Here’s why 192 Latin American players — including nine on Inter Miami — chose MLS

Gonzalo Higuain, the bearded Argentine they call “Pipita,” announced his arrival to Major League Soccer last week with a cracking, curling, game-winning free kick for Inter Miami in a road victory against the New York Red Bulls.

Video of the golazo went viral, reaching fans from Barcelona to Buenos Aires to Beijing, which is exactly what Inter Miami was hoping for when it signed the 32-year-old forward to a league-high $7 million salary last month.

After 13 years scoring goals in Europe for Real Madrid, Napoli, Juventus and Chelsea, Higuain opted to spend the next chapter of his career in South Florida.

Earlier in that same game, Matias Pellegrini, the 20-year-old Argentine with the boyish face, also scored his first MLS goal. Pellegrini had been under tremendous pressure since joining Inter Miami last summer, eager to prove he was worth the $8 million Miami reportedly paid Argentine club Estudiantes to get him.

Two generations of Argentines, both choosing to ply their trade in the United States.

They are part of a growing Latin American pipeline to MLS as facilities, level of competition, salaries, global TV exposure and perceptions of the league have improved over the years. More and more young players from the region are using MLS as a potential springboard to Europe.

This season, 192 players from Latin America are in the league. Argentina leads the way with 42 players, and six of them are on the Inter Miami roster — Gonzalo Higuain and his brother Federico, Pellegrini, Nico Figal, Julian Carranza and Leandro Gonzalez Pirez.

A fan on Twitter joked the team should be renamed Argentina FC.

The other Latin American countries with the most MLS players are Colombia (24), Brazil (20), Mexico (14) and Venezuela (14). Miami has players from three of those countries — Rodolfo Pizarro (Mexico), Andres Reyes (Colombia), Christian Makoun (Venezuela). In all, nine of Inter Miami’s 28 players are from South and Central America.

“The perception of MLS has changed because some influential players have come up and done well, Argentine guys like Ignacio Piatti, Diego Valeri, Javi Morales,” said Paul McDonough, Inter Miami’s chief operating officer and sporting director. “Facilities have improved so much in MLS and I think the players realize it’s a really good stable league.

“If you’re an older player, you can come here and have a good quality of life and get paid on a regular basis. The economy at clubs down there sometimes is fragile. Players don’t always get their money. If you sign with MLS, you know you’re going to get paid. If you’re a young player, you can come here to showcase your talents and make the step potentially to Europe.”

By contrast, Italy’s Serie A has 81 Latin American players, Spain’s La Liga 77, and the English Premier League has 32.

MLS has always sought South American talent, dating to the days of Colombia’s mop-topped superstar Carlos “El Pibe” Valderrama signing with the Miami Fusion in 1997.

But in recent years, many MLS clubs are targeting younger South American talent and investing Designated Player slots and large salaries for those players. The shift was really noticed with Atlanta United in 2017, under the leadership of Argentine coach Tata Martino and McDonough, who was general manager of that team at the time.

They brought several South Americans to Atlanta, including Josef Martinez from Venezuela, Héctor Villaba from San Lorenzo, Yamil Asad from Vélez Sarsfield, Carlos Carmona from Chile and Ezequiel Barco from Independiente.

The best investment they made was the $8 million transfer fee they paid to get rising Paraguayan star Miguel Almiron from Argentine club Lanus in 2017. The dynamic playmaker became an instant MLS star with 21 goals in 62 games, led Atlanta to the MLS Cup title, and was sold to English Premier League club Newcastle United for a record $26 million transfer fee in 2019.

McDonough says the large Hispanic population in the United States is also a draw, especially in markets like Miami, New York and Los Angeles, but even in Columbus, Ohio.

“We a very bilingual society, so they can adjust and feel at home,” he said. “Look at Federico [Higuain] and [Guillermo] Schelotto in Columbus, Ohio. That’s Midwest, but they settled in and loved it, had really good experiences. Financially the clubs in Europe have so much more stability, so players don’t look this way to MLS as their first option at a younger age because the financial power of the European leagues are very strong. The players in South American look and say this could be a good step for me to potentially jump to Europe and that’s becoming a common trend.”

Many of the league’s top players the past few seasons came from South America, such as Uruguayan national team midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro, who left Argentine club Boca Juniors to join the Seattle Sounders; Uruguayan forward Diego Rossi, who came to Los Angeles FC from Uruguay’s Penarol, 20-year-old Brian Rodriguez (LAFC, from Penarol) and Boca Juniors’ Cristian Pavon (LA Galaxy).

“Latin American players have always had an important role in this league,” said Alfonso Mondelo, the MLS Technical Director. “At the beginning, it was important for MLS to bring in those players because they brought credibility to the league and there were certain players who were already established like “El Pibe”, Bolivian Marco Echeverry, players of that caliber. As the league has grown and improved, we are signing younger players.

“Maybe some of them are not as well known internationally, but they are developing a name here like Almiron in Atlanta. We are attractive to both — those who have recognizable names like Higuain, who can still come and contribute, and at the same time finding those young gems that need a little more polishing and will develop a name here.”

Veteran Inter Miami goalkeeper Luis Robles has been watching the evolution of the Latin American MLS player since he joined the league eight years ago. He recalls being blown away by the talent of Argentine forward Guillermo Schelotto who left Argentine club Boca Juniors to play for the Columbus Crew, where he led the team to three league and cup titles. Schelotto now coaches the Los Angeles Galaxy.

“It says a lot about the league that these South American players are coming,” said Inter Miami veteran goalkeeper Luis Robles. “It is in a much better place than it was five years ago to 10 years ago to 2001, when you had the Miami Fusion. Not only is it a formidable sports league in the United States, but it is doing well to establish itself among global leagues. Perceptions are changing.

