FIFA president Gianni Infantino says MLS “must attract the best players” in order to grow

The FIFA boss said that Major League Soccer needs to attract the best players in order to improve the level.

Joe Brennanj4brennanUpdate: May 8th, 2024 05:02 EDT0

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Hold on, everyone, someone’s given Gianni Infantino a microphone again, and this time, he’s decided to speak about MLS…

Infantino, addressing a gathering in Los Angeles, said that he advised MLS executives on the significance of recruiting top-tier players to elevate the sport. “I emphasised the necessity for a more daring approach,” Infantino commented during the Milken Institute Global Conference. “We need to attract the very best players.”

▪️ Colorado and Toronto enter the top ten▪️ Miami maintains status as #1Where does your club stand?Power Rankings pres. by @RBCWealth: https://t.co/AqoWw5KTj4 pic.twitter.com/PPuJTuPHGB

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 7, 2024

‘Is there really a great American soccer player?’

“We want to see the best so we need to bring them the best players, but also the best game, and the best spectacle,” Infantino remarked. “For this we need to invest in the players because we want to show to the kids who play soccer when they are at school or when they are very young, that there is a path in soccer to glory to become one of these world stars.

“This is what maybe they don’t see yet”, he continued, ”they see it in basketball, American football, in baseball and ice hockey. But in soccer, it’s still kind of far away. You have to go to Europe. And is there really a great American soccer player?”

The first player in MLS history to record 6 goal contributions in a match. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/4hWMbA0gsM

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 6, 2024