Thierry Henry always seemed to be on his phone. At least, that’s what Atlanta United midfielder Dax McCarty noticed when they played together with New York Red Bulls from 2011-2014, McCarty watching one of the game’s greats thrive in MLS.
Henry was such a recognized face in world football, and susceptible to mass attention in public. So, to create a cocoon of privacy, every time the Red Bulls were in public spaces, such as walking through a major airport, Henry would pull out his phone and spend the entire check-in process - from arriving at the curb to the second he got on the plane - talking.
That’s just one of many stories that McCarty and other MLS journeymen recall. These days it’s a glittery affair. Teams take chartered flights, play in front of tens of thousands of fans, and have all of their games streamed globally thanks to an Apple TV deal worth billions.
But 20 years ago, this was a vastly different setup, one of stodgy training pitches and unrecognized European veterans. Through it all, a select group of journeymen have survived, bouncing from club to club, city to city, and growing alongside a league that is still expanding. GOAL spoke to three MLS veterans who played for a combined 23 teams, and have tallied more than 1,000 appearances.
There's McCarty, a 19-year veteran. There's Eric Miller, who has played for six teams. And of course there's Kei Kamara, now of LAFC, who through trades and signings boasts perhaps the most extensive travelogue of any player in MLS, having worn the jerseys of 11 different clubs over his 20 years in the league. He is the journeyman of all journeymen, and, like no other, has seen MLS from all of its viewpoints, bouncing across the U.S. and Canada.
His North American tour makes for remarkable reading. In order, Kamara has played for Columbus, San Jose, Houston, Kansas City, Columbus (again), New England, Vancouver, Colorado, Minnesota, Montreal, Chicago and Los Angeles.
And the common thread among these MLS journeymen? Their passion for the game.
"I would much rather be a guy that has been around a long time, that's maybe played for a couple different teams and seen a bunch of different cities in this league than a guy who didn't make it as long," McCarty told GOAL. "That's the dream."