“A huge part of that is in the finances as the league continues to invest more to increase the quality as it grows its footprint in the global soccer scene. One of the best ways is to go down to South and Central America, which Europe has been doing for decades. Some of the best players to ever play the game come from these areas.”

Players from South and Central America bring a special set of qualities to the league.

“The Latin American player brings a lot of the qualities we want to see — high technical capability, passion for the game, and a competitive spirit, especially true of the Argentine players,” Mondelo said.

They also can prove to be great investments, as in the case of Almiron. MLS clubs can get young South American talent for a good price, help develop that player, and then sell him for a huge profit.

“Where the league’s going now is how can we put more of our investment in going younger and younger so we can develop the players and sell,” Robles said. “The most recent example is Almiron, Paraguayan national team member who came and was just phenomenal. Lit the league up. That’s the new business model.”

MLS commissioner Don Garber said in December 2018 that MLS must become a “more of a selling league.” He continued “We all need to get used to the fact that in the world of global soccer, players get sold. We have been buying for so long … when I see Alphonso Davies get sold for what could be $22 million, that’s a positive thing for the league.”

The league also has five South American coaches, including Inter Miami’s Diego Alonso, who is from Uruguay. The others are Argentines Schelotto (Los Angeles Galaxy) and Matias Almeyda (San Jose Earthquakes), Colombian Oscar Pareja (Orlando City), and Venezuelan Giovanni Savarese (Portland Timbers).

Those coaches have many contacts in South America, know exactly where to scout for talent, and favor a creative playing style that is attractive to players from that region.

“The MLS has become a more technical league with the ball played more on the ground, short inter-passing game rather than direct with the ball over the top,” Mondelo said. “The South American players feels very comfortable here, getting to touch the ball and showcase their abilities. Also, the quality of facilities here are hard to find in many clubs in South America. MLS training and medical facilities are on par with a lot of the top European clubs. When a player gets injured in South America, sometimes they are left by the side of the road. That doesn’t happen in MLS.”

Another big reason for the migration of Latin players to MLS is the increased TV coverage in the region and worldwide, where games are shown in 190 countries.

ESPN viewership of MLS matches in South and Central America continues to grow, particularly in Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Argentina, according to Brad Mount, ESPN Senior Director of International Programming. The network used to show one MLS game a week in Latin America, but starting in 2019, they are showing as many as five.

Inter Miami is one of the top six most popular MLS clubs in the region based on TV ratings, along with the two Los Angeles teams, Portland, Seattle, and San Jose.

ESPN is strategic in its approach. One Inter Miami match is shown each week in Argentina because there are five Argentines on the team, including former Juventus start Gonzalo Higuain. They use local, well-known Argentine talent in Buenos Aires to call the matches.

The same is being done with LA Galaxy and LAFC matches being shown in Mexico, where TV coverage is driven by MLS stars such as Carlos Vela, Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, Alan Pulido and Inter Miami’s Pizarro.

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of MLS, ESPN has been airing “25 Momentos”, highlighting 25 Latin American players who played in the league.

“Our coverage has grown in the region as more players from there have entered the league,” Mount said. “The league’s done a terrific job of marketing itself better to Latin America. They’ve made a conscious effort not only to recruit younger players but you see a lot of clubs using Designated Player spots to get Latin American players. Before that, those DP spots were reserved for European stars to try and lure them over.

“That, plus the Latin American coaches help generate interest, so we are covering them more on SportsCenter in Mexico, Argentina. Organically, MLS is getting more and more time on the shows, and that leads to more interest from viewers. We’re now getting interest from advertisers as more local players join MLS. Our collective goal is to deliver MLS to as many eyeballs as we can and we’re well on our way to do that.”

McDonough agrees that the increased T.V. exposure has made a huge difference.

“One of the big things is the MLS’ expansion of TV and showing games down there,” McDonough said. “Our games are on all the time, so the players can identify with teams and the level of the league. They’re becoming watchers and saying, `OK, that’s better than I thought, that might be a good avenue for me’.

“When we used to go down to Argentina with Atlanta, we’d be at the stadium watching River Plate and our game is on the TV behind you in the suite, and people are saying, `Wow, you get that many people?’. When you have that, plus the LAFCs, young South American players doing well, it turns their attention to saying that may be a good option for me.”

Inter Miami defender Figal said he watched MLS matches while he was in Argentina playing for Independiente. He was particularly interested in Barco, his former teammate, who had signed with Atlanta United. When Inter Miami called Figal, he called Barco to seek advice.

“He told me he was very happy in MLS, that the fields and facilities are great, the people are nice, the life is calm, the league is competitive, and without a doubt it is a good place to play,” Figal said. “I had offers from Europe, but Miami was more attractive to me. Here, I have a comfortable life, I feel at home, the league is strong and there are very good players around to help make me better.”

He was ecstatic when Hugain joined the team last month.

“It is a dream for me to play with Gonzalo,” Figal said. “I always watched him on T.V., and now he is my teammate. He motivates me every day. He tells me about his experiences in Europe, gives me advice on my game. What has surprised me is his humility. Even though he is a star, he treats us like equals.”

Pellegrini feels the same.

“Sometimes I look over at Gonzalo at practice and I can’t even believe he’s my teammate,” said Pellegrini, who is 20 and idolizes Higuain. “He is an inspiration to all of us.”

Higuain sent a global message by choosing MLS over other offers.

“Higuian could still play in the top leagues in the world and he has made MLS his league of choice,” Mondelo said. “It speaks volumes to how this league is seen internationally. In the early days, you had to convince players and entice them to come here. Now, players are contacting us.”