Brazilian football legend Roberto Carlos is perhaps best known for his time with the national team and Real Madrid, winning La Liga four times and the Champions League three times, but there was a time when the 2002 World Cup winner was almost in Premier League football.
In an interview with CBS Sports analyst Nico Cantor on Morning Footy, Carlos revealed how he almost got into the league at a time when it wasn’t as popular as it is today.
“Many years ago, yes many years ago. But I couldn’t trade Real Madrid for football in the United States then,” said Carlos. “I was too young and I made all my life in Spain. But when I can, I watch a lot of MLS games here. Not just football, NBA and NFL, I see a little bit of everything here, football, sports in this country. It’s great.”
With Lionel Messi coming to the MLS it could help change the perception of stars like Carlos going forward, but it’s clear that American football is having an impact worldwide, especially with games more accessible than ever and the appetite for football growing by the second increases . In a league that focuses on attacking stars, someone like Carlos could have changed that by showing the value of top defenders. Ashley Cole and Giorgio Chiellini are some of the top defenders who have made the jump to the United States, but others could follow in the future.
Carlos and other world soccer stars will participate in The Beautiful Game, a soccer celebration at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium, on June 23. There you can see Carlos, Ronaldinho, Carlos Valderrama, Rafa Marquez and other giants of the game take part in the match. Current players such as Paulo Dybala, Vinicius Junior, Eder Militao and Willian will also participate.
How to watch The Beautiful Game
- Date: Friday 23 June | Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
- Place: Exploria Stadium — Orlando, Florida
- Global Live Stream: Ubeat.tv