLS after a long period enjoying European Football. He is also considered an all-time Great star of MLS history.
Henry is renowned for his peak form from 1998 to 2006, Where France won the world cup and Euro Cup football and became runner-up at 2006 FIFA World Cup .

Henry is a French professional football coach, pundit, sports broadcaster, and former player. He is currently the manager of the France national under-21 team. He is considered one of the greatest strikers of all time.
He has been named by Arsenal as the club’s greatest-ever player.[9] Henry was runner-up for both the Ballon d’Or in 2003 and the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2003 and 2004. He was named the FWA Footballer of the Year a record three times, the PFA Players’ Player of the Year a joint record two times, and was named in the PFA Team of the Year six consecutive times. He was also included in the FIFA FIFPro World XI once and the UEFA Team of the Year five times. In 2004, Henry was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world’s greatest living players.

He played for Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, and Barcelona before playing for New York Red Bulls at MLS.
Henry had success with France, winning the 1998 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2000, and 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. He was named French Player of the Year a record five times, named to the UEFA Euro 2000 Team of the Tournament, awarded both the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup Golden Ball and Golden Shoe, and named to the 2006 FIFA World Cup All-Star Team. In October 2007, he became his country’s record goalscorer, a record he held until December 2022.[11] After amassing 123 appearances and 51 goals, Henry retired from international football after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Henry signed a multi-year contract with Major League Soccer (MLS) club New York Red Bulls for the 2010 season as its second designated player.
He made his full MLS debut on 31 July in a 2–2 draw against Houston Dynamo, assisting both goals to Juan Pablo Ángel. His first MLS goal came on 28 August in a 2–0 victory against San Jose Earthquakes. The Red Bulls eventually topped the MLS Eastern Conference by one point over Columbus Crew before losing 3–2 on aggregate against San Jose Earthquakes in the quarter-finals of the 2010 MLS Cup Playoffs. The next season, the Red Bulls were 10th overall in the league and bowed out in the Conference semi-finals of the 2011 MLS Cup Playoffs.

After training with Arsenal during the MLS off-season, Henry re-signed for the club on a two-month loan deal on 6 January 2012.
On 17 February 2012, Henry returned to the Red Bulls to prepare for the 2012 season. His base salary of $5 million ($5.6 million guaranteed) made him the highest-paid player in MLS—surpassing David Beckham, who had taken a salary cut for his last year with the Los Angeles Galaxy. In 2013, Henry’s base salary dropped to $3.75 million setting him behind Robbie Keane’s $4 million base salary. With bonuses, however, Henry remained the highest-paid player with $4.35 million compared to Keane’s $4.33 million.
On 31 March 2012, Henry scored his first MLS hat-trick in a 5–2 Red Bulls win over the Montreal Impact.[76] He was named MLS Player of the Month that same month. On 27 October 2013, Henry scored once and provided two assists in the last game of the season against the Chicago Fire at Red Bull Arena to help his team win 5–2 and become champions of the regular season. It was the club’s first major trophy in their 17-year history.

On 12 July 2014, Henry provided a goal and three assists in a 4–1 Red Bulls win over the Columbus Crew. With that effort he became the all-time assist leader for the New York Red Bulls with 37, surpassing Amado Guevara and Tab Ramos.
On 1 December 2014, it was announced that Henry had left the Red Bulls after four-and-a-half years at the club.[80] On 16 December, he announced his retirement as a player and stated that he would begin working for Sky Sports as a pundit. After working at Sky for over three years, Henry quit his position in July 2018 to focus on his career as a coach